Is it really necessary to balance the tires (at least the two fronts) when rotating them, especially in the ABSENCE of any type of noticable vibration? I see this being offered a lot and my dealer does this.

 

i only balance my tires if i notice any sort of shimmy/shake/vibration coming from the front tires (usually easier to detect while cruising at highway speeds). or, of course, a proper balance should be done when installing new wheels or tires

 

Well, well, well.....right from the manufacturer:

Have your wheels balanced when:

A tire is replaced
A balance weight is moved or removed
You purchase new tires

No note of having to do it when you have them rotated.

http://www.michelinman.com/tire-care...alancing-tips/

 

you do not need to balance with every rotation, i should've made that clear (my apologies)

 

Oh...Im not railing at you...Im railing at the dealers and shops who say this is necessary. I called Michelin and spoke to a Cust Service rep and he said the same thing. That balance is a one time deal and needs to be REdone only if the dirvers notices a vibration of some sort.

 

I get my wheels balanced, rotated and aligned every 4000-6000 miles. Lifetime alignment FTW

 

Yeah, lifetime alignment/rotation is cheap, relatively speaking. After much deliberation, I bought lifetime alignment/rotation/balance plans when I bought new Falken Ziex 512's for my '99 Civic. Five months later, me being the lucky guy I am, the damn car was stolen!!

Back on track though, I don't think it's necessary but we like to buy those "lifetime" plans for our cars and get it done relatively often, it pays for itself anyway.