Do You Need a Pair to Replace Car Wheel Bearings?

The wheel bearing is a component that is in the middle of the car wheel as the axle holder. So, this component is quite heavy duty because it must ensure the rotation of each wheel smoothly and withstand the weight of the vehicle. Therefore, over time the wheel bearings will be damaged and must be replaced. It's just, is it true that the replacement must be a pair?

Aha mechanic, Nissan & Datsun specialist, Anang Wahyu, said that the replacement of wheel bearings does not have to be a pair because the components are separated from one another. "You can just replace one, the wheel bearings are separate, not interconnected between one wheel and another," said Anang to Kompas.com, Tuesday (18/10/2022). He said that if one of the wheel bearings is damaged, it will be the wheel bearing that will bear the damage, it will not cause the other bearings to be damaged as well.

"In addition, the vehicle's performance when driving with damaged wheel bearings usually starts with a buzzing sound in the wheels, so it's not too dangerous," said Anang. He said that usually the repair shop would suggest to replace them in pairs if the components were both damaged. If it has not been damaged, according to Anang, it does not need to be replaced because bearing resistance can vary widely.

"It doesn't need to be replaced if it hasn't been damaged, for example the workshop said it had to replace a pair because of the age of use, that's just not right because the duration of using wheel bearings is very diverse," said Anang. He also said the most important thing is to make sure all the wheel bearings are checked one by one. "If all wheel bearings are checked, it is better to convey the information, so that each wheel is known what its condition is, has it been damaged or has started to break down or is still healthy," said Anang.

So, the replacement of wheel bearings does not have to be a pair because each wheel bearing works separately.