Which wheel bearings/hubs to buy?

[Massimo]

I love FAG's I have four of them.

[QUKBMER]

Out of all those brands,FAG brand holds up the best. We have been using that brand as long as i have been working my boss (since 1994-up)

[nrubenstein]

The best thing about FAG bearings is that you can recycle the boxes for gifts.

[10Toes]

I got SKF's from blunt.

[Jand3rson]

FAG or SKF.

[somnambulist]

Optimal bearings are definitely chinese with misleading packaging

I bought a pair of Optimal rear bearings for a quattro, just to see what sort of quality they really were, and where they were manufactured

I was already suspicious because their website makes conveniently vague statements such as "kits assembled in Germany" but nowhere do they say the important words MADE in Germany

This is exactly what Meyle do, except perhaps Meyle are a little more up-front in admitting that they are a re-packager type of operation with a lot of their products

The eBay seller from whom I sourced them is claiming they are "German Bearings". He is a fraud, as is anyone selling Optimal product and making that claim - at least based on my experience

The packaging also says only "Germany" but not "made in Germany"

To cut a long story short, the bearings themselves (which were in sealed packaging) bear the imprint "Hudson JNC"

Here is the website for that manufacturer: http://www.hudsonjnc.com/

Guangzhou Hudson JNC International Trading Co.,Ltd is located in Guangzhou,an economically prosperous city in China.The company has the right of handling import and export and specializes in High quality Auto parts. Our main product including Wheel bearing,Belt,Special tools and so on,the company is strictly executing the international technical standard in order to guarantee and perfect every unit’s quality.

CHINESE BEARINGS OF UNKNOWN QUALITY ARE WHAT THIS COMPANY IS SELLING, BUT AT CLOSE TO THE PRICE OF A PREMIUM BEARING


from now on it's back to FAG, SKF or Ruville all the way, for me

[jrobie79]

Timken repackages FAG. Just as an FYi.

what he said, IIRC 75 bucks at autozone or advance, forget which one

[Rigmaster]

Not sure where the thread is, but Advance Auto sells MOOG branded hub/bearing that is actually a reboxed FAG. Last time I checked the cost was $78, and Advance is almost always running some sort of discount/coupon deal that could save you more.


Also, if you can find a Beck-Arnley branded hub/bearing, chances are pretty good that it'll be an SKF inside the box- at least that's what mine is that I carry in my track spares box.

[TimKninja]

Alittle bit of a Bump. Ive been trying to avoid buying the cheapest front wheel bearings, as this is kind of an important part of the car. Im on a bit of a budget too.

Partsgeek (One of my favorite places to get parts) lists

Pronto($30)
Parts Master ($31)
First equipment quality ($50)
Beck/Arnely ($108 )
Ruville ($113)
And FAG($114)

Trying not to spend a shitload, but dont want a cheap quality part. Its what my front wheel bolts to after all, Id rather not buy a cheap chinease POS and have it fall apart. mine are howling and I should probably do them before I go to H20 On Friday. Anybody go with FEQ and have any luck with them? I have Front FEQ strut tops and they dont seem too bad, one had a bit of play , and the OEM bearing covers dont fit on top. :/

[noid]

Price out koyo bearings (by looking them up in their catalog then searching via part number). They are very high quality units, and are an oem supplier to BMW, Chevrolet, and others.

[SkiFree]

Alittle bit of a Bump. Ive been trying to avoid buying the cheapest front wheel bearings, as this is kind of an important part of the car. Im on a bit of a budget too.

Partsgeek (One of my favorite places to get parts) lists

Pronto($30)
Parts Master ($31)
First equipment quality ($50)
Beck/Arnely ($108 )
Ruville ($113)
And FAG($114)

Trying not to spend a shitload, but dont want a cheap quality part. Its what my front wheel bolts to after all, Id rather not buy a cheap chinease POS and have it fall apart. mine are howling and I should probably do them before I go to H20 On Friday. Anybody go with FEQ and have any luck with them? I have Front FEQ strut tops and they dont seem too bad, one had a bit of play , and the OEM bearing covers dont fit on top. :/

Based on pricing, you're not going to get anything decent if it's $50 or cheaper (unless their listing it for the bearing only and you would need to press them into your old hubs). Of that list I'd go with any of the bottom 3 (my Ruville front shock mounts had Koyo bearings pressed in).