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Maintaining the tire balance on your vehicle is
critical to receiving satisfactory service from your tire investment. In
addition to a providing a smooth ride, balancing is a key component in
tire wear. The focus of this article is to help you understand the
balancing process and to know why it is important to keep your tires
balanced throughout their tread life.
For those of you who may think that tire balancing isn’t that
important, consider some industry trends—they may help you rethink the
issue. Perhaps the most compelling argument for precision balancing
comes from an obvious fact...vehicles are being made lighter and
lighter. The heavier cars of yesterday actually helped smooth-out the
ride by dampening many vibrations before they could be felt by the
driver. The softer suspensions also had the same effect. The second
factor is tire technology; generally, more responsive tires with lower
profiles (which send more road feedback to the driver) are being used in
today’s style and performance oriented market. By the way, lower
profile tires do provide lower rolling resistance, which helps fuel
economy. As a result, the slightest imbalance (as little as half an
ounce) can be felt in most modern vehicles; this is significantly less
than the average of ten years ago. For those of you who have plus-sized
your tires and wheels, balancing is even more critical.
Perhaps the best way to
begin is to discuss the lack of balance. When a tire is mounted onto the
wheel, two slightly imperfect units are joined to form an assembly
weighing forty pounds (this is the average for cars). The chances of
this assembly having absolutely precise weight distribution about its
radial and lateral centers are virtually impossible. Remember that all
it takes is half an ounce of uneven weight distribution for a vibration
to be felt. The illustration below shows how an imbalance creates
vibration.
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Static
Imbalance:
Occurs when there is a heavy or light spot in the tire so that
the tire won't roll evenly and the tire and wheel undergoes an
up-and-down motion.
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Dynamic
Imbalance:
Occurs when there is unequal weight on one or both sides of the
tire/wheel assembly's lateral centerline, thus creating a side-to-side
wobble or wheel shimmy.
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The static imbalance creates a hop or vertical vibration. The
dynamic imbalance creates a side-to-side or wobbling vibration.
Most assemblies have both types of imbalance, and require
dynamic balancing (commonly referred to as spin balancing) to
create even weight distribution. The balancing system directs a
technician to place counter weights on the rim's outer surface
to offset the imbalance. When the balancing system tests for
virtually perfect weight distribution, the assembly is in
balance and will not vibrate. Your tires will ride smoothly and
wear evenly (with regard to balance).
Other
Sources of Vibration
Very often the wheel/tire assemblies on a vehicle may be in
balance but you still feel a vibration! Here are some of the
other causes of vibration:
- Bent wheel
- Tire out of round (radial or
lateral runout)
- Wheel to axle mounting error
- Inconsistent tire sidewall
stiffness (force variation)
- Brake component wear or
failure
- Drive train or engine
component wear or failure
- Suspension wear or failure
- Wheel bearing wear or failure
- Wheel alignment is out
Hogan Tire can isolate many of these
problems for you, and there is no question that determining
whether the tire/wheel assemblies are good and in balance is the
first place to start. But ultimately this may not be the source
of your vibration problem.
Balancing
High Performance Tires and Wheels
- Match Mounting
Today's high performance tires and wheels are made with
features that facilitate optimum mounting. Wheels are marked
to identify the minimum radial run-out spot (low point) on
the bead seat surface. Tires are marked with a high point
location. Mounting the assembly to match these two points is
called match mounting. This method minimizes the balance
weight needed to correct any remaining imbalance and the
radial run-out that may occur in the wheel/tire assembly.
- Wheel Weight Placement
Many of today's wheel designs necessitate unique wheel
weight placement to achieve both precise balance and
esthetic appeal. Hogan Tire will use the best method for
your wheel type.
We make no guarantees or warranties, either
expressed or implied, with respect to the data on this site. All dollar
amounts, rates, specifications, equipment and other data are subject to
change without notice.
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