The upper support bearing is an important element in the design of the Granta front strut. The “supports” are involved in the rotation of the front strut during a turn, and also absorb axial loads and provide rigidity to the mechanism.
The “support” itself is a housing of two cups, inside of which the bearing itself is located, consisting of a rubber separator with balls inside. It also contains gaskets (vibration and noise insulators). The listed elements, as well as the design of the front support, are presented in the photo.
Video review of the SS20 suspension (front struts, springs, bearings).
Video: “SS20 suspension: briefly about the main thing”
How to replace the support bearings of the front struts of a Lada Granta (VAZ 2190)
The upper support bearing is an important element in the design of the Granta front strut. The “supports” are involved in the rotation of the front strut during a turn, and also absorb axial loads and provide rigidity to the mechanism.
The “support” itself is a housing of two cups, inside of which the bearing itself is located, consisting of a rubber separator with balls inside. It also contains gaskets (vibration and noise insulators). The listed elements, as well as the design of the front support, are presented in the photo.
Video review of the SS20 suspension (front struts, springs, bearings).
Video: “SS20 suspension: briefly about the main thing”
Causes and signs of failure, diagnostics
The node takes a dynamic (variable) load, and failure, as well as replacement, is usually required for several reasons:
- Part wear, time to failure (service life);
- Accidents, frequent driving in potholes, aggressive driving style;
- Contamination of the support bearing from the inside, ingress of moisture and dust;
- Malfunction of suspension (shock absorbers, springs).
The main sign that a support bearing will need to be replaced is that the Granta rattles and creaks under the hood or near the struts. This appears after 80-100 thousand kilometers, under appropriate operating conditions of the car.
The design of the “support” and the front pillar is complex; the following elements can fail:
- The entire support, including the body (rarely) - position 4;
- Support bearing (more often) – position 8;
- Rubber gaskets wear out (more often) - position 9.
Diagnostics of support bearings
To diagnose a breakdown, do the following:
- Raise the hood, find the front supports;
- Place your hand over the knot;
- Start to strongly rock the car from bottom to top (or ask an assistant);
- If you feel a knock or hear, as well as other incomprehensible sounds, it means that there are problems. It is worth disassembling or replacing the front support mechanism.
- Watch the diagnostic video:
How to check support bearings
Malfunctions
The main sign of a failed support bearing is a knocking sound (dull knocks) in the area of the shock absorber strut. It may indicate that:
- the rubber gasket is damaged or deformed;
- The bearing itself is damaged.
Failure of the support bearing may occur due to:
- resource spent;
- penetration of dirt and moisture;
- exceeding permissible loads;
- mechanical damage due to shock absorber malfunctions.
How to identify a malfunction
To diagnose a support bearing failure, open the hood and remove the “cup” cover. Place your palm on the shock absorber housing and rock the front of the car. If you hear a knock and feel the corresponding vibration with your hand, the bearing is clearly faulty.
When to change
The service life of the “supports” is on average 50-100 thousand km, depending on the conditions in which the car is operated. After this resource has expired, it is recommended to change them. Replacement is also necessary if any malfunctions are detected.
Preparatory measures for replacing the support bearing Do-it-yourself grants
Replacing the support bearing of the Lada Granda strut can be done in two ways.
- Removing the front strut and unscrewing the wheel alignment bolts.
- Removing the strut module along with the rotating mechanism and brake disc assembly without unscrewing the adjusting fasteners.
Both methods cannot be performed without removing the strut, but using the second method, which is described below, you can avoid another wheel alignment.
Preparation for repair
It is advisable to carry out the replacement in an inspection hole, so you will save time on the convenience of performing operations to remove/install the unit. The car is in first gear; to comply with safety regulations, use wheel chocks.
Tools for work
- Any jack.
- Large wrench to remove chassis bolts.
- A long 30mm wrench for unscrewing the hub nut.
- Clamps for tightening shock absorbers.
- Tool for removing tie rod ends.
- Hammer, chisel, core.
- Set of keys (22, 17, 13).
- "Ratchets" on 13, 17, 19.
- Hex key for unscrewing the rod nut.
- Special heads. "Eshki" E8 and E12.
- Large negative screwdriver.
- Pliers.
- Penetrating lubricant such as WD-40.
- Torque wrench for tightening the rod nut.
Required set of new parts
- Supports or individual support bearings, depending on the breakdown;
- Rubber gaskets (if you are only changing the bearing);
- Boot with tie rod cotter pin (if replacement is required).
Front support bearings for Lada Granta. When to change
The service life of the front support bearings for the Lada Grant is even approximately difficult to calculate. A trained ear will immediately detect tapping sounds when driving over uneven surfaces. The original Grant support bearings of the front struts are not particularly reliable, since there are complaints about both the materials and the design of the standard bearing.
Factory standard support bearing for Granta and Kalina 2 assembled
On average, the front strut supports on a Grant have to be changed after 50-60 thousand mileage. Sometimes it is possible to reach 75-80 thousand if used on smooth roads.
A worn front strut bearing knocks ungodly, and if worn severely, it can cause a broken support cup if the driver has poor hearing or strong nerves. Also, the wear of the support cannot but affect the car’s handling and the behavior of the front end when cornering and when changing lanes. Therefore, there is no point in delaying replacement.
Worn strut bearings may stick
Cracks in the rubber bushing of the strut support
VAZ cars: repair, maintenance, tuning
Support bearings have a certain resource, which is quite difficult to predict. It all depends on their quality and operating conditions. Replacing the front strut supports on Lada Granta (VAZ 2190, 2191) and Kalina 2 (VAZ 2192, 2194) without removing them from the car will save a lot of time, money and allow you to check the condition of the front suspension.
What are the best rack supports for Granta?
The main requirements for Granta and Kalina 2 support bearings are endurance and reliability. The support bearing takes the entire load from the car body, as well as from the shock absorber strut, allowing the latter to rotate freely around the longitudinal axis.
The dynamic loads of the shock absorber rod are absorbed by a rubber damper. The more reliable it is, the longer the support will last. The spring rests against a support cup with a rubber-coated ball support bearing. However, different manufacturers offer different solutions for support.
Prop with modified caster
Thus, some supports are produced with reinforced bearings (balls of larger diameter), there are supports with a changed caster angle. To do this, the axis of the shock absorber strut is shifted by 6 or 12 mm, which ensures a change in the caster angle to 1°40′ or 2°45′, respectively.
In addition, supports are produced both for Lada Granta and Kalina 2 with electric power steering (article 21900-2902821-10), and for cars without electric power steering (article 21900-2902821-00).
Standard supports cost about $12 apiece, owner reviews about them are not the most encouraging, so most often you have to buy replacements for the original:
- Support bearing SS20 series Master, Gold, Drive, differ in caster angle and damper design. They last quite a long time and are easy to install. The price is about 26 dollars per piece.
ANVIS 2190
Rack Mounts , $27/pair, 6mm offset. Available for both Granta and Kalina 2 with and without EUR. Compatible with all types of springs (11190 or 11196), as well as the most popular KAYABA or SACHS struts. Sevi thrust bearings starting at $20 per pair. A budget option with the strut tilted by 1 degree and the shock absorber axis shifted back by 6 mm. Demfi , article number dff21901 (2190-2902822-12), are sold without a support bearing, which has catalog number 1118-2902840 . The price is about 15 dollars. Reviews are contradictory.
Technologies of the future , article number 2192-2902821 , price about 26 dollars per pair. There are few reviews, mostly positive. Budget Slovak supports LSA , sold without bearings, price about $10 per pair. supports (SA 0156) , complete with bearing, price 10 dollars apiece, run well, good assembly, bearing of standard sizes.
How to quickly change the support bearings of struts on a Lada Granta
To replace the standard worn support bearings on the Lada Kalina 2 and Grant, according to theory, it is necessary to completely remove the front strut. This is due to a loss of time, a bunch of special tools, and not everyone has experience in this regard. The strut support can be replaced without removing the shock absorber from the car, quickly and with your own hands.
What is needed to replace supports. Tools and accessories
To work, we will need a standard set of heads and plumbing tools. However, here is the complete list:
- Tie for springs of any design.
- Two jacks or a jack and a stand.
- Hexagon to keep the shock absorber rod from turning.
- New strut mounts complete with bearings.
- Magic penetrating lubricant WD-40 or something similar.
- Litol-24 or other grease.
Changing the Grant strut supports with your own hands
The process of replacing support bearings without removing the struts from the Granta is as follows:
- We tear off the wheel bolts, hang the car on a jack, and remove the wheel.
- We unscrew the stabilizer link to untie the stabilizer link from the link.
- We tear off the shock absorber rod nut, holding the rod itself with a hexagon.
- We load the rack; to do this, we place a second jack or stand under it. We load until the entire load is transferred to the second jack (stand).
- We compress the spring using ties, but not completely.
- We remove the stand (second jack), the stand should go down.
- We completely unscrew the support bearing. Now you can remove it from inside the wheel arch.
- We carefully clean the support cup from dirt; if installing the SS20 support, remove the lower support cup, marked in the photo.
- We install a new support and carry out assembly in the reverse order.
Since it is possible, we check the condition of the tie rod ends and ball joints, paying special attention to the condition of the boots. If they are damaged (cracks, tears), it is advisable to replace them with new ones.
Source
Practical advice
In order not to repeat the mistakes of novice car enthusiasts, I want to give you some tips.
They will definitely come in handy when repairing a LADA Granta car:
— buy bearings only from trusted sellers. Preferably in a car store, and not in your hands;
- do not buy a cheap product. The price, of course, tempts you, but then you will have to replace the product again.
- You may not have to replace the rear wheel bearing. Just try tightening the nut with a torque wrench. If the hum goes away, you can continue driving.
- if you have already undertaken to replace the bearing on one side of the car, it is advisable to do it on the other, even if it cannot be replaced. Its resource has also been exhausted. After a short period of time it will need to be replaced.
During the renovation process, you may encounter unexpected problems and questions. Feel free to write in the comments, contact me. I'm always in touch and ready to help with practical advice!
