[AlanHo]

All four of our new Hyundai cars over the past 3 years have had red dots on the tyre sidewall aligning with a small, round, hard to remove, red sticker on the alloy wheel rim or spoke.

I cannot recall seeing the same on my previous new cars of other brands

I assume that this is something to do with wheel balance and tyre fitting in the factory. But does anyone know precisely what and why and when and how they do it.


It's keeping me awake at night........................

[Doggie 1]

Same as you, Alan, I thought it was to do with aligning the tyre to rim and to do with balancing.

[Phil №❶]

Where are the marks, relative to the valve stem.

[Just Rick]

I asked that when we go ours same thing,but both the dealers and service depts I asked didn't have the answer. Other than the stab in the dark that is was something to do with balancing and the four wheel aligning

[agentr31]

its to do with balance of the rim, and blance of the tyre, they are the heavy and light spots from my understanding, alligning them helps get it to balance with out eleventy billion wheel weights...

surferdude where are you?

Found this info:

http://t.answers.com/answers/#!/entry/what-is-the-colored-dot-on-the-side-of-the,4fe08ecd4b672622b844c628/1

So it sounds like we shouldn't have removed the dots from the rims but rather kept them for the next tyre fitting.

[Just Rick]

All I got was a blank screen

[eye30]

All I got was a blank screen

same here.  just black screen

No red dot tho' 

[rustynutz]

Worked for me.....

What is the colored dot on the side of the tire for?

Answer:
 
---Some tires have Blue, Red and Yellow dots. You must contact the manufacturer and ask them what each means as there is no "standard" and it can vary.

 ---Yellow generally goes on the same side as the valve stem, directly in line with the valve stem, but as with any specification, contact the manufacturer, don't trust the "technician". Know what type of rim you have and find out where the dot is suppose to be in relation to the rim. This will not only add to the life of your tires because it will aid in balancing, but it can mean the difference between one weight and zero weights on a brand new rim and even two to three weights and zero weights on an old rim.

 ---Imagine, a brand new rim and tire that "zeros out" when spun the first time... and when checked again.

 From Tire Information World Dot Com

 Colored dots on sidewall
by: Harvey Brodsky

 Tire manufactures use colored dots in the manufacturing process for many purposes, but generally they are "uniformity marks." Tires are almost perfectly round, but not quite. Uniformity marks help tire technicians identify they "not quite" part. This information is useful when mounting the tires on wheels.

The dots were removed from the rims and tyres by the dealer during pre-delivery detailing on our GD. 

[Shambles]

See "Similar Topics", below

[baroudeur]

See "Similar Topics", below

Neither helps!

[baroudeur]

All four of our new Hyundai cars over the past 3 years have had red dots on the tyre sidewall aligning with a small, round, hard to remove, red sticker on the alloy wheel rim or spoke.

I cannot recall seeing the same on my previous new cars of other brands

I assume that this is something to do with wheel balance and tyre fitting in the factory. But does anyone know precisely what and why and when and how they do it.


It's keeping me awake at night........................

Yokohama can put it better than I....

http://www.yokohamatire.com/tires_101/tire_care_and_safety/match_mounting/

However, when buying new tyres it seems to be too much to expect  a tyre fitter to fit the dot(s) in the correct position..  When getting four Dunlop winter tyres  with red and yellow dots fitted last year at a major tyre outlet (owned by a major tyre company) I asked for the fitter to make sure the dots were correctly aligned.   On going back to the vehicle only two were fitted correctly and getting him to refit those tyres and re-balance the wheels took a lot of cajoling.

[eye30]

Yokohama can put it better than I....

http://www.yokohamatire.com/tires_101/tire_care_and_safety/match_mounting/

However, when buying new tyres it seems to be too much to expect  a tyre fitter to fit the dot(s) in the correct position..  When getting four Dunlop winter tyres  with red and yellow dots fitted last year at a major tyre outlet (owned by a major tyre company) I asked for the fitter to make sure the dots were correctly aligned.   On going back to the vehicle only two were fitted correctly and getting him to refit those tyres and re-balance the wheels took a lot of cajoling.

WHY???????????????

I wouldn't expect a new tyre to be balanced due to the way it is made and differences in the compound without it actually being checked on the machine ....

Whenever I've had new tyres they remove the old weights and put new ones on.

[baroudeur]

Yokohama can put it better than I....

http://www.yokohamatire.com/tires_101/tire_care_and_safety/match_mounting/

However, when buying new tyres it seems to be too much to expect  a tyre fitter to fit the dot(s) in the correct position..  When getting four Dunlop winter tyres  with red and yellow dots fitted last year at a major tyre outlet (owned by a major tyre company) I asked for the fitter to make sure the dots were correctly aligned.   On going back to the vehicle only two were fitted correctly and getting him to refit those tyres and re-balance the wheels took a lot of cajoling.

WHY???????????????

I wouldn't expect a new tyre to be balanced due to the way it is made and differences in the compound without it actually being checked on the machine ....

Whenever I've had new tyres they remove the old weights and put new ones on.

Why what? ...................................

Of course the old weights are removed and the wheel assembly is  re-balanced after fitting a new tyre.

[eye30]

Yokohama can put it better than I....

http://www.yokohamatire.com/tires_101/tire_care_and_safety/match_mounting/

However, when buying new tyres it seems to be too much to expect  a tyre fitter to fit the dot(s) in the correct position..  When getting four Dunlop winter tyres  with red and yellow dots fitted last year at a major tyre outlet (owned by a major tyre company) I asked for the fitter to make sure the dots were correctly aligned.   On going back to the vehicle only two were fitted correctly and getting him to refit those tyres and re-balance the wheels took a lot of cajoling.

WHY???????????????

I wouldn't expect a new tyre to be balanced due to the way it is made and differences in the compound without it actually being checked on the machine ....

Whenever I've had new tyres they remove the old weights and put new ones on.

Why what? ...................................

Of course the old weights are removed and the wheel assembly is  re-balanced after fitting a new tyre.

So what is the significance of the red dots?
To me they are of no importance.

On my car none line up.

 3 red dots on the wheel are to the right of the one on the tyre and the other to the left.

[Shambles]

Yeah they're useless.

Every time I stop and look at mine, the red dots are in different positions

[Dazzler]

Yeah they're useless.

Every time I stop and look at mine, the red dots are in different positions

Very good  (why didn't I say that) 

[Surferdude]

Sorry. I only just found this topic.
Pretty much what everyone has said above is right, The marks relate to high and low, heavy and light spots on rims and tyres. And every manufacturer seems to have a different method of applying this knowledge when affixing stickers.
Now, here's the important part.

When it comes to fit new tyres, they are useless.
Whether you want to believe it or not, all rims change shape slightly (some more obviously than others - when you hit pot holes etc) during their lives. Which means the stickers are irrelevant by the time you fit new tyres.
Some new tyres come with a sticker but depending on the manufacturer, that sticker can be ment to go adjacent or opposite to, the valve stem.

What's most important is to have a technician fitting your tyres who understands balancing and how important it is to get the readings within tolerances. This may sometimes mean deflating and rotating the tyre on the rim after the initial balance.

[baroudeur]

What's most important is to have a technician fitting your tyres who understands balancing and how important it is to get the readings within tolerances. This may sometimes mean deflating and rotating the tyre on the rim after the initial balance.

 "technician fitting your tyres who understands balancing Like placing balance weights 6" apart on the rim?   

"This may sometimes mean deflating and rotating the tyre on the rim after the initial balance".  It takes some perseverance to get this done.

[Surferdude]

What's most important is to have a technician fitting your tyres who understands balancing and how important it is to get the readings within tolerances. This may sometimes mean deflating and rotating the tyre on the rim after the initial balance.

 "technician fitting your tyres who understands balancing Like placing balance weights 6" apart on the rim?   

"This may sometimes mean deflating and rotating the tyre on the rim after the initial balance".  It takes some perseverance to get this done.

The first example you've listed, that of placing weights 6" apart on the rim, or worse still, a large weight in one spot and a second, smaller one about 90 degrees round the arc, are clear indications of someone who is either completely clueless about wheel balancing or simply too lazy to take the big one off and put a slightly smaller one on.
The second instance isn't really a big deal. In my experience, most technicians these days know what they're doing, plus, most tyres are pretty good straight from the factory and TBH, the need to rotate on the rim is only really needed with some of the larger, blockier tread, off road tyres. And this is generally a symptom of the work the rims have done, rather than tyre issues. It's still critically necessary in these instances though.
I probably should say that, super wide car tyres can sometimes be a problem too.

[agentr31]

I probably should say that, super wide car tyres can sometimes be a problem too.

back when my old man worked at a dealership, he complained about this, and the patrol wheels being a bas74rd to do...

[Dazzler]

Things seem to have improved over the years. I can recall many years ago you would get a balance and it would just improve rather than fix the problems.

No problems at all the last 15 to 20 years or so. 

[agentr31]

i reckon it all depends on the tyre fitter!!!

ive had to have them re-balanced, and it was worse, other times they have come back perfect first go!

[eye30]

Last time i had tyres balance the machine told the operative where to place the weights.

[Surferdude]

Last time i had tyres balance the machine told the operative where to place the weights.

They (the balance machines) have been doing that for 40 years.

But the operator still has to apply them accurately. And if the machine (most work in 5 gram increments) says 45 grams, it may be 42/3 or 47/8 which is needed. So putting on a 45 gram weight may give you a slight reading of 5 or 10 grams, some degrees off to one side.  The good operator knows to try a few options. Like try a 35 gram weight in the same spot. Or move the existing weight marginally (maybe as little as a centimeter) to the side. In addition, depending on knowledge and experience with the particular car model, wheel and or tyre combination and condition of the car's suspension and rims, the operator may know whether or not a difference of a few grams will cause a problem.

I saw a demonstration many years ago by a German specialist who balanced up a wheel and tyre assembly, zeroing it out with the fine tune option. He then deflated the tyre and wedged a normal sized business card between the bead of the tyre and the rim. The assembly then needed 10 grams weight on both the inside and outside rims (not in line with one another) to offset it.. This was not just because of the weight of the card but the slight difference in the "seating" of the bead against the rim.

[agentr31]

thats pretty awesome, its hard to belive that a card would affect it so much!!

[Surferdude]

thats pretty awesome, its hard to belive that a card would affect it so much!!

I've probably still got a video of it somewhere.
But it was particularly designed to show how important it is to ensure the tyre's beads are seated correctly on the rim.

[baroudeur]

Last time i had tyres balance the machine told the operative where to place the weights.

They (the balance machines) have been doing that for 40 years.

But the operator still has to apply them accurately. And if the machine (most work in 5 gram increments) says 45 grams, it may be 42/3 or 47/8 which is needed. So putting on a 45 gram weight may give you a slight reading of 5 or 10 grams, some degrees off to one side.  The good operator knows to try a few options. Like try a 35 gram weight in the same spot. Or move the existing weight marginally (maybe as little as a centimeter) to the side. In addition, depending on knowledge and experience with the particular car model, wheel and or tyre combination and condition of the car's suspension and rims, the operator may know whether or not a difference of a few grams will cause a problem.

I saw a demonstration many years ago by a German specialist who balanced up a wheel and tyre assembly, zeroing it out with the fine tune option. He then deflated the tyre and wedged a normal sized business card between the bead of the tyre and the rim. The assembly then needed 10 grams weight on both the inside and outside rims (not in line with one another) to offset it.. This was not just because of the weight of the card but the slight difference in the "seating" of the bead against the rim.

I use the white background (curve) on which yellow font is unreadable................................ 

Until the quote button is used when it shows as black in the reply box.

...but I don't always want to reply...

It is difficult to comprehend how a 0.35mm displacement of a very short section of bead would affect wheel balance to the extent  given.
But what was the point of the card trick as the tyre needed deflating, the bead needed breaking  again to remove the card  and tyre re-inflating so it was back to the original position as far as balance went.