Wheel stud replacement: new bearings?

[ducatitodd]

I bought a 92 Caravan Saturday evening. In pretty good shape, but the left front wheel had two broken studs. I didn't look at it closely enough, as you are about to read. Started driving it home (slowly), made a right turn, heard a pop, followed by a wobble/rumble, and a feeling that the wheel was about to fall off. Well, I got it off the road okay and tried to tighten the remaining lug nuts. Guess what - they're stripped, and there are no parts or service stores open.

I leave it overnight, and come back the next morning. Went to Autozone and got all new wheel studs. Now - how do I get the wheel off with stripped lug nuts? Well, the holes in the wheel were ovaled out enough that I was able to get all but one nut to slip through. After about an hour of banging with a screwdriver and mallet, I was able to get the last hole wide enough the allow the lug nut to slip through.

Now I get a hacksaw and cut off the bolts with the stripped nuts. I was able to punch out all the studs with a hammer (there is just barely enough room with the hub turned to just the right spot).

I tried using a stack of washers and a lug nut to pull the studs through the hub, but all I ended up doing was stripping a lot of lug nuts. I finally managed to get the studs in far enough to clear the hub and not turn when I put the new lug nuts on, but still not flush with the back of the hub. What a pain in the a$$ that was. So, I mounted the spare and drove it home (about 50 miles). It held up okay, but I have a slight vibration when under acceleration. I pulled over every so often just to check the lug nut tightness, and could not get any movement.

So, here's my question - I know I need to have the studs pressed in all the way, but do you think the wheel bearings need to be replaced? Like I said, vibration is only under acceleration.

[iTurbo]

I would buy a whole new hub assembly. Comes with bearing and new studs pressed in.

[jdawg]

+1