No More Weighting Around

By the time you read this article, European directive 2000/53/EC will have come fully into force. This regulation, more commonly known as the end of life vehicle (ELV) directive, will have a profound effect on the tyre trade – banning the sale of lead balancing weights. But is the trade ready? Tyres & Accessories spoke to representatives from weight manufacturers Trax and Remog in order to find out more.

Manufacturers and trade organisations have been highlighting the fact that lead weights will be banned for some time. However, there still appears to be much confusion on the subject as different voices debate the details of exactly how to apply the ruling.
From the manufacturers point of view, “distributors are fully aware,” said John Halle managing director of Trax. However “tyreshops might find it a bit of a shock” he added. Remog’s quality system manager, Gianluca Patuzzo agrees: “The market is not completely ready. During Autopromotec in Bologna some end users seemed to have different information from others.”
And here is the problem, while most people know that the sale of lead weights will be banned, not so many are completely sure about how the ELV directive will be applied. The major bone of contention is over what to do with excess lead stock. While some, like Mr Halle are straightforward on the subject: “Scrap them – they will be illegal. The law is the law and as a responsible company we are duty bound to let the market know”; others, including Remog’s Mr Patuzzo, insist that there is a bit more flexibility in the enforcement of this directive. This is summed up by the fact that Italian local government representatives were amongst those queuing on Remog’s Autopromotec stand to find out about the directive. As Mr Patuzzo said: “This is obviously the wrong way round.”

Back in the UK, the fact remains that from 1 July passenger car lead weights will be illegal and anyone who sells them after this point runs the risk of prosecution and/or being fined. At the same time, this directive is all about improving the environment. And it doesn’t make too much sense for companies to use valuable energy and natural resources in the production and transportation of these products only for them to be scrapped. That’s why the authorities are unlikely to be draconian in their enforcement of the legislation. But any businesses deliberately trying to exploit the situation are playing a dangerous game and should look forward to a knock at the door.

First there was lead replacement petrol, now there are lead replacement weights

Zinc has emerged as the material of choice for replacing lead in car balancing weights and is used as a lead alternative by leading balancing weight companies including Hofman, Trax and Remog. Like lead, zinc it is relatively dense and therefore discrete looking weights can be manufactured. However unlike lead, Zinc is not too malleable and so it is less forgiving when it comes to fitting. “Therefore there is the question of universality, “explains John Halle, “but we have been selling them for over a year without too much problem.” If you are used to clip on weights then you will notice the difference, but anyone with a bit of experience is likely to get to grips with them pretty soon, say the manufacturers. Other alternatives include tin and copper.

Trax claims to have been the first company to introduce clip on lead-free balancing weights commercially, having exhibited them at the Essen Tyre Show in May 2000. Marketing the early tin weights demonstrated that there were commercially feasible lead-free weight designs and such ideas, coupled with steel weights developed by Japanese car companies encouraged the EU to continue to press for a complete ban on the use of lead. Trax has since completely switched to using zinc as the lowest cost clip-on weight solution.

Tin and Zinc are Remog’s two most common lead replacement materials and are “a good solution,” says Mr Patuzzo. According to Remog, the company’s “most important” news this year has been that they have introduced new car wheel balancing weights in expectation of the 1 July 2005 deadline. The company has been producing zinc alloy weights for over a year and tin adhesive weights and rolls since 2003. These products are said to have created the most interest due to their “ductility and adaptability characteristics.”

Whoever produces them, all lead replacement weights are different to their predecessors in one respect, they are bigger. And as long as zinc, copper and tin are less dense than lead, its going to stay that way.
Another difference is the price. Lead free materials are three or four times more expensive and require a different type of production process. Remog reports that at the moment selling prices are not permanently set. The management says that it is waiting to see how the market develops. In the next months prices are likely to adapt as the mass production economies of scale kick in. Having said that, there is no way that price increases can be avoided. Both Trax and Re-Mog plan to continue selling lead weights for vehicles outside the regulations (i.e. trucks over 3.5 tonnes and motorbikes) and to countries outside the EU.

What’s behind the ban?

For many years concerns have been raised about the increasing number of cars abandoned and the need for more recycling. Most vehicles contain so-called ”heavy metals.” These include mercury, cadmium and hexavalent- chromium. This of course includes lead when it is used in passenger car and light truck balancing weights. Studies carried out on behalf of the EU technical committees concluded that there are commercially feasible alternatives to using these “heavy metals”.

For the time being lead weights will continue to be legal for use on trucks over 3.5 tonnes and motorbikes. And as there is no commercial alternative for lead in car batteries, the metal will remain legal for battery use.

The ELV’s self stated objective is “To prevent waste from end-of-life vehicles and promote the collection, re-use and recycling of their components to protect the environment”.

Following the formulation of the original directive, according to John Halle, the first ban took effect from 1 July 2003. This was subsequently delayed to enable more time for product and market development with the exemption extended to 1 July 2005.
In the meantime some confusion has arisen over the words “put on the market,” but the received wisdom is that this refers to car manufacturers and lead weights are banned from use at all levels from 1 July 2005.
So is the legislation a good idea? The official Re-mog line is: “We think it is better to have 100 rather than 1000 different metals in a car for disposal and recycling.” And as an NTDA statement on the subject said: “The use of lead-free weights in no way compromises the benefits that are achieved through correct wheel balancing.”