Caution: Failure to adhere to the following precautions before tire balancing can result in personal injury or damage to components:

Important: Tires may be balanced either on-vehicle or off-vehicle, but the off-vehicle balancing procedures are recommended. Off-vehicle methods are better because tire rotation will not affect the balancing. The off-vehicle balancers are also more accurate than the on-vehicle balancers. Off-vehicle balancers can perform dynamic balancing as well as static balancing.

Tire and wheel balancers can drift out of calibration without warning or become inaccurate as a result of abuse. The balancer calibration should be inspected every two weeks or whenever the readings become questionable.

1. Spin the balancer without a wheel or any of the adapters on the shaft.
2. Inspect the balancer readings.

Specification
0.00-0.25 oz.

3. Balance a tire and wheel that is within radial and lateral tolerances to ZERO.
4. Add a 3-ounce test weight to the wheel at any location.
5. Spin the tire and wheel again. Observe the readings.

•	In the static and dynamic modes, the balancer should call for 3 ounces of weight, 180 degrees opposite the test weight.

•	In the dynamic mode only, the weight should be called for on the flange of the wheel opposite the last weight.

6. With the wheel unbalanced to 3 ounces, cycle the balancer five times.
7. Take the balancer readings:

Specification
Variation: 0.25 oz or less.

8. Index the tire and wheel at four separate locations on the balancer shaft, 90 degrees apart.
9. Cycle the balancer with the weights at each location.
10. Take the balancer readings:

Specification
Variation: 0.25 oz or less.

Static and dynamic balance are two kinds of tire/wheel balancing:

1. Static balance, also called single plane balance, affects the distribution of weights around the wheel circumference.
2. Dynamic balance, or two-place balance, affects the distribution of weight on each side of the tire/wheel centerline.
3. Most off-vehicle balancers can check both types of balance simultaneously.
4. As a general rule, most balancers are most sensitive to static imbalance that to dynamic imbalance. As little as 0.50 - 0.75 oz may induce a vibration in some vehicles. Vibration induced by static imbalance will cause a vertical, or bouncing motion of the tire. Dynamic imbalance results in a side-to-side motion of the tire, or shimmy.



5. Balance all four tires/wheels as close to ZERO as possible.
6. Carefully follow the wheel balancer manufacturers instructions for proper mounting techniques for different types of wheels.
7. Aftermarket wheels, especially those incorporating universal lug patterns, are potential sources of runout and mounting problems.
8. Use the correct coated weights on aluminum wheels.
9. Retest the tire and wheel for excessive runout after correction and installation.
10. Evaluate the vehicle at the complaint speed and note if the vibration has been corrected.
11. If the vibration is still present, or is reduced but still unacceptable, consider these possibilities:

•	On-vehicle imbalance

•	Radial or lateral force variation

1. Locate the wheel weights on the inboard rim flange. If during static balancing more than 28 grams (1 ounce) is needed, split the weights as equally as possible between the inboard and outboard flanges.
2. Use special polyester-coated clip-on wheel weights in order to balance factory aluminum wheels. These weights are designated MC or P, and must be used on aluminum wheels having a wide 7.6 mm (19/64 in) flange. Use a plastic tipped hammer in order to prevent damage to the weight's coating during installation.
3. Adhesive wheel weights are also available. Use the following procedure in order to install adhesive wheel weights.

3.1.	Determine where the wheel weigh is to be located on the inboard side of the wheel.

3.2.	Clean that area by sanding to bare aluminum. Do NOT sand the outboard side of the wheel as this will damage the clear coat finish.

3.3.	Wipe the sanded area with a mixture of half ispopropyl alcohol and half water. Use a clean cloth or paper towel.

3.4.	Dry the area with hot air until the wheel surface is warm to the touch.

3.5.	Warm the adhesive backing on the wheel balance weight to room temperature.

3.6.	Remove the tape from the back of the weight. Do not touch the adhesive tape.

3.7.	Apply the wheel weight and press on with hand pressure.

3.8.	Secure the wheel weight with a 70-110 N·m (16-25 lb ft) force applied with a roller.