[talldatethrow]

Almost every car my family owns is over 200k miles, and we recently got rid of a 290k mile Volvo S80. I do all the work on all of our cars, and I've never had to replace a wheel bearing.

[iancmceachern]

We usually get 80-100k out of them on them:

https://www.bellandbell.com/service/service-and-parts-tips/h....

I too have had cars that went far longer than this without replacement, but they probably should have been replaced.

Just because you didn't have to, doesn't mean you shouldn't have.

[talldatethrow]

If a dealership's marketing says they last 100k, you can be certain they'll go 200k. They don't call them stealerships for nothing.

I'm as good of a mechanic as a diy gets. I've rebuilt entire auto transmissions instead of just sticking in another unit. I've regearied rear ends (which did get interior bearings while there). I do head gaskets as favors to friends.

I'm fairly certain all of my 200k+ mile vehicles have had perfectly safe and functional bearings.

[iancmceachern]

When was the last time you had the alignment checked?

[talldatethrow]

Never because I don't trust 90% of alignment jobs done by regular shops.

When we lifted our 4runner I did it myself with tape measures. 40k miles later tires wearing better than most new vehicles.

But are you implying that a bearing can be so bad that it throws off alignment, yet I wouldn't feel that massive play while it's going down the road??

[iancmceachern]

I'm saying a lot of people wouldn't know the difference, and would just drive it until the wheels fall off.

[rightbyte]

You got lucky. Wheel bearing failure is usually a damage (pot holes) or manufacturing defect that slowly propagates.

[talldatethrow]

That's some great luck. 4 corners * 6+ cars between mine and parents * 200k each. Only advantage I guess could be that it's in California without rust or salt splashing everywhere.