Hi Louis,

This weekend I heard a slight groaning sound from the front end while I was making a slight left turn at speed.  When I got home, I jacked up the front end and, sure enough, the passenger front wheel had some play in it.  A side note, the truck is parked in a garage and one day about a week prior, the ABS light came on for a few seconds right after I had started the truck, and then turned off by itself.  I had thought that was odd, since I hadn't been moving, but my truck was giving me a small clue that something was amiss in the front end!

Anyway, I need a new wheel bearing/hub assy.  I began pricing the part at the local store and they wanted $179 + tax for a Moog bearing.  I next turned to the internet and tried RockAuto, who had the same part number for $107 + tax + shipping.  A quick check of eBay showed this "same part" could be had for $86.99 no tax, free shipping.  This eBay account has sold over 500 of these "geniune Moog wheel bearings"!

Listening to every one of your podcasts has led me to believe that there is a high probability that the ones being sold on ebay are counterfeit.  Doing some research, it sure looks like this is a huge problem on ebay, from authentic LOOKING oil filters to spark plugs, you name it.  Your saying "You get what you pay for, but never MORE than you pay for" rings true.  Looks like those 500 people who bought those "Moog" bearings will be doing the job again in the near future.  Wonder if they will buy them from ebay again, thinking it must have been a "fluke" that they failed so quickly?

I discussed my findings with a friend I work with and he told me about this "great deal" he got for brake pads and rotors from ebay.  I told him not to be surprised if they don't last very long and/or perform poorly.  His response was that everything is made in China anyway, so what's the difference?

I told him a local store should stand behind their products, whereas an ebay seller can close the account and open another one under a different identity once they start getting too many negative feedbacks.  Not sure he's convinced I'm right..

Anyway, I thought this may be a topic for the show one day.  Not so much buying cheaper parts on the internet, but buying counterfeit parts disguised as the real thing.

On an unrelated note, I bought some new tires last fall on sale, and have them in my basement so I can put them on this summer (they are not on rims at this time).  I have them standing up in the same position they are as when they are on a car.  Some people have said it's better to store them on their sides.  Is there a preference?

Thanks for your time,
Joe