I have a realtively new to me 2004 WJ 4.0 4 wheel drive that is making a grinding / dragging noise that is coming from the drivers side rear wheel area. My first thought was wheel bearing, Nope. Then I thought it might be the emergency brake shoes dragging. Nope. My next thought was rear axle bearing. Unfortunately, replacing the axle bearing is beyond my skill level. I took it to a local mechanic, I did not tell him my suspicions, but he said same thing, it needs an axle bearing, he is 100% sure. He is a good mechanic, but in the past, his 100% disagnosis have been wrong about 50% of the time and "unforeseen issues" have arisen.. Not his fault, as I realize some issues are not apparent until you tear into it. I do feel like he can be a bit overly optimistic, and what sometimes is estimated to be am easy fix turns out to be much miore than I bargained for. I expect in this case there will be at least some "unforeseen issues" that will add up as is typical with an older vehicle. He quoted me $280 to replace the bearing. Can anyone comment on the price and what the potential other problems could be? Thanks in advance for any tips or advice on what to look out for.

 

Update: Ended up costing $360. The mechanic said both sides were bad and ended up replacing both bearings and the seal kits. I expected something additional as it appears to be this mechanic's M.O. All in all, just happy to be back on the road. I certainly do not mind paying for the expertise and the time of a professional, but it would be nice to know in advance what costs I am facing.