Tire balancing and alignment are different services. A tire balancing caters for the weight balance along the vehicle’s wheels circumference.
On the other hand, tire alignment caters for the angles of the tires hence affecting how the tire comes into contact with the road.
Knowing the difference between these two terms creates awareness of when you need tire balancing and alignment.
TIRE BALANCING
Tire balancing ensures that the wheels and tires sets are equal in weight. It involves mounting the vehicle’s tires onto a balancing machine.
Then the machine spins the tire and wheels setup to measure the imbalance.
Afterwards, a technician observes the measurement and assigns the correct tire weight for individual wheel and tire set up.
SIGNS OF BAD TIRE BALANCING.
1. Uneven and faster tread wear.
You may observe that the inner side of your tires wears out faster than the outer or middle parts.
And the other parts could also be wearing out unevenly.
Then this is how to know that you need tire balancing and alignment.
2. Poor fuel economy.
In case you have driven your vehicle for a while then you know how much fuel you need to cover a specific distance.
Now, you may notice that the same amount of fuel does not cover the usual distance as usual.
A wheel imbalance could be among the issues that are causing the poor fuel consumption.
3. Vibrations in the steering wheel.
This is common where the wheel imbalance is on the front wheel.
But if the rear wheels are imbalanced, the vibrations will be felt on the floor of the vehicle.
The vibrations usually get worse as the speed increases. The wheels usually wobble up and down.
TIRE ALIGNMENT.
This involves the correction of the tire’s angles to ensure that the tire’s circumference hits the road evenly.
Both alignment and balancing can be done at a go in the same instance.
Alignment helps in ensuring that tires are long lasting and serve over a longer mileage.
Alignment is done for the front pair of tires in relation to the rear pair.
If you notice vibrations as you drive, tire balancing and alignment, a bent wheel or a worn out suspension system could be the issue.
