Wheel bearing noise

[Silenceisgolden]

Hi all,
On the way to the dealer for 120K service on MY12 D4 I thought I heard a wheel bearing sort of noise, so asked the dealer to check while servicing. They confirmed some play in the front left wheel bearing, quoted $1150 to replace.
Yesterday I jacked it up to see how bad it was but could feel absolutely no play whatever. Is there a special technique needed to check these bearings, or is the old "Grab top and bottom of wheel and wobble" test adequate?
Grateful for any advice.
Cheers,
Paul

[PerthDisco]

A few good videos on YouTube on checking and replacing. Seems to be the top to bottom test is the way you check plus any noise. Seems a doable DIY job and aftermarket Timken hub assembly around $450ea. I priced at Rovacraft.

https://youtu.be/Hfg6dP2wLoo

[Colin Pedersen]

Having the same issue with my 2010 D4. At 90 to 100 kph there is an audible whine coming from the front end. Checked the wheel bearing and it's solid as a rock. Thinking it's the CV joint or maybe the Diff...although the whine is no more noticeable between acceleration or deceleration.

When it's jacked up, I can twist the left front drive train and feel movement back to the diff and hear a click click noise as I twist back and forth.

How hard is a diff rebuild??

[Silenceisgolden]

Colin, my noise was not a whine, more a sort of rumble. But from new mine has had a slight but noticeable whine I think from the transfer box.
Or it could even be your tyres, especially if it is not load conscious. I currently have Michelin Latitudes and they are much noisier than the OEM tyres. Their noise could almost be called a whine.

[RovingS]

I recently replaced both my front bearings at home, a pretty straight forward job. Nice big bolts to work with and no really issues. I think I paid around $500/side for the replacements. Id let it go for quite a while and they were seriously making a grinding noise when removed, but not really much play when doing the wobble test.

[Silenceisgolden]

I recently replaced both my front bearings at home, a pretty straight forward job. Nice big bolts to work with and no really issues. I think I paid around $500/side for the replacements. Id let it go for quite a while and they were seriously making a grinding noise when removed, but not really much play when doing the wobble test.

Thanks RovingS, that sort of confirms what the dealer said. I had my doubt because I couldn't feel the play. Good to know that it is a manageable do-at-home job.
Cheers,
Paul