Wheel balancers are an essential tool for shops of all sizes. They quickly pay for themselves with new business and help you keep your customer satisfaction scores high.
Here are the top five reasons to put a quality wheel balancer in your shop.
1. Tires should be rotated and balanced every 5,000 to 7,000 miles. Why send your customers somewhere else for this basic service? If you’re doing suspension or brake work, tire changes or detailing, suggest to your customers that you rotate and balance their tires at the same time. It’s an easy upsell for you, and a boost of confidence for them.
2. Unbalanced wheels cause dangerous vibrations. Potholes, minor accidents and hard brushes with the curb can knock wheel weights off, causing the wheels to become unbalanced. Unbalanced wheels cause vibration that travels throughout the entire vehicle, resulting not just in an uncomfortable ride, but also in undue wear on tires and suspension components. Smooth your customers’ ride and point out that fixing unbalanced wheels now will save them money in the long run.
3. Earn $60 or more for every set of wheels your shop balances. A good wheel balancer requires an investment of a few thousand dollars, but with regular use at a rate of $15 to $25 a wheel, it pays for itself and starts generating profits quickly. Plus, parts costs are minimal since all you need in addition to the machine itself are small, inexpensive wheel weights. If your shop doesn’t have at least one wheel balancer, you’re likely sending business down the road and sacrificing thousands of dollars in profit.
4. Balancing a wheel takes less than five minutes. With modern machines, it only takes a couple minutes for a trained technician to mount a wheel on a wheel balancer, take the digital readings and add wheel weights where needed.
5. Satisfied customers lead to referrals and repeat business. The number one reason customers switch auto repair shops is that the first shop “did not fix the problem properly.” Even if a car looks brand new when you’re done with it, if you didn’t balance the wheels, the resulting vibration could have your customer believing you didn’t finish the job. Don’t leave any question in your customer’s mind that your shop is thorough and gets the job done, so they come back and tell their friends.
This Shop Tip is brought to you by BendPak.
