Here’s How Wheel Balancing Improves Your Car’s Performance

by West Road Customs Automotive

While driving, every car owner expects a smooth and even ride. Your car’s suspension is always working to even out all the bumps and vibrations from the road. However, if the ride disturbances originate from your car itself, it’s indicative of imbalances on the wheels.

The weight of a wheel needs to be equally distributed around the axle. Asymmetries in a wheel’s mass distribution generate periodic forces and torques that causes vertical and lateral vibrations. It may also cause your steering wheel to oscillate.

So, How to Prevent These Disturbances from Occurring?

Through wheel balancing, you can ensure a smooth and comfortable ride. Wheel balancing is the process of equalising the combined weight of your car's tyre and wheel assembly. It prevents the generation of unbalanced forces when the tyre rotates. Hence, opt for Wheel Balancing Peterhead after every 6000 miles.

Uneven distribution of mass is inevitable in a wheel and tyre assembly. For instance, the wheel's valve stem hole subtracts a minor amount of weight from one side of the wheel. Tyres also have certain imbalances due to factors like distortion in the joining point of the cap piles. These small imbalances can easily become considerable imbalances in centrifugal force at high speeds. As a result, the tyres/wheel assembly spins with a wobbling motion.

Now, let’s look at the benefits of wheel balancing.

How does Wheel Balancing Help With Better Vehicle Performance?

Ensures a comfortable ride

Minor ride disturbances aren't an issue when driving for short distances. However, when driving for long hours, even slight vibrations can become a problem. These vibrations increase fatigue and causes discomfort. Moreover, they can be a major inconvenience for young children and elderlies.

Promotes even tread wear

Tyre tread wear is a significant concern for all car owners. Although tyre tread wear is inevitable, ensuring that it happens evenly is your responsibility. Uneven tread wear results in increased rolling resistance and unpredictable steering response. It's also detrimental to tyre's wet grip and cornering stability.

Imbalanced tyres will erode unevenly. Moreover, tyre imbalance causes localised damage; keep your eyes open for a cupped pattern tread wear. A tyre’s rolling resistance increases when it’s tread is damaged and unevenly worn. Higher rolling resistance leads to increased fuel consumption. Along with balancing, Wheel Alignment in Peterhead is also vital for even tread wear.

Protects the Suspension

When driving with imbalanced wheels, your car's suspension components will sustain a lot more vibrations and shocks. As a result, the struts, damper springs and the shocks will have to endure a lot more stress. Hence, they'll sustain a lot more wear and tear and deteriorate earlier.

What does a Wheel Balancing Service Involve?

Wheel balancing from a professional garage involves a mechanic fitting the wheel onto a spin balancer machine. The machine detects the points in which mass imbalances are present. Then the technician fits counterweights at appropriate spots.

Professional assistance is vital to ensure that the attached weights don’t degrade your wheel’s aesthetics. So, visit a professional garage such as West Road Customs.