You cannot expect a shop to do their job properly the first time so you have to set them up for success.

Before heading out to get new tires if you have old wheels, take off all four tires and wheels.

Clean the wheels perfectly front and back, make sure to remove any and all old wheel weights and get rid of any trace of the old adhesive with Goof Off cleaner.

There should be no dirt, grease, grime, weights, etc on the wheels when you are done cleaning.

Then once the wheels look and feel clean to the touch re mount the tires and wheels and head off to the tire shop.

Once you get your vehicle back from the tire shop, before you drive anywhere check each wheel for the weights they placed.

If you have the type of wheels that require only stick on weights on the inside of the wheel, consider a OEM type of wheel or Aftermarket wheel that uses clip on weights on both sides of the wheels.

Balancing a tire and wheel with clip on weights on both sides will yield the best result.

Static balancing a wheel is second best when the standard balance cannot be done, but if you have a aftermarket wheel or OEM wheel that has a inside lip for clip on weights insist the shop uses clip on weights.

One things people do not know about tire shops is they will use old or incorrect clip on wheel weights so when you go to the tire shop of your choice, do not ask just walk over to their tire balancer and look at their weights ( they should all be brand new )

If you see old clip on wheel weights mixed in with the a few new ones turn around and go somewhere else.

I like to have my wheels checked without tires to find out how much weight is called for to just balance the wheel and valve stem.

Then I use a sharpie to mark the weight amount on each wheel in a place that cannot been see like the back side of the face of the wheel.

After the tires and wheels are mounted and road force variation balanced I take note of the total amount of wheel weight that it took to balance them.

The total amount of weight used should not exceed the industry standard maximum of 1% of the tire and wheel assembly.

If the amount of weight is high just not over the industry standard one and your wheel is not bent you could have the tires shaved and re balanced.

If this helps yet it still calls for a lot of weight the last thing that can be done is to remove the weights and do a on the car balance where you have as many positions as you do lug nuts to try and off set the amount of weight needed by also balancing all the rotating parts.

However a on the car balance leaves you where you have to mark the position of each wheel before removal and every time you have to rotate the tires you have to have them balanced again.


If any lazy shop or technician gives you back your vehicle with new tires mounted and balanced and they still have the tire label or sticker still on the treads make them remove the stickers and balance the tires over because the weight of the sticker can cause them to be out of balance slightly once the sticker is worn away.

BTW clip on - hammer on weights work great, when they use the correct weight for the wheel and they install them properly.

It normally only takes a tap or two two get them mounted properly.

However many untrained mechanics keep pounding away on the weight until the weight gets bashed into the rim which spreads and weakens the clip.

So if you hear tap tap tap thud thud while they are doing your balance
they just ruined your wheel weight and balance.

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2002 Ford Ranger 2 Dr Standard cab 2.3 5 SPD 7.5 373 gears