Re: RE: Brake rotors

["Michael & Carmen Keith" <mikeandcarmen@pdq.net>]

Is this caused by normal exposure to moisture or from driving the car
through high water, & why is it unique to the GLX?

By the way, while we're on the subject of wheel bearings, I hope you don't
mind if I pick your brain a little.  I had a six hour enduro the weekend
after Thanksgiving.  The track has a general counter clockwise direction to
it; so I would expect that the right side of the car has more stress on it.
However, I found it unusual that I went through two wheel bearings on the
right rear.  The first one was brand new, & the second was a spare with very
few hours on it.  I'm wondering if I should try to find a better quality
wheel bearing (I use Timken brand) or if the drum brakes that are currently
in the rear are generating excessive heat which is causing the bearing to
fail (after 30 minutes of track time, a brand new drum had the sort of
discoloration that would make you think that I took a torch to it).

Thanks!

Michael Keith
Pasadena, TX
'98 Jetta GLX
'85 Golf SCCA ITB/DSP

p.s. - Chalk another one up for VW; we won our class in the enduro!
-----Original Message-----
From: deecee@exit109.com <deecee@exit109.com>
To: jettaglx@igtc.com <jettaglx@igtc.com>
Date: Saturday, December 12, 1998 9:28 PM
Subject: Re: RE: Brake rotors


>At 03:55 PM 12/12/98 -0600, you wrote:
>>I know that the front wheels have sealed bearings that are not
serviceable.
>>To have these go out at 60,000 is not the norm (at least not for most
other
>>cars I've had).  These cannot be serviced & must be replaced, & it is
>>impossible to replace them without a press.
>>
>>In my previous message, I was assuming that the rear wheel bearings in a
GLX
>>are conventional wheel bearings like those in the A2 cars that can easily
be
>>serviced (except for the bearing races).  If the rear wheel bearings in a
>>GLX are of the non-serviceable variety, then nothing I stated in my
previous
>>message is applicable.  However, if indeed the rears are non-serviceable,
>>then it shouldn't be necessary to replace them because non-serviceable
>>bearings usually have a very long life.  Again, this is based on my
general
>>experience & may not apply directly to the GLX.  I don't know because my
GLX
>>only has 13,000 miles on it; so I haven't had to mess with it at all.
>>
>>Michael Keith
>>Pasadena, TX
>>'98 Jetta GLX
>>'85 Golf SCCA ITB/DSP
>
>Michael, The rear wheel bearings on the GLX are just ordinary tapered
>roller bearings. I believe they are the same bearings used in the Type II
>or Type III. I would have to check the part number to be sure. The inner
>races are banged out with a drift and the new ones reinstalled the
>opposite. I have a 1992 Jetta ECO Diesel with 240,000 miles and still have
>the original front and rear wheel bearings as well as the original rear
>brake shoes.
>
>The problems I have found with the fronts on the GLX are water gets in and
>causes premature bearing failure.
>
>Don
>
>VWDealer@onelist.com
>
>