Figured I'd post this here after going through a bit of a headache with my car. I've been in the midst of a complete suspension overhaul/replacement and one of the items on the list were the front wheel bearings. Let me preface this by saying I have the complete "hub tamer" master set so I'm wasn't going at this with large sledge hammers and 2x4's.

I ordered the correct front bearings from rockauto.com which were the Beck/Arnley brand. The bearings arrived and they installed without any issues. The hubs were pressed in and everything reinstalled. Immediately upon installation, I noticed a lot of axial play with the bearings and the press fit hub. I had no choice but to remove the bearings and check everything over. Upon initial inspection, it appeared the inner bearing "cages" broke. I ordered new bearings from suncoast porsche which arrived in boxes with Porsche part numbers. Before installation, I compared the new OEM Porsche bearings to the Beck/Arnley bearings. You can see the difference right away with the amount of material the hub rides on (inner races)

I installed the new bearings, pressed in the hubs and reinstalled the front suspension. Everything went together without a problem and there is no play whatsoever.

After contacting rockauto, the only resolution was a mfg warranty which would replace the bearings with new ones.

Figured I'd pass this along to any other members looking to do some maintenance. Spend the little extra bit of money and order the bearings from suncoast or pelican.

Beck/Arnley bearing on the bottom and Porsche OEM on top

 

Apparently Rock Auto and Beck Arnley are selling an incorrect bearing for Porsche application. Both are made by *** a large bearing manufacturer of good quality bearings. I don't think you can get a bad or poor quality name brand bearing. Bearings have different degrees of precision depending upon application, different types of shielding or sealing and also different methods of installation. I believe the Porsche wheel bearings use a single outer race and two inner races and have two sets of ***** and raceways and cages or retainers. Did you support the inner race when you pressed in the first set so you weren't pressing through the *****?

You may be able to reference the correct bearings by using the numbers on the upper bearing. If they are proprietary, they are made specifically for Porsche and the lower incorrect one was sourced as a possible replacement but may require a different installation technique or it is just wrong.

Thanks for pointing this out.