What is the purpose of a wheel weight?

Wheel weights are small weights that are attached to the inner and outer surfaces of vehicle wheels in order to balance the tire and wheel assembly of a motor vehicle. Wheel weights reduce uneven tire wear and the vibration that results from imbalance.

Each weight weighs approximately 1.25 ounces.

Why has there been a shift to alternatives to lead?

Lead is a toxic element and has been designated as one of 31 priority chemicals targeted for reduction by the EPA. Lead is a documented contaminant of air, land, water, plants and animals, and exposure to lead can cause serious health problems.

But unlike car batteries, which also contain lead, there aren’t effective recycling programs to prevent lead weights from ending up in landfills, where it can contaminate our drinking water. And because traditional wheel weights can potentially fall off and get crushed by other vehicles, also contaminating our drinking water, the lead becomes a threat to the environment. By choosing steel wheel weights rather than lead wheel weights, we are eliminating the threat to our health and environment that is created when wheel weight remnants potentially enter our ecosystem.

Why is steel the best alternative?

Steel is an ideal alternative to lead because it poses none of the environmental or health risks associated with lead. Zinc, another proposed alternative, is problematic as it has been identified as a secondary contaminant in drinking water, posing potential health hazards for both humans and wildlife.

Are steel weights as effective as lead weights?

Yes, steel weights are just as effective as lead weights.

Who has already made the switch to steel?

The European Union banned lead wheel weights in 2005, and Japan and Korea are in the process of phasing them out. Large companies such as Les Schwab Tire, Bridgestone/Firestone and Wal-Mart have voluntarily stopped using lead. The U.S. Postal Service has replaced all lead weights on its entire fleet of vehicles in Hawaii and California and will phase out all lead weights nationwide in the coming years.

How are states/municipalities addressing this issue?
Many states and municipalities have banned the sale and/or installation of lead weights or are in the process of doing so. The cities of Lexington, Ky., Ann Arbor, Mich., and Blacksburg, Va., along with the states of Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, Vermont and Washington have already passed anti-lead wheel weight legislation. Additionally, the California-based Center for Environmental Health, citing the state’s Proposition 65, reached an agreement with major manufacturers last year to cease shipments of lead wheel weights into the state of California on or before Dec. 31, 2009.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has introduced the National Lead Free Wheel Weight Initiative (NLFWWI) to accelerate the voluntary movement away from lead.