Simple but important question, since the OEM units are failing early is it better to stay with OEM or go for a quality aftermarket unit like Timken.
Thanks for the input. You have to love the Internet. I bought two OEM hubs from a Toyota dealer in Arizona for $3 handling, no shipping, no sales tax for $478.12 vs 704.68 that both of my local Toyota dealers wanted.
Hi Mendel, a little over 57,000 Friendly Jacek, If you do a search on Wheel Bearings there are several posts from other members on this particular problem with the third Gen Prius. ALS
No idea, that was the purpose of the original question. And since no one could give me a definite answer on that question, I went with OEM units.
I'm late to help ALS but for what it's worth to others: With regard to Gen 2 fronts, the Timken appears to be an identical KOYO JAPAN stamped bearing to OEM. They are available on Amazon for ~$100 and I've done both fronts on my (daughter's) '07 with them. I have not had the pleasure with my 2010 yet, but at 121K and living in northern NY, I know it could be any day now. The one Amazon review of the Gen 3 rear bearing says, "...nearly identical to OEM, made in Japan." I will use the Timken for Gen 3, too. It's a substantial savings over even discounted dealer pricing and appears likely to be OE Koyo. Edit: I can't seem to link Amazon but searching this field will bring you to it: Timken HA590373 Wheel Bearing and Hub Assembly
An update, I got the bearings delivered from FedEx today and when I opened the box I got a surprise. They took an additional $14.17 off the bill since I used Paypal. My dealer five minutes away, 704.68 with tax Toyota Dealer in Arizona $463.95 with a $3.00 handling fee.
For just the BEARINGS? What are they made of, Unobtainium? Oh...it's a whole deal. What's up with that? Is the bearing a sealed assembly? Normally you service bearings (clean and lube) and replace only if there's sign of significant wear.
It comes as a single unit that can't be serviced. Stupid design in my opinion and a very expensive problem for Prius owners. BTW I plan on filing a complaint with NHTSA over this. 57,000 miles and my front bearings are already going bad? That is totally unacceptable coming from a company like Toyota.
Sadly, it's not. IIRC, standard service interval on wheel bearings (clean, inspect & relube) is pretty much every 50,000 standard driving miles. If it's a sealed/non-serviceable unit, you just run them until they wear out...which is a lot sooner than a setup you can service as needed. My pickup truck went almost 200K before the wheel bearings needed replacement with my doing the recommended service intervals. My motorcycle is in a similar situation. The wheel bearings are sealed units (have to be), so you can expect anywhere from 30-50K they'll start to tear up and need replacement because there's no way to service them during their lifetime.
When I got rid of my 1987 Volvo 740 Turbo wagon it still had the original wheel bearings in it at 370,000 miles.
