The Comprehensive Guide to Tire Balancing & Tire Rotations

The tires on your vehicle not only help get you from one place to another, but they also serve a critical role in ensuring the safety of you and your passengers while on the road. That’s why it’s so important to do everything you can to keep your car’s tires in optimal condition. Including them in your vehicle’s preventive maintenance routine will help you do just that.

Regular tire rotation and balancing are two easy services that’ll help assure your vehicle’s tires are safe to drive on, ensure optimal tire performance, and help protect your investment in new tires.

This comprehensive tire rotation and tire balancing guide will cover everything you need to know about these two important tire maintenance services.

Tire Rotation Service

Each of your vehicle’s tires is subjected to varying levels or types of stress, causing them to all wear at different rates. But having a routine tire rotation service done will help maximize the lifespan of your tires by ensuring more even tread wear.

Getting Your Tires Rotated

For a tire rotation service, the mechanic will take off each tire/wheel assembly on your vehicle and move/rotate it from one position on the vehicle to another, often moving the front tires to the rear of the vehicle and the rear tires to the front. Or sometimes, the mechanic will move the tires on the driver’s side to the passenger side and the passenger-side tires to the driver’s side. For some vehicles, the tire rotation will involve a combination of the two movements, moving tires in an “x” pattern. The exact pattern depends on whether your vehicle is front or rear-wheel drive and what movement was used at your last rotation service.

If there are two good tires and two worn tires, the better tires will usually be put on the rear of the vehicle to help prevent fishtailing, regardless of whether your vehicle is front-wheel, rear-wheel, or all-wheel drive.

While your vehicle is in the tire shop to have the tires rotated, the mechanic will also visually inspect them, checking for any other issues that could affect tire safety or performance. The mechanic will:

• Examine the tread wear on each tire
• Check each tire for any damage or foreign objects
• Check each tire’s air pressure and adjust as needed
• Tighten any loose wheel lug nuts

Catching minor issues early can help prevent them from becoming a major problem down the road (one that equals the need for tire replacement).

The expert mechanics at your nearest Lamb’s Tire & Automotive location can quickly and properly rotate your car’s tires, let you know if there are any issues, and help you select the perfect replacement tires when the time comes.

Benefits of Routine Tire Rotation

Tire rotation is one of the fastest and easiest ways to help protect the tread on your vehicle’s tires and your vehicle’s safety and efficiency on the road. Some of the specific benefits of regular tire rotations include the following:

• Ensuring even distribution of tread wear on the tires
• Preventing “cupping” from occurring on the tread
• Reducing added stress on other components (especially within the suspension and brake systems)
• Helping to maintain optimal handling and vehicle safety
• Ensuring optimal fuel mileage (saving you money!)

Without regular tire rotations, a deep, irreparable, and uneven wear pattern can develop on your car’s tires, decreasing its handling and causing it to pull to one side while driving, both of which are dangerous. Also, because worn tires strain your vehicle’s engine, it can lead to decreased fuel efficiency.

Tire Rotation Schedule

When your vehicle’s tires are relatively new, the deeper tread is more susceptible to uneven wear. That’s why we recommend having newer tires rotated at the 5,000-mile mark.

For tires past 5,000 miles, it’s best to stay on a rotation schedule of every 6,000 to 8,000 miles to promote even tread wear and maximize tire life. A good habit to get into is to have your car’s tires rotated and inspected during the same service appointment for the routine oil and filter change.

Tire Balancing Service

Normal manufacturing imperfections and everyday wear can cause weight imbalances on your car’s tires. When one or more tires are out of balance, it can cause a vibration in the steering wheel, seat, or floorboard, especially at faster speeds.

A vibration in the steering wheel often indicates an imbalance on one or both front tires, while a vibration in the seat most often indicates a rear-wheel imbalance. Out-of-balance tires will also wear faster or unevenly, leading to reduced fuel economy.

 

Getting Your Tires Balanced

Tire balancing is like a tune-up for your car’s wheel/tire assembly. This service ensures that the weight is evenly distributed around the wheel’s circumference. When it is, the tires will roll smoothly, wear more evenly, and last longer. Even though it’s a quick service, it does require expert experience and precision.

During a tire balancing service, we will remove the wheel/tire assemblies and mount them one at a time onto specialized balancing equipment. This equipment enables the mechanic to pinpoint any imbalances. The mechanic will then attach small lead weights, often weighing fractions of an ounce, in precise locations to the wheel rim to correct the imbalances and then remount the wheels/tires onto the vehicle.

The tires’ balance should be checked every two years, at the very least. If you regularly drive on bumpy roads, you should have the balance checked yearly.

Tire Balancing Schedule

Bring your vehicle to your closest Lamb’s Tire & Automotive location for tire balancing service if:

• A weight that was on the rim has fallen off.
• You feel a vibration in the steering wheel, seat, or floorboard.
• Your vehicle has uneven tire tread wear, especially in a cupping pattern.
• You’ve had a tire repair done.
• You’ve had new tires installed.
• You haven’t had tire balancing done in a long time.

We often recommend having a tire rotation and balancing service done simultaneously because both require removing the wheels/tires.

The Difference Between Tire Balancing and Tire Alignment

The terms “tire balancing” and “tire alignment” are often confused. Both services help maximize tire performance, drivability, and safety, but they are, in fact, two different things.

Tire balancing ensures that the weight of a tire is distributed evenly and the wheel/tire assemblies are spinning on the road properly. Alternatively, with a tire alignment service (aka wheel alignment), the driving angles of the wheels are checked and adjusted as needed, ensuring your vehicle is tracking straight while driving and helping prevent premature/uneven tread wear.

Additional Ways You Can Help Maintain Your Vehicle’s Tires

As you can see, regular tire rotation and balance will significantly help ensure even treadwear and optimal performance from your car’s tires for as long as possible. There are some easy, additional things you can do to extend the lifespan of your car’s tires significantly, further subsidizing the benefits these tire maintenance services will provide, including:

• Maintaining proper air pressure: This is the easiest way to help extend the life of your vehicle’s tires. Check the air pressure at least once a month and more often if you’re putting a lot of miles on your vehicle.
• Frequently inspecting the tires: The sooner things like punctures, gouges, or embedded objects are caught, the higher the chance of tire repair. So, make sure to inspect the tires closely every couple of weeks.
• Avoiding hazards: Avoid driving over uneven pavement, potholes, and other road hazards as much as possible. Doing so will help prevent tire imbalances and alignment problems that can cause uneven tire tread wear.
• Avoid excess weight: Make sure you stay below the tires’ max load capacity when you’re hauling heavy loads or towing.

Optimize the Performance of Your Tires—Schedule Your Tire Appointment Today!

When you need professional tire rotation and balancing for your vehicle, visit the experts at Lamb’s Tire & Automotive. Our experienced ASE-certified mechanics can help ensure you get the best performance from your car’s tires while also providing an unmatched level of service.

Our team can help determine your vehicle’s proper tire maintenance schedule based on its tire type and your driving habits.

Along with tire rotation and balancing, we specialize in a full range of tire and wheel services to help keep your vehicle safe on the road, including:

• Wheel alignments
• Flat tire repair
• Tire pressure monitoring system (TPMS) repair
• New tire installation

Make Lamb’s Tire & Automotive your go-to auto service shop in Austin and the surrounding areas. Our professional team has the experience and expertise to meet all your auto maintenance and repair needs at reasonable prices, all while providing exceptional customer service.