Balancing tyres in the old days

 Many of the older car drivers (like myself) will remember the way that we used to balance wheels in the old days. The machine was just piece of metal that literally sat on a spindle with a buble in the centre where the wheel was put and wherever the tyres tilted a lead balance weight was placed at the opposite side to counter balance the wheel until the wheel laid straight across in a flat position. Those days though cars would only do 80 mph maximum and there were very few motorways to test your speed, so perhaps balancing was not so important in those days.

Nowadays if you own a car then you should be concerned about the safety to yourself, your passengers, and the other people on the road. Tyres are a big investment requiring proper care. Tyre pressure, changing the tyres round on the car and tyre balancing are three important elements, not forgetting the wheel alignment ?.

Looking after your tyre pressures, is very important for the safety of everyone in your car and other road users that may be on the road. The correct tyre pressures are also very important, Under-inflated tyres are more dangerous than over-inflated tyres, but both can be dangerous, so keep the tyres at the correct pressures.. If they are under-inflated they will over heat, this could lead to premature failure and a blow-out at high speed. Whereas over-inflated tyres cause rapid tread wear which leads to poor vehicle handling on the road.

Basically, wheel balancing evenly distributes the mass from the centre out wards on the wheel. If the weight is not evenly distributed, it will cause vibrations while driving at certain speeds, between 50 and 70 mph is the normal speeds that you will feel out of balanced wheels vibration through the steering wheel also pulling the car to the left or right. This can harm your steering parts by causing premature wear on the parts, this is due to the vibration. The slightest weight imbalance can trigger vibration which needs to be adjusted by a tyre centre professional who use a specialized balancing machine.(we have two).

Our tyre technicians check for heavy spots on the wheel-tyre combination by mounting it on an electric balancing machine which spins the tyre and locates any heavy spots on the wheel. If a side is heavier than the another then the machine automatically picks this up and this means the tyre is out-of-balance. Our machines then tell us exactly where the wheel and tyres are out of balance and by placing a measured lead weight on the opposite side of the heavy spot the tyre is then correctly balanced. Basically a tyre and wheel is out of balance when one section of the tyre is heavier than another.

Aaron balancing a wheel electronically

These days we balance every single wheel that we fit tyres to.

This is always included in the cost of a new tyre, even if the tyre is a cheap tyres. After the car has been driven on the road there are many reasons for wheels to go out-of-balance for instance each time you drive your car and the wheel rotates, it is possible to loose an original weight, or hard braking and acceleration causing the tyre to rotate hence losing their original balance weights. For accurate tyre balancing an up-to-date spin balancer is perfect for both static and dynamic balance, we have two balancers on the go all the time, they are wonderful machines and perfect for the fast cars of to days motoring and fast cars.

These cars have now got much larger, wider, and heavier tyres and rims and need dynamic balancing which is possible through a modern electric spin balancer. Most balancing machines provides accuracy to tenths of a gram and we are able to balance any car on the road today.

 Brakes are there to stop you please make sure they are in good condition ?

 When you finally need to replace your brake pads or any other parts on your car, it is important to contact a professional well equipped Auto Centre or garage. You will have the confidence that your car will be handled by top class certified mechanics and you will be charged the correct price for the work that you are having carried out.

It is also important to know that the parts used will be genuine parts of the highest quality. We have full array of quality brake parts at our disposal to fit any car of any age. We can carry out any brake work at very competitive prices and as a member of Unipart Car Care Centres (UCCC), our work carries a nationwide guarantee so that you can go on holiday with peace of mind that should anything go wrong, you will be able to contact us and we will direct you to another garage in the area that you are staying for your holidays.

AN offer of a a free brake check is always available to our customers, free of charge you just book your car in and we will remove all the wheels and inspect the brakes including the pads or shoes , also we inspect the brake calipers and any other component on your braking system. Your brakes condition are then reported back to you, and you can make up your mind as to having the brake work carried out or not. We will also give you the full and correct price for the work doing, including labour, parts and VAT.

 All our brakes work is fully guaranteed for 12 months

Aaron carrying out o brake inspection

 Both in Halifax and throughout The UK using the UCCC warranty scheme, an all round good deal. We also try to offer the best price for your brake job doing but because we use the best parts we may not always be the cheapest . It is also important to note that we carry out a full brake check on your car when having a Silver or a Gold service

We then report back to you if there is anything a miss with the brakes and you can make up your own mind if you require us to do the work. Please don’t forget that your brakes are there to stop you especially in emergencies, they are extremely important so do not neglect them and have a free brake check carried out by the experts.

12 Month sentence for dumping tyres

A guy who was a regular collector of waste tyres in the Halifax area, Paul Ketteridge was sentenced for twelve Months for illegally dumping waste tyres in different areas of West and North Yorkshire.

The main dumping site was on a disused airfield in Tockwith North Yorkshire, he also used a few more smaller sites in and around the rest of Yorkshire. Collecting waste tyres from garages and tyre companies was done legally with the correct licences from the Enviromental agency, but Kettering became a cropper when he should have processed the waste tyres at a correct facility. The problem was that Ketteridge just dumped the tyres on an illegal site.

Theoretically he should have made a huge profit, we at Pellon tyres have to pay between £1 and £1.50 to dispose of our old tyres , the collector then has to pay for the tyres shredding and therefore makes a profit, but Ketteridge just dumped the tyres and should have made a killing ‚but the Magistrate said that the company had no assets and so he only received a £400 fine, in my opinion this is ludicrous.

Enviromental Agency had to pay out over £6500.00 just to have one of the dumping sites cleared of old tyres

The airfield at Tockwith has mountains old old tyres stored there, so it looks like the tax payer will have to foot the bill for clearing that lot up. These people always seam to get away lightly from such crimes against the environment, and in my opinion they should receive much higher penalties to try to deter future crooks from dumping illegally.

A full story about this case is available by clicking the link bellow.

giant pile of scrap tyres

 http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/news/139554.aspx    

Worst case of an egg on  tyres I have ever seen

The lump or bubble on the tyre in the picture is the worst I have ever seen. This egg is caused by the separation of the tread layers and the air pressure inside the tyres casing lifting up the tread. We call it an egg because normally all you get is a lump developing about the same size as a chicken egg.

This problem is not a tyre fault, but usually starts out as a nail hole that has not been filled properly after the repair has been carried out. The next thing is that water gets into the steel belt under the tread rubber and starts to oxidise (rust). The rust then starts to spread through the steel wire, eventually leaving a kind of cavity between the tyres casing and the tread rubber. This in time will cause an egg sized lump to develop on the tread of the tyre.

This type of problem is common on part worn tyres that have not been pressure tested, as they should be. We have noticed that we are having more customers complaining about this type of problem and it is usually on second hand tyres that they have just bought.

In the early stages of tread separation, the tyres on the car will make the car have a tendency to pull to one side, this is because the tyre is out of shape and will start to give the driver increasing problems as he does a few more miles.

Some people think that these problems emanate from cheap tyres, but this is not true. Most new tyres are made to high standards at is very rare that we have any tyre related problems these days.

When I was younger I was an examiner for the City and Guilds examination board and all sorts of tyre problems came up and were used in the exams as examples, of faulty tyre manufacture. One of the main problems was in fact “tyre separation”, but in those days it was caused by lack of cleanliness, when the tyres were built from their various components . If dust and dirt happened to get in between the layers of vulcanised rubber then the process would not work, rather like if you get dust on a piece of sticky paper then the paper doesn’t stick properly.

The tyres would look fine until after a few hundred miles on a car an egg would start to develop

Also cracks would appear on the side walls or near the bead this was also due to dirt on the new rubber during the tyres manufacture. This has now been improved and tyre companies have much more hygiene and cleanliness in their factories , giving us much better quality tyres.

In the 1960s Firestone tyres had a big problem with the steel wire that they used in their radial tyres and thousands of tyres were recalled when they all developed eggs on the tread areas .(not as big as the one on the picture though)

Massive egg this tyre the biggest i have ever seen

Biggest MOT TEST survey yet to be produced

 The advent and advance of the recent MOT computer system has enabled VOSA to store information and enabled the motoring consumer web site Honestjohn.co.uk to compile some useful information, using over 24000,000 MOT Testing records, going back to the 1980,s, these include computerised and none computerised records. The survey includes all the passes and failures of almost all the cars in Britain.

The survey was carried out out over a long period of time and was able to analyse all the pass and failure rates belonging to all the different car manufacturers, they also analysed the cars by model, year of registration and postcode.

You can find the results for your car by clicking this link http://good-garage-guide.honestjohn.co.uk/mot-results/

One interesting result that came out of the report was the fact that say in 2008 the French car company Renault had the WORST pass rate of all the cars surveyed, in fact three of the top MOT Test failures were French cars . Nearly three in ten of Renault Meganes and Citroen C4 models failed there first MOT Test , that is three times the amount of failures tested on the best car the Suzuki Splash,(what does this say about French cars??).

One of the worst cars to perform was the Minis,Volvos and Mitsubishis. These cars are all thought to be good sound cars but these results say otherwise. The biggest failure rates were put down things like lights, these are things that the car owners could put right themselves before the car is presented for MOT Testing. Another obvious thing that fails are the tyres, there are plenty of cheap tyres around these days and there is no real reason why this should be a failure item.

Failures due to body rot are found mostly in the coastal regions of the country, this is no surprise mainly due to the salt air that the car has to put up with. Here in Halifax we suffer from speed bumps and pot holes. This increases the number of steering and suspension problems and shows in the failure rates, here at Pellon MOT centre our rate in that category is the top of our failure list.
This may be the case in Leeds, because Leeds have got the second highest failure rate in the MOT Testing survey.

At the other end of the table( the best cars) we find the Lexus, this is the same company as Toyota and the figures only confirm to me that these brands of cars have always been amongst the most reliable cars and they are mostly very reliable cars to own.

 You can avoid failure of the MOT test by regular servicing of your car.

 In my eyes this report will give the public good information which they can use when looking for another car, it is al right buying a new car for £6995 but you should look at the after care costs when buying these cheaper cars, the reading looks glum for the French cars. The report will also help motorists to focus more on their cars regarding maintenance. Tyres can be bought well before the test and lights should be checked as part of a regular service regime .

Pellon MOT Test sign

The car industry is filled with plenty of players who offer a variety of batteries, battery equipment and accessories.

However, you need to be quite careful as you select the company to deal with so as to ensure that you get the best equipment. Focus on working with experienced and reputable companies as they’re best the suited to satisfy all your auto related installations and repairs. Many car owners will be pleased to realize that almost every part of the car can easily be repaired should it happen to break down or wear out. The professionals in the industry have mastered the art of getting these parts to work again with the same proficiency.
It’s no secret that the engine is one of the most important sections of the car. This is because it is ideally the powerhouse that brings the entire car to life. This being the case, it means that each and every component of the engine needs to be in the top condition. An example of the important components of the car engine is the battery. The car batteries store the power used to not only start the engine but to also power other gadgets installed in the car. There are quite a number of cheap car batteries which you can buy and easily install in your car.
In addition to being affordable, the cheap car batteries also happen to offer an exceptional performance which sustains the functionality of the car. Majority of the available car batteries are usually rechargeable which means that it will take a long time before you’re back at the store to buy another. They have an exceptional longevity which is a good thing for car users. However, should the battery happen to break down, there are plenty of professionals who are capable to either fix it back to normal or replace it with a new one at cheap prices.
The manufacturers of the batteries such as Lucas Batteries, have guaranteed that in as much as their products are cheaply priced, this does not mean that they have compromised on the quality and performance of the batteries. The whole idea here is to provide a reliable supply of cheap car batteries that will eventually give auto users a peace of mind. You can easily be able to buy a fully functional battery at a cheap price and you can spend the saved cash on other pressing issues.

There are plenty of the cheap car batteries in stock hence you can be sure that you will easily find one that suits your car engine.

The professionals involved in the sale of the cheap car batterieshappen to be quite conversant with the entire repair system of car parts. This means that you can also get additional assistance with your car performance as you buy the battery. Those are the benefits that are derived from working with a reputable company as they tend to offer an all round professional service. You can therefore look forward to making a great saving when you acquire a cheap and high quality battery.

HZBEV12-80 mobility batteries

For consumers who are looking to purchase new or spare tyres online

Choosing the right online sitefor the purchase is key to getting the lowest prices, and top quality. When choosing the tyres to buy, not only do you want to look for the lowest price, but consumers should also seek out the top tyres on the market. So, when comparing car tyre prices online, making sure you compare the best brand names, the tyres with the best depth and tread, and the tyres which are going to last you for the most miles driving, so that you do not have to constantly replace them.

In order to save on the car tyre prices you are purchasing online, consumers have to take the time to find the right online retailer for the purchase. Comparing online sites, and choosing the one which has the most extensive product selection, the best brand names, the various tyre options to choose from, a site which is well reviewed and rated by other consumers online, and of course, the online site which offers the lowest and most affordable car tyre prices to their consumers. Keeping each of these factors in mind, prior to purchasing, is something all consumers should do, if they want to save, and if they want to find the right tyres for their auto.

Depending on the auto you drive, the tyres you will purchase are also going to vary. So, keeping this in mind, and making sure the tyres you are buying online come in sizes and tread depths for all cars, is also something to consider when choosing the tyre. Whether it is a pick up or a traditional sedan style auto, knowing which tyres you need, and where to find the lowest car tyre prices for them, are some factors to keep in mind when you choose to shop online for the new tyres for your auto. The size, and the dimensions of the tyres has to be correct when choosing them online, so keeping the price in mind, and what style tyres you are looking to buy, are things a shopper has to consider when they are making the product selection, and when they are determining which tyres are going to be the best option for their auto.

Comparing various tyres

Different brands, and finding the top names in the industry, all for the lowest car tyre prices online, are the main factors a consumer is going to look for. But, taking the time to find those which are highest in safety rating, the right size for your auto, the most durable tyres on the market, and those which are rated the best tyres in the industry, should also be factors to keep in mind when shopping for new tyres. By considering each of these factors when choosing new tyres, consumers are bound to find the lowest car tyre prices, and they are going to find that the top online retailer is going to offer the variety and prices they hope to pay.

nice ferrari

Back to the sixties with the x ply tyres ?

Many people are confused about tyres. After all tyres look the same, so what could the differences be ?. Well when the Minor 1000 was first built there was only one type of tyre, I know because unfortunately I was a beginner tyre fitter in those early days and the only tyre about then was the the xply tyres and a few early radials.

The tyre is made of rubber on the outside and there are a number of layers of textile (man made) fabrics inside the rubber to give the tyres strength. Some tyres even have a layer of steel belt to increase strength still further (the steel was not in xply tyres though). The textile belt is woven sheets and runs from bead to bead before the rubber tread is vulcanised on the carcass.

In a perfect world the tyres “tread” on the outside would stay flat to the road in all circumstances. Unfortunately roads that are driven on are not perfect and the old Xply tyres gave a very bumpy ride, this also applied to cornering, early tyres used to fight the corners an as many Morris 1000 drivers know, in the early days you had to take care when driving on a bumpy road and cornering .

We then started using a more modern tyre called a “Radial “. I remember what we called the new tyre revolution, these tyres were to improve the cars handling by 100%. The radial tyre has a completely different construction and revolutionised the tyre industry and the comfort of driving. These became available in the 1960s and outperformed the Xply in every way. Minor 1000 owners say that the car was designed for the Xply. This is true, but only because there was nothing else ! The car was also designed for simple style of motoring, but things improved when the radial tyre came out.

It is now very rare to find xplies these days but if you have them fitted do not mix them with radial tyres on the same axle. It is only safe and legal to fit two xplies tyres at the front and two radials at the rear. In my opinion your are far better fitting a set of modern day radial tyres, If you can afford it. The driving results are astounding, especially in the wet. If you are a traditionalist you could stick to xply tyres, but these may not be the cheapest car tyres on sale at the moment.

As always you get what you pay for. There are some poor quality tyres from eastern Europe about today, that are best avoided ‚also please avoid part worn second hand tyres. Because tyre prices have risen so much and the minor 1000 tyres are now very rare(145x14) Firestones tyres are available for around £60 fitted and have worked well for me over the years, these and Dunlop tyres were one of the first companies to fit radial tyres on to the minor1000. Many of our leading tyre companies no longer make these sizes, but a few imported makes are available. A few better quality imported makes are available from Toyo tyres and Bridgestone, if any minor1000 owners wanted a price for these makes we will happily quote a price from Halifax.

The radial ply tyre is a huge improvement on the xply tyres

It has much better grip, better ride quality and lasts much longer, but the tyres are now mainly imported.

As I have previously stated it is relatively rare to find xply tyres these days, but they are still available through tyre specialists, such as Pellon tyres in Halifax. But once again if you have a set of xply tyres do not mix radials with them.

145 x14 or 155x14 radials are the largest you should fit to the normal rims. If you go beyond this you will cause yourself problems with the tyre bellying out over the wheel, your car will be all over the road and is not recommended or indeed safe to do this.

The Morris Minor 1000 image was supplied by http://www.free-images.org.uk/cars/index.htm

Morris Minor 1000 by courtesy of www.free-images.org.uk

Pellon autocentre are a Unipart MOT test centre

All of the UK cars three years old and over require a valid MOT certificate by law. An MOT is a standardised annual test, set by the Vehicle Inspectorate VOSA, to make sure your vehicle meets all the legal requirements for safe road use.

All Unipart Car Care Centres with fully licensed MOT test centres and can carry out MOTs on all makes and models of cars and vans in class 4 at Pellon Halifax.

An MOT is also the opportunity for a Unipart Car Care Centre to check and advise you of any work or replacements that may require attention in the near future. This ensures you stay road safe and can plan for the future repairs, replacements and servicing requirements of your vehicle.

Enter your postcode or town in our Garage Finder (the red box to the top right) to find your nearest Unipart Car Care Centre and MOT Testing Centre. Here in Halifax it is Pellon Autocentre.

mot sign

Furthermore, if you wish to download a voucher from one of our current promotions, you can input your MOT test date and we will send you an MOT test reminder each year. At the moment you can claim a 10% voucher off the price of servicing here in Halifax.

Unipart Car Care Centres offer MOT test,

car servicing, mechanical repairs, car safety checks on all makes and models. Mechanical repairs include: Brakes/Shock Absorbers, Car Batteries, Car Exhausts, Clutch Replacement

You can book online by clicking on www.mot-halifax.co.uk    

unipart testing station

Top class MOT testing in West Yorkshire

Is your car coming up for the MOT test in the Halifax area of West Yorkshire.? our car coming up towards its MOT? Like any precious item you own, you want your car to be safe and in trustworthy professional hands. A suitable MOT station in your area should always be up to the government standards, as well as be suitable to your needs as a driver and customer. A good MOT testing station will always endeavor to give you a good service, both during and after the MOT test, an accurate MOT and will make sure your car is looked after , which is exactly what you the customer wants.

All certified testing stations should have the three interlocking white triangles (with a blue background) sign displayed clearly on the outside of the building, which shows that they are in fact a vehicle testing station approved by VOSA (the Department of Transport). This symbol proves that they are able to carry out an MOT legally on the premises.

There are other things to take in to account of in a test station, which could affect the condition of your car or the outcome of the MOT. First of all check out the space which has been allotted to MOT testing. The test area and observation room should be completely cut off from any other car services room by a wall or divider, so that the MOT can be carried out in peace without any interference. We at Halifax actually display a sign to give the tester peace and quite during the test. The room must also be clean and tidy with all the correct signs referring to MOTs displayed on the wall , this is so that the MOT is accurate due to an undisturbed tester carrying out the MOT test on your car.

The MOT test centre should also have inspection facilities, so that any part of the car can be easily accessed. Underside access is considered necessary to complete an accurate MOT test, all these facilities are of course checked at regular intervals by VOSA inspectors.

Before any MOT test the equipment should be laid out properly, so that the testing process is effective and accurate. It will allow the mechanic to work speedily and effectively this is very important for the test to be carried out correctly. All the details of the test are written down so that no part of the test is forgotten.

Mot testing in Halifax for only £29.90 for our Facebook and Twitter friends

mot testing in Halifax sign

Moreover, make sure there is plenty of the correct parking space. We are offering MOT Testing here in Halifax at a special rate of £29.90 to all our Facebook and Twitter friends and you can now book Online.