FAG wheel bearing - old/new, genuine/fake?

[wwdwgs]

Hello, guys.
I've two FAG rear wheel bearing, markings of which differ.
one is manufactured in 2015, another - 2020.
Marking sequence, box label, box internal prints orientation and box construction all don't match.
Was the change just because of new "style" from 2015 to 2020 or one of the bearings is not genuine?
Let me know, please.
see pictures below:

[wwdwgs]

more pictures:

[wwdwgs]

close ups:

2015 year bearing:


2020 year bearing:


2015 mark seems to be printed, 2020- etched.

[TibetanT]

Hello there:

Are you a PCA member ?

The reason I ask is: you could find all this information using PET and looking up all the part numbers.

NOT trying to be a jerk, but only trying to help you get answers quickly. OR, you could ask George

Hope this helps.

[wwdwgs]

I've pdf copies of PET catalogs.
Bearing number from PET (999 053 020 01) corresponds to FAG's number.

[jjeffries]

My two cents, nothing to back it up: I’d think they’re both kosher, just nominal marking differences from when and/or where (i.e., different plants) they were made. I say this thinking they’re probably not a high-enough price and/or volume product to be worth faking.

I could of course be wrong. Working with an Asian OEM, I’ve been shown all kinds of sneaky stuff, like filters, where telling real from fake is difficult. But those are mostly items that get sold by the hundreds of pallets/truckloads.

Best of luck, John

[wwdwgs]

John,
I'd expect some consistency from the manufacturer. Silly me.
I also checked a few places that sell these bearings and they show similar "printed" markings in the same order. I guess that bearing with printed markings are real, too.
Nowadays, even AA batteries could be fake.

[SeaCay]

Originally Posted by TibetanT

Hello there:

Are you a PCA member ?

The reason I ask is: you could find all this information using PET and looking up all the part numbers.

NOT trying to be a jerk, but only trying to help you get answers quickly. OR, you could ask George

Hope this helps.

Ed:

The PO's original question has nothing to do with part numbers, he's asking about counterfeit part identification. PET doesn't have a counterfeit part identifier to the best of my knowledge...

[jjeffries]

WWDWGS … and right you may be. I was shooting off the hip.

John

[OK-944]

A mild tangent perhaps...but sometimes I have a suspicion that even when a new part is "genuine," the quality of the old part is just so much better that it might be wise not to replace it until it truly shows signs of expiring.

My old Porsche-manufactured water pump, for example, still feels tight and is a thing of beauty, but with so many miles and years on it when I'd purchased the car that I replaced it with a new Geba unit.

Or more to the point with this thread...I replaced my front wheel bearings with new ones, just because the old ones were original to the car and had clocked almost 170k miles - but they actually looked fine and I wonder if the new ones will last as long as the old ones had I simply left them in place?

Then again, there can be real safety (or at least convenience) issues with component failure...but still.

[944 Ecology]

Lots of counterfeit stuff out there... If you suspect it to be counterfeit, buy it from a reputable source.

Ebay is not a reputable source.

[paulzebo]

Seconding lots of counterfeit out there. BUT,, there are a few reasons why the packaging can change. Sometimes the manufacture, like Porsche and other bid out the part(s) and the low bid gets the work. Providing it meets quality standards. The contract may run from a single large lot to a few years of production. No way to tell. Changing suppliers means changing packaging also. Sometimes the original supplier will change their packaging and add things to identify it as genuine. In your case the span of 5 years between production of the parts seems to indicate the went from a USA producer to one in Brazil. The Schaeffler Group also owns INA and LuK. I bought an “original ACDelco” part which had “Gates” installation instructions in the box. The tensioner arm said made in Canada. The base plate said made in Mexico and the box said assembled in USA. I wrote the ACDelco counterfeit site with the photos and after two months received a reply. Gates is an official vendor for ACDelco. The part is a genuine ACDelco part. If I were to guess, I would say both those parts a the genuine article. Just made in different countries, USA-Brazil.