Bad input shaft bearing symptoms and replacement cost

One of the crucial components you have to worry about is your car transmission. There you will find an input shaft bearing. This is the part that keeps the input and outer shafts rotating constantly. So, when it goes bad, it can affect the whole functionality of the transmission system.

Now, identifying a lousy input shaft is essential. The best way to do that is to look out for the symptoms and signs of a bad input shaft. Here, I will go through the five symptoms that indicate something wrong with the input shaft bearing.

Symptoms of a bad input shaft bearing

Having a bad input shaft bearing can have serious consequences. It’s essential to realize that the input shaft bearing is bad and get it fixed as soon as you can. So, let’s check out the symptoms you should be aware of for a bad input shaft bearing.

1. Noises even in neutral

Are you getting noises from your engine even when it’s in neutral? Then you probably have a bad input shaft bearing in your engine. It mostly happens when the bearings wear out.

The noises will also change depending on the speed. Whenever the speed changes, you will hear a different kind of noise coming from the engine. These are the clear signs that there is something wrong with your input shaft bearing.

However, another reason for this problem is the lack of gear oil. If there is a lack of oil in your gears, then you may get this same issue. So, you should check up on both things to verify which one is causing the issue.

2. Constant gear noises

If you are constantly getting noises from your gears, that can indicate a bad input shaft bearing. Now, you can pretty much assure that it’s the input shaft bearing by stopping your car. Because when the problem is caused by the input shaft bearing, the noise won’t stop even after you stop your vehicle.

Furthermore, if you get a different tone of noise every time you change the gear, that also indicates this problem.

However, if the noises stop when you stop the car, this mostly means something is wrong with your output shaft bearing. So, you can figure that out as well from this symptom.

3. The noise stops with the clutch pedal.

Whenever you press your clutch pedal, a constant noise you may have been hearing goes away. This is a clear sign of something wrong with your input shaft bearing. This happens because the clutch disconnects any rotation on the engine transmission.

So, when you hear a noise consistently, and it stops right after pressing the clutch pedal, you can assume that your input shaft bearings have some issue.

4. Gear slipping often

Well, if the input shaft bearing of your engine has worn out or gone bad, you will face this issue. Your gears will slip automatically whenever you are stepping on your clutch. The reason for that is, a worn-out bearing makes too much movement in the shaft that slips the gear into another gear without you having to do it.

Because of this issue, the gear shafts get misaligned. Then you end up with this issue. There are some other reasons for this happening as well. So, you should check up on those problems as well.

5. Vibration

This part is closely related to the first symptom that I discussed here. When you are getting those engine noises constantly, you will also feel a little bit of vibration. This happens whenever you are shifting your gears. It just shows the demands from your engine coming in the shape of vibrations.

While they aren’t as annoying or noticeable as those noises, they are still bothersome. So, you have to consider them as a possible issue and get your car fixed as soon as you can.

Well, these symptoms can also occur due to other reasons and issues. After seeing these symptoms, there is no reliable way to say that your input shaft bearing has gone wrong. But it would help if you still did a little troubleshoot and did not ignore these signs at all. Now, I will take you through a bit of the process of how you can troubleshoot the problems.

Related: Bad Shift Linkage Bushing Symptoms

Diagnosing the problem

Before you go into a solution, you have to be sure what the problem is. Sure, you can just see the symptoms and go to a mechanic to fix the issue or replace the parts. But if you can find out the actual problem, you can go to the mechanic and tell them about the issue.

There are two things you can do to diagnose the problem. One is, setting your gear to neutral and releasing the clutch pedal. If this stops the noise, you were getting while in neutral, this indicates that there is something wrong with your input shaft bearing.

Also, check for the gear shaft alignment. If it has misaligned, then you might have issues with the input shaft bearing as well. Either way, you will need to replace the bad input shaft bearing. So, let’s go through the replacement cost of this part.

Related: Bad Crankshaft Pulley Symptoms

How much does it cost to replace the input shaft bearing?

Here, you can save up a lot of money if you have mechanical skills because the replacement parts can only cost you somewhere around $30 to $80. However, the whole process takes a lot of time and effort, which is why you will have to pay a lot for the labor cost. The amount goes from $150 to $230 in general. Unless you find a cheaper auto-mechanic, you will have to pay that much for the labor cost.

Related: How to test a hydraulic lifter

Wrap up

In short, knowing the bad input shaft bearing symptoms is very important because it’s a critical issue. When you don’t fix the issue right away, it can cause further damage to your car engine and make it completely useless. That’s why knowing these symptoms is so important because then you can get them fixed as quickly as possible.

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