Motor Age: How has wheel servicing equipment changed over the past five years? How do you foresee it changing in years to
come?
Hartin: Even though gas prices have recently come down, the importance of fuel economy will continue. A properly balanced wheel not
only improves the ride of the car and increases tire life, but it also improves fuel economy. Car owners will continue to
look for ways to increase their mpg.
Wheel balancers will need to be used more accurately to provide for the demands of customers and the changes in the design
of wheels. Larger wheels and alloy wheels are more difficult to balance correctly. They require tape weights to be hidden
in order to maintain the appearance of the wheel. Most modern wheel balancers accommodate the hidden and split weights required
by these wheels.
However, this manner of weighting a wheel is much more difficult to get right. It simply cannot be done without mounting the
wheel on the balancer correctly. This requires special mounting tooling to get right. So often I hear that a balancer will
give "double zeros," but the customer still complains about the balance. A balancer will always tell you where to put the
weights on the wheel, but it cannot adjust its readings for an improperly mounted wheel.Motor Age: How much of your balancing components line accommodates tire pressure monitoring systems?
Hartin: The tire pressure monitoring systems present a new challenge for wheel balancing. However, with proper equipment and training
these can be balanced as well as any wheel.
Motor Age: What's the biggest obstacle your company faces in 2009?
Hartin: The biggest problem we face in 2009, and the years to come, is education of shops about our products. The Haweka product
line is standard tooling for all wheel balancers in many places around the world. In the U.S., most shops do not realize how
important proper mounting of the wheel on the balancer is to getting accurate results.
Many shops are content with putting a cone in front and letting the balancer "do its job." I am reminded of the saying "garbage
in...garbage out." If the wheel is not properly mounted, the newest best balancer cannot determine the correct placement of
the weights. The Haweka Duo Collet and Quick Plate system replicate the hub pilot and lug nuts of the car. This assures the
wheel is mounted on the balancer just as it is mounted on the car.
