The Difference Between Wheel Balancing and Wheel Alignment

The difference between wheel balancing and wheel alignment is an important differentiation to understand before you head off to your local tyre retail store. At Bob Jane T-Marts fitting and balancing is included in the price of the tyre, or wheel and tyre combo purchased. A wheel alignment is a specialised mechanical adjustment of the vehicles measured steering and wheel tracking geometry to manufacturers specifications.. This may sound like an up-sell, however when the technical setup of a vehicles steering is considered, one would want to make sure that the steering is set to the correct specifications. This will ensure that the new tyre footprint is maximised on the road to provide the best performance, but more importantly reduce the risk of irregular tyre wear, which in turn will increase service life on the set of tyres.

Both balancing and wheel alignment are crucial elements to regular tyre maintenance. Like your vehicle's engine, your tyres require regular maintenance. Tyres are the primary contact patch of the vehicle to the road and experience all the forces of rotation, speed, braking, poor road conditions and parking attempts thrown at them each time the vehicle is in motion. It stands to reason therefore that they need to be checked on a regular basis to make sure they are in a safe condition.

At Bob Jane T-Marts we recommend monthly visual inspections and tyre pressure checks to your vehicle. To assist in this we have a program called Tyre Check Tuesday, which is a free SMS service to prompt motorists on the first Tuesday of each month to do a quick visual inspection of their tyres. Sign up today if you would like a free prompt each month to remind you to check the conditions and safety of your tyres. You do not have to be a Bob Jane T-Marts customer to subscribe.

The minimum recommendation for a rotate, balance and wheel alignment on a vehicle is 12 months or 10,000kms unless your vehicle is on the Bob Jane T-Marts Long Life Tyre Plan. Every Bob Jane T-Marts customer qualifies for a Long Life Tyre Plan when they purchase 2 or more tyres and a wheel alignment in a single transaction. The service schedule within the Long Life Tyre Plan is designed to maximise the life of your tyres through regular servicing. What we see is that when customers follow a regular service schedule it invariably leads to extended tyre life and a better return on their investment in tyres.

If there is any doubt as to the last time you had your tyres inspected or maintained call into any one of our Bob Jane T-Marts stores nationwide and our friendly staff will provide you with the advice needed to get your tyre maintenance schedule back on track to make sure you get the best performance and mileage from your tyres.