I'd be changing the hub and the CV joint as a matter of course - the amount of heat that has gone through them is enormous.

If you do reuse the CV, deep clean all of the grease out and replace it as a minimum.

If you keep the hub, make sure it's still round and the outer races are fitting snugly.

holy smoke! reminds me of the time my son was pulling a trailered car and had this happen .We did have smoke.

thanks for the followup that we do not always get.

EEEEeeeeewwww!!!!

Problem solved. It was indeed the wheel bearing. It suffered a catastrophic failure that was 10 days in the making. Slight, momentary pulling to the left every 50 miles or so. I’d check the temp of the castle nut and would find it to be 5 - 10 degrees warmer than the right nut, but nothing dramatic. I jacked the front up a couple of times and found there was no movement when I wiggled the wheel at 12 and 6 and 9 and 3. Finally, the wheel pretty much locked up and I had the car towed home.

It was a PITA removing the hub as the bearings and spacers and such had welded themselves to the axle and hub. Upon inspection, the axle and hub survived without damage. I’m installing a new Timken bearing set, thrust washer and spacer today. Thanks all for your comments and suggestions.

The caliper could be at fault here, but I would not rule out the rubber brake hose either.    I've seen the rubber brake hose partially collapse, making the calipers lock up and pull to one side.    

Just a suggestion.

Michael

Intermittent caliper lockup.

Not a mini but I had a similar experience in a Toyota van. It does not have the same kind of caliper but in that case sticking slide pins in the caliper were the culprit.

Symptoms: Lock up, release when in reverse, then okay for a short while and lock up again.

Agree with Dan that a loose pad might be a cause but my guess is that it is more likely the caliper .

The intermittency makes it difficult to diagnosis. One tip (when you are driving and it partially locks up) is that the rotor and caliper will be hot to touch. Compare to the other side. If bad enough heat from dragging the rotor will be discolored.

Exception: When locked up fully the tire will be dragging and the rubber will be producing the heat and smoke. However, there may be some partial locking up along with the fully locked up and you would still have the metal parts hot.

I doubt the limited slip diff is an issue - if it was in neutral and the other wheel rolled, the problem isn't there.

Check your brake pads and installation very carefully - a pad lining might bee loose or the itself is not seated properly. Check that both caliper pistons are moving freely.

To my thinking, a wheel bearing would need to be very worn to cause a cam-lock type resistance, and if it did, I think it would occur in either direction. If it was worn, the lube would probably be gone and you'd hear the dry bearing sound over the idling engine while coasting along. A really worn bearing can also damage the hub where the bearing race sits. If it did happen, you'd need a new outer hub - been here, done that.

‘Rosebud’ begin pulling to the left intermittently. It felt like the left front brake was dragging. It got worse in a matter of days until I pulled over and had her towed back home. As it was being pulled onto the flatbed, the left front wheel would lock up and skid until we pushed the car backwards a few feet. The left front wheel would begin turning, then lock up again.

I’m not hearing any noise from the bearing and turning the wheel doesn’t effect the dragging. I’m pretty sure it’s not the brake calipers because the pulling isn’t associated with stepping on the brake. 

Before I disassemble the hub, I’m wondering if I need to think about the transmission or the limited slip differential being the culprit. Any thoughts?