Debunking Hybrid and Electric Vehicle Wheel Bearing Myths

There’s a lot of buzz, concerns, and myths when it comes to servicing hybrid and electric battery vehicles.

One is that it’s going to put us out of business, that these things don’t need the same level of service as a regular internal combustion vehicle. But in the case of wheel bearing, the opposite is true. Let’s say you have a hybrid electric vehicle. For the sake of this argument, let’s concentrate on a Toyota RAV4 hybrid and the regular internal combustion variant. That hybrid vehicle has a lot more weight into it.

It has a battery pack, an inverter, also a motor/generator. These add to the mass of the vehicle. And where does that mass go? Typically, on the wheel bearing itself. So these vehicles are actually harder on the wheel bearing, even though the part number for replacement might be the same.

So just keep this in mind in your servicing a hybrid vehicle, that you want to choose the highest quality bearing possible, because on that hybrid, it’s going to go through a lot more punishment. For electric vehicles.. Well, just keep this in mind. They’re also heavy. It’s a heavy motor. It’s a heavy battery pack.

And these things are going to need replacement, too. These are not high-tech bearings. They’re just like conventional bearings. There’s no ceramics or mystery materials inside. They use the common rollers and races that normal bearings shoes.

So just keep this in mind when a customer comes to you to service either their hybrid or electric vehicle. And you could say, yes, we can replace that wheel bearing or diagnose that hum that they’re hearing going down the road.

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