At my first "free" service, wheel rotate and balance was a $59 option. With only 5100 miles I opted not to do it. At home I thought maybe I should at least rotate (side to side) and not balance. It would give me a chance to clean up the insides of the wheels and at least rotate for even wear. Is there any harm in NOT balancing when I switch them? It seems like the only difference is they're spinning in the opposite direction but would still be in balance. I don't think they are directional (Cinturato P7).

 

You shouldn't need to re-balance the wheels as they are done off the car and not dependent which corner the wheel is mounted.

 

Wheel rotation around the axles was not recommended in the workshop manual I had for my 1980 Series 3, but maybe things have changed. The only trouble with rotating to even out wear is you end up having to buy a full set of tyres all at once ! I have never rotated wheels around the car, and so far nothing bad seems to have happened on my last five cars and the cars I have now. The only full set I had to buy recently was on my wife's New Beetle where they had all worn down the same amount without me interfering !!