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What You Should Know About Tire and Wheel Balancing

Balancing tires and wheels before they are installed helps ensure a smooth ride and better tread life. Photo by Jim Park

The jury is still out on wheel balancing. We now have certified tests that show a small percentage of improvement in fuel efficiency, and balancing has proven to help prevent certain forms of life-robbing irregular wear, but it's not a routine maintenance item at a large number of fleets.

Years ago, before the big-name tire manufacturers got really good at producing tires, balancing was almost a requirement. Today, with much tighter manufacturing tolerances and state-of-the-art tools, tires are much more uniform and consistent in build. You can make an argument that modern tires really do not need balancing.

On the other hand, after the first mile of use the tire is no longer the same as the day it left the factory. Rubber scrubs off, chunks of tread get ripped away, irregular wear scrubs away tread rubber and on it goes. Maintaining balance in that tire may require some outside help.

Fred Staugh, vice president of maintenance at CRST, does not balance his tires. He spends a little more time ensuring they are mounted properly. He believes that unless there's a defect in the tire, if the tire and wheel assembly is round and running true, it won't need balancing.

"When I say round, I'm talking 60- or 90-thousandths of an inch of tolerance on radial and lateral runout as measured with a dial indicator," he says. "If you have that inspection process down and you use those guidelines, there's no reason on Earth to balance a steer tire."

Staugh believes you can eliminate the need to balance tires just by installing them properly and then checking them for runout and a heavy spot while on the vehicle. He says rims should be inspected ...Read the rest of this story

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