A shaft-clinching process aimed at developing a lightweight, integrated and highly reliable assembly is a very effective technique for the assembly of hub-bearing units. In this study, a reliable elastic-plastic finite element model of the shaft-clinching assembly process was developed by using the Abaqus platform and was applied to simulate the shaft-clinching assembly process of automobile wheel-hub-bearing units. To ensure the precision of the developed finite element model, the motion equations of the rivet head during the shaft-clinching process were obtained on the basis of theoretical derivation, on-site testing and the structural parameters of the equipment. Further, a series of experiments was performed for identifying the mechanical properties of the investigated material and the realistic friction conditions existing at the rivet head-workpiece interface. Based on the obtained reliable preprocessing data, the developed finite element model was used to simulate the shaft-clinching assembly process. Subsequently, the finite element model was validated using experiments on the shaft clinching of a wheel-hub-bearing unit. Comparison between the simulation results and the experimental results in terms of the axial clinching force-time curve and the ultimate deformed shape of the hub shaft showed good agreement, thereby validating the developed model. Finally, the influences of the axial distance between the upper surface of the inner ring and the forming surface of the rivet head, the friction factor, the radius ratio of the internal gear to the external gear and the maximum inclination angle of the rivet head on the clinching process were studied. The results of this study are expected to aid optimization of the shaft-clinching assembly process.