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The short version
- A Forester wheel bearing is usually a rear one, and getting the old hub out is the hard part.
- The hub sits bare steel in a bare knuckle bore. The fit is close, so corrosion locks the two together.
- This page runs 1998 to 2019. Only the 2018 and 2019 rear falls past the catalogs checked here.
- Coating the bore to make removal easier is the common suggestion, and it is the wrong one.
Forester owners describe the same job over and over. The bolts come out, the hub does not, and an hour becomes an afternoon.
The complaint shows up across model years and across both ends of the car. It is common enough that shops budget for it before they even see the vehicle.
A design detail explains it, not bad luck.
Knowing that detail before starting the job changes how it gets budgeted. A shop that treats it as a routine hour is guessing.
Why a Forester wheel bearing fights you
The hub assembly goes into the knuckle bore as bare steel against bare metal, held to a close tolerance.
Water gets in and corrosion builds in that gap. The two pieces effectively weld themselves together over a few winters.
Pullers, heat and specialist tools are the normal answer. Plan for that rather than being surprised by it.
Removal difficulty and its causes are covered further on the failure page.
A shop unfamiliar with this knuckle sometimes reaches for a torch too early. Heat helps once the corrosion is broken up, not as the first step against a bolt that is merely tight.
Working the puller in stages rather than forcing it in one pull spreads load across the bore. A knuckle cracked from an impatient pull costs more than the bearing did.
The obvious fix that is the wrong fix
The common suggestion is to coat the bore so the next one comes out easily. It is understandable, and it is wrong.
Friction at that joint is part of what stops the outer race creeping. Lubricate it and a hard removal becomes a spun bearing instead.
Clean the bore back to bare metal and measure it instead of coating it. A spun bearing is a knuckle problem, not a parts problem.
It is worth ruling out before ordering another hub. A knuckle that has already spun one bearing tends to spin the next one too.
A worn bore can sometimes be sleeved rather than replaced outright. Ask a machine shop before assuming the whole knuckle is scrap.
The bulletin and the knuckle
A technical service bulletin covers rear bearing failures with a revised backing plate replacing the original design.
Older Impreza and Forester rear knuckles carry their own traps. A bent spindle and a brake type mismatch are both known issues when swapping parts between cars.
Check the current bulletin list against the vehicle in question. Warranty coverage in general is on the warranty page.
A dealer is the fastest way to confirm whether a given car falls under an open bulletin. Bring the vehicle identification number rather than relying on the model year alone.
A bulletin does not always mean a free repair. It can still narrow down which parts and labor steps a shop should follow.
Why the rear rather than the front
Symmetrical all wheel drive means every corner is driven. The rear does not get the easy life it has on a front wheel drive car.
Add water sitting in the knuckle bore. The rear becomes the more reported end on a Forester wheel bearing complaint, and that pattern is unusual for any make.
The front and rear are compared directly on the front versus rear page.
Most front wheel drive cars wear their front bearings first, simply because the front does more work. Symmetrical all wheel drive erases that head start.
None of this means the front never fails. It only means a rear complaint on a Forester should not be treated as unusual.
Diagnosing a Forester wheel bearing
- Do not assume the front, since the rear is the more reported end here.
- Coast in neutral at a steady speed to take the driveline out of the noise.
- Rock each wheel at twelve and six with the parking brake released.
- Rule out the tires, since all wheel drive cars wear tread unevenly when rotation is skipped.
- Compare hub temperatures after a drive across each side.
Full walkthroughs of both checks are on the checking page and the tire noise page.
A hub that hums at speed and a tire that hums at speed sound nearly identical from inside the cabin. Ruling out the cheaper cause first saves a needless removal.
A temperature check works best right after a steady highway run rather than after sitting in a lot. A hot hub compared cold against its opposite side is a false reading.
Forester wheel bearing part numbers
This page runs shorter than most on this site. The front resolves for every year from 1998 to 2019.
The rear stops at 2017 in the catalogs checked here. That single gap is named plainly rather than papered over with a guess.
| Years | Detail | Number |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 to 2019 | Rear, past the catalogs | match old part or VIN |
| 2019 | Front, shared listing with Ascent and WRX STI | WE61880 check price |
| 2015 to 2018 | Front, parallel listing | WE61907 check price |
| 2014 to 2018 | Front, second parallel listing, same years | WE61771 check price |
| 2014 to 2018, from 1/15/14 | Front, Bearing and Hub Assembly | 513413 check price |
| 2014 to 2017 | Rear, Bearing and Hub Assembly | 512518 check price |
| 2009 to 2014, through 1/14/14 | Front, Bearing and Hub Assembly | 513303 check price |
| 2009 to 2013 | Front, parallel listing | WE60548 check price |
| 2009 to 2013 | Front, second parallel listing, same years | WE60543 check price |
| 2009 to 2013 | Rear, Bearing and Hub Assembly | 512401 check price |
| 1998 to 2008 | Front, with seal 710226 | 513248 check price |
| 1998 to 2008 | Rear, with seals 710464 and 710463, shared with Baja | 517008 check price |
Every model year this chart resolves: 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019. A 2018 or 2019 Forester rear sits past the catalogs and goes by the old part or the VIN.
The catalogs print two different numbers for the identical span, twice over. WE61907 and WE61771 cover 2014 to 2018, and WE60548 and WE60543 cover 2009 to 2013.
No qualifier in either listing separates the pair.
Both members of each pair are genuine parallel listings for the same front position. Match the number stamped on the old part rather than guessing which one is correct.
Cross referencing a stamped number against these listings runs through the cross reference page. The rear beyond 2017 is the one gap on this page, and it has no listing in the catalogs checked.
The 1998 to 2008 rear also carries a shared listing with the Baja, a related model built on the same platform. That is a genuine shared part, not a mismatch to question.
A separate listing for 2006 and 2007, printed as 512328, sits inside the years the 1998 to 2008 front row above already covers. It does not appear as its own row because the span it names is already resolved.
A few entries labeled rear for 2018 and 2019 turned out on inspection to describe transmission parts rather than bearings. That is why the rear gap above is left open rather than filled with a listing that does not belong there.
Price links lead to Amazon searches for that number. As an Amazon Associate this site earns from qualifying purchases.
Common questions
Why is a Forester wheel bearing so hard to remove?
A bare steel hub sits in a bare knuckle bore at a tight tolerance. Corrosion in that gap locks the two together over time.
Should I anti-seize the bore?
No. It removes the friction that stops the race creeping, which trades a hard removal for a spun bearing later on.
Is there a bulletin?
There is one covering rear bearing failures with a revised backing plate. Check it against the vehicle before ordering parts.
Why the rear and not the front?
All wheel drive means every corner is driven, and water collects in the rear knuckle bore. That combination makes the rear the more reported end.
What about a 2018 or 2019 rear?
The catalogs checked for this page do not carry a number for it. Match the old part or the VIN rather than guessing from an earlier year.