Balancing/optimising wheels: General

Excessive wheel imbalance not only produces vibrations and causes the steering wheel to shake, but also results in increased wear on various parts of the running gear.

Even if the wheels are correctly balanced, excessive geometry errors (radial and axial runout) and misshapen tyres, e.g. accumulations of material at one point of the tyre structure (spring action of tyre changes as the tyre rolls), can cause rolling and steering imbalance.

Recommendations / prerequisites

• Wheel suspension elements must be in good technical order.
• The wheels must be clean and without foreign objects in the tyre.
• Use a tyre measuring gauge, for example V.A.G 1435, to check axial and lateral runout values on wheels without flat spots. Values less than 1.0 mm - better around 0.5 mm - are desirable.
• In order to achieve low radial runout errors or to optimise smoothness of rolling, it is expedient - and necessary in individual cases -to match the tyre (i.e. to mount it in a favourable position with respect to the wheel).
• If the rims (wheels without tyres) are true but the complete wheels have large axial and radial runout values (due to ply breakage or other damage), tyre replacement may be necessary.
• Balance used wheels only after they have been warmed up by driving, otherwise flat spots will simulate imbalance. Never perform matching in the case of flat spots.
• Correct tyre pressure is an important prerequisite.
• Place the balancing weights at the prescribed position. Refer to BALANCING WEIGHTS  for information about putting on the balancing weights.