Proper balance is key

Why is balancing your vehicles tires not just a good idea, but a must? 

Well most of us simply think of the obvious reason, for a smooth ride right? I mean, no one likes it when the steering wheel shakes at various speeds. Or the car shakes so bad the kids sit in the back and make humming noises so they can hear their voice rattle. You know what I mean.
But there's more to it than that.

Balancing your tires is important to your vehicles overall performance. As you drive your vehicle each day your tread wears. That wear changes the way the load of the vehicle is distributed around the wheel/tire assembly. Balancing your tires aids in reduced vibration but also helps with reduced tread-wear, even tread-wear and reduced stress on drivetrain components.

So how often should you have your tires balanced?

- Any time you have new tires placed on your vehicle you should have your wheels balanced. And by new I don't simply mean new from the store, I mean new to you. Even if, and especially if, you buy a used tire, be sure to have it balanced.

- If you hit something such as a pothole or curb or maybe you ran off the edge of the road, it's a good idea to do two things. 1) have the balance of your tires checked and 2) have your alignment checked.

- If you notice a vibration in the vehicle. Having the balance of the tires checked is a cost effective place to start your search to correcting the problem.

- If you look at your tread-wear and the tread looks wavy or scalloped, commonly referred to as cupping, you should have your wheels balanced.

- If you have not had any issues then it is recommended as a preventative measure to have your tires balanced somewhere around every 3-6 thousand miles.

When you bring your vehicle to Ian's for balancing, the process includes:

• Tire and wheel removal
• Mounting each wheel on a dynamic balancing machine
• Spinning each wheel to make sure the weight of the wheel and tire are balanced evenly around the axle
• Detecting and locating any imbalance
• Attaching a weight on the opposite side of the tire to compensate for the imbalance
• Remounting tires and wheels