Do Trailer Tires Need to be Fully Dynamically Balanced for Proper Performance  

Question:

Expert Reply:

You ask a very good question.

Trailer tires do not have to be dynamically balanced like passenger car tires do since a trailer tire's primary duty is supporting a vertical load. Steering and cornering concerns apply less to trailer tires. Passenger car tires on the other hand benefit from being fully balanced since passengers might otherwise feel the irregularities at higher speeds.

Our trailer wheel/tire combination products are joined by the manufacturer so that the tire's low spot is matched to the wheel's high spot. This matching provides a degree of balancing that is sufficient for trailer use. As an example, the Taskmaster 14-inch wheel with 215/75R14 tire, part # TTWA21514RTM45WS, is given this high/low matching before it is shipped.

You certainly can have your trailer tires fully balanced if you wish, but this is not essential. If you buy new tires for a set of rims, you can have them balanced. If you do balance trailer tires, remember that many trailer wheels are centered by the position of the lug bolts (these wheels are lug-centric) and not by the center bore of the wheel. To get the best tire balance for lug-centric wheels, you should have them balanced by a shop that uses a pin plate adapter. This mimics the way a lug-centric wheel is mounted to a hub and will result in the best balance.

expert reply by: Adam R

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