Wheel balancing is one of those routine maintenance items that many drivers overlook until the symptoms become impossible to ignore. At Brookes Auto Repair, we carry out wheel balancing as part of our tyre fitting service and recommend it at regular intervals — because an out-of-balance wheel creates problems that extend well beyond an uncomfortable ride.
What Does Wheel Balancing Involve?
Each wheel and tyre assembly has a natural weight distribution that is never perfectly even. Manufacturing tolerances in both the wheel and the tyre mean that some areas are fractionally heavier than others. When the wheel rotates at speed, these imbalances create centrifugal forces that cause vibration. Wheel balancing involves mounting the wheel on a balancing machine, identifying the heavy spots, and attaching small counterweights to the rim to equalise the distribution of mass.
Symptoms of Unbalanced Wheels
The most common symptom is a vibration felt through the steering wheel, seat, or floor at particular speeds — typically between 50 and 70mph. The vibration may be absent at lower speeds and reduce again at higher speeds. Over time, unbalanced wheels cause uneven tyre wear — typically a scalloping or cupping pattern around the tyre circumference — and place unnecessary load on steering and suspension components.
How Often Should Wheels Be Balanced?
Wheels should be rebalanced every time a tyre is fitted, any time a new tyre is puncture-repaired, after any significant impact such as hitting a kerb or pothole, and as a general check every 10,000 to 12,000 miles. Weights can fall off and tyre wear changes the mass distribution over time, so even wheels that were correctly balanced at fitting can develop imbalance.
Balancing vs Alignment: What Is the Difference?
Wheel balancing and wheel alignment are different — though both affect vehicle handling and tyre wear. Balancing addresses the distribution of mass within the wheel and tyre assembly. Alignment addresses the angle and direction in which the wheels point relative to each other and to the road. Both are important and both should be checked at regular intervals.
For wheel balancing and alignment services, visit Brookes Auto Repair at brookesautorepair.com
