Front Wheel Growl on B4 even after Wheel Bearing Replaced

So the old lady's B4 wagon with 175K on it started to growl from the front end when cornering. Sound was coming from the front left when cornering to the right. I had my trusted mechanic replace both front wheel bearings, but the noise is still there.

There is no noise when cornering or manuvering slowly -- hence I don't think it is a CV joint.

Questions:

Should I have replaced the hubs as well?
Is it possible the hubs are turning inside the bearing when loaded up during cornering?

Any advice would be appreciated.

My experiences have been that the bad bearing gets quieter as load is applied. Turning to the right reduces weight load on the right and increases load on the left. A noisy left front bearing would get quieter, not louder, when turning to the right. A failing right front bearing would get louder turning to the right.
Your description of more noise from the left when turning right would not have me consider the wheel bearing first. I'd look at the strut top bearing, top strut rubber bush, caliper / rotor, control arm bushings, a fender liner rubbing on the tire tread,....

Those rear control arm bushings tends to get large cracks and can cause a whole lot of issues. They're cheap and fairly easy to replace, many have upgraded to the TT bushing for a tighter control arm.

've never seen a hub free spin within a wheel bearing that's not to say that it can't happen but the installer would have noticed that as an issue when he pressed the two assemblies together if that was the case.

Tires

I know this is old but it's the same problem I'm having. My tires are only about 14 months old and have 20,000 miles on them. They look great visually and appear to have lots of life left..did you ever sort out your problem?

On our 1993 Passat, I had the same problem, and several mechanics confirmed it was a front wheel bearing. Replace and still there. Ended up being a rear wheel bearing that seemed to transfer noise through to the front. Replace rear wheel bearing and problem solved.

happened on mine...the cause was I used a hammer and socket to drive the bearings in and not a press...premature bearing failure...like in only a few weeks