I think I read on the forum on Miata.net that there are markings on new tires and on wheels that could be lined up when mounting. Supposedly, as I understand it, with these markings lined up, the wheels would need minimal balancing. I looked at my new Toyos and notices little yellow circles painted on the sides. Are these the balance markings, if indeed this is the case? Do they actually balance tires at the factory?
It's not a balance mark, it is locating the high (low?) spot of the tire which is supposed to be aligned with the valve stem which is always drilled at the low (high?) spot of the wheel. Thus assures the highest level of round possible with that tire and wheel but doesn't do anything for the balancing but can substantially help the "ride" of the tire on a Miata. My original 91 had the typical Miata shimmies at 65/70 until a real tire shop remounted the tires aligning these marks and it completely eliminated the shake (of course, they also rebalanced them the right way). Most chain tire shops look at you like you've been drinking too early in the day if you start talking about lining these marks up and then balancing within a 1/10 of gram because they have no idea what those marks are for.
Tom
92 Red 05/06 Vette to be? (red, but of course)DBLZOOM wrote:
Jeez, Tom. Even I'm not that picky--I'll settle for within 2 or 3 grams. There's probably more than 0.1g of bug guts on your wheels at any given moment.
Lanny, where have you been driving? I don't know about you, but I get bug guts on my windshield not my wheels. You must really be flying in your Miata.
Gus (91 BRG)
You're obviously not spending enough time sideways... :-)
Actually, that should have been 1/10 of oz which is about 3 grams(?). The Hunter Roadforce they use will do grams or ounces and has two decimal places on it but of course they don't have weights that size so it's a matter of shaving the smallest weight down. Perhpas this is why they put the closed sign up when they see me coming! I have to admit the tire shop I use (Courthouse tire, Fredericksburg, Va.) is the absolute best at getting rid of ride problems. I bought a new 99 GMC pickup that had a shake from day one that the dealer couldn't find. Took it to Courthouse, they hooked up the roadforce and printed out the profile of each tire - 3 of 4 were defective! My 03 4Runner had a very similar problem with Dunflops and they produced enough "evidence" for the dealer to swap all five out for Michelin Cross Terrains. It's amazing how many defective tires get made today, even by the major companies and having good tire shop is invaluable.
Tom
92 Red 05/06 Vette to be? (red, but of course)Lanny Chambers wrote:
Actually, I believe 1/10 of oz is quite heavy. I don't think we should underestimate them.
Unless you mean 1/10 of an oz, maybe?
Leon
You're probably right. Sideways and LA freeways just don't mix. Do you get more bugs on the left or the right side?
Gus (91BRG)
Leon,
You must be a riot in the classroom - LOL. This is why I teach business and not English - in business we're happy with 90% solutions in a short period of time, engineering and mathematics obviously work on problems for years (how long have we been talking about calculating Pi all the way out?).
Tom
92 Red 05 Corvette, Magnetic Red as of 02/18/05Le>
you can't calculate pi "all the way out" there is no end. You just add a few (hundred, thousand...) digits to prove how good your new supercomputer is.
I seem to recall that they did a billion or so already, so adding a few thousand does not seem like a good way to promote your new supercomputer. And that was quite some time ago, Lord knows how many digits they do nowadays.
However, even a Corvette owner should be fairly assessed. While I do not have the complete history ready, we have been *talking* about computing pi all the way out for a very long time. It goes back thousands of years. Now we know it cannot be done, but that does not mean we stop talking about it. :)
Leon
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