mogulman

Just got a used 2013 GLK 350 4Matic with 235/50/19 all season tires. Plan to use it to go back and forth to the mountains in CO and need snow tires/wheels.

I have some 2 season old Blizzaks from my old car but they are 235/70/16, on 16x7 5x114.3 wheels, 40mm offset.

Comparing to the 235/50/19s that is +2.5% diameter. Also, not sure if the 16s would fit.

According to TireRack they recommend 235/60/17 as the smallest tire, with at 17x7.5, 35mm offset 5-112.

So I'm thinking choices are:

• keep the old blizzaks and wheels and use wobble bolts for 5-114->5-112. Probably not a good idea
• Keep the old blizzaks and get new 16x7 5x112 35-45mm offset wheels. Still maybe not a good idea because 16s might not work.
• sells the old stuff and get new 17s.

Any suggestions?


For 17" wheels, anyone try Audi wheels on the GLK? Seems like they are similar but offset isn't as much. 17x7.5, 5-112, 25mm offset. There are a lot more Audi/VW wheels on craigslist.

Diabolis

16s won't clear the brake calipers - the smallest wheel you can fit on the GLK is 17". And, the wheel offset needs to be in the 40-50 mm range for an 8" wide rim.

Some Audi wheels (depending on the center bore) will physically bolt on, but when you take into account the offset differences and thus improper fitment, the need to get different bolts (Audi seat radius is different from MB) and finally the weight of the GLK (the wheels could have been made for a 1000 lbs lighter car), you really should get something made for the GLK.

Don't know where you're located... but this looks like it may be a fairly decent deal for a GLK-specific setup ($900 CAD - $700 USD):

https://mbworld.org/forums/canada/59...-rims-glk.html

(no affiliation to seller)

mogulman

Yeah...I was thinking the 16s probably wouldn't work. Just wanted to see if anyone tried 16s.

I'll probably get some Blizzaks from tirerack or a local shop. I'm figuring about $550 for the tires. Then maybe up to $200 for some used wheels.

It seems like some Audi A4 wheels are 5-112, 17x7.5 35-45mm offset, or I may try that or just try to find some Benz wheels. I hate to pay for new wheels for winter tires.

I think I read in other posts that TPMS is optional. The light will just come on if I don't have them installed. I will probably do this.

Diabolis

I believe the discrete TPMS was optional (the ones without use the ABS system to detect a flat, so there are no discrete TPMS sensors in those). Look at your valve stems protruding from your summer wheels. Are the valve stems rigid and solid aluminum or are they rubber? Alternatively, when you select the Tire Pressure option in the menu, do you see individual numbers in psi for each wheel or just TPMS Active? OEM MB TPMS sensors are about $80 CAD each if you need them (cheaper than what TireRack sells aftermarket ones) and they may be specific to your vehicle VIN, so I'd just get a set from the dealership.

As I said, you probably want to keep the offset above ET 40 unless you want to salt-/sand-/snow-/ice-blast your fenders in two weeks. Fenders can be a lot more expensive than winter wheels.

And, please pardon the observation, but I can't help but conclude that you're being *way* too cheap. I mean, used tires? Wobble bolts? Driving without TPMS sensors with the warning light on? In the ad I linked in my earlier reply (and I am sure there will be lots more on your local Kijiji site in the fall - nobody in the northern hemisphere buys or advertises snows in July), you can get a set of gently used, decent MB- and GLK-specific snows for well under $1K. A new set of quality aftermerket 17" wheels, tires and TPMS sensors (if you need them) can be had for well under $2K. You just bought a MB, not some American rust-bucket - so please stop with the penny-pinching and either get proper equipment for the car or get rid of it and buy somethign you can actually afford. I don't mean this in a derogatory way, but from your five posts, four are about reusing your old junk with your new car. It's just... well, scraping the bottom of the barrel. If you can't afford to own and run a used GLK, perhaps you ought to reconsider your spending limits and buy a more suitable and cheaper vehicle - ideally the same model that you had before so you can reuse all of your used tires and accessories. Just my $0.02.

mogulman

Yeah... thanks but no thanks for the opinion part of your advice. Definitely unappreciated.

mogulman

BTW... Not to defend myself, but my son is an Alpine skier. So we drive all over the state in the winter for training and competition. The salt and chemicals on the road really mess up wheels. So I don't want to spend a lot of money on wheels, because they will be ugly in 1-2 years anyway, and I will only use them Dec-Mar.

That being said, I'd rather buy new Blizzaks then used, because Blizzaks are much better the first 1-2 seasons because of the silicon compound in the top layers of the rubber.

I realize looking for snow tires in July is kind of wierd, but I like to get a head start. I know what I need to do once winter comes around, and I want to get ready. I installed remote start. I got some MB crossbars and my Thule box. Last piece is just some Winter tires and wheels. Sometimes getting a good deal on wheels is easier if you have some time to spare.

I was thinking about the tires/wheels from the guy selling them from Canada, but I'm in CO. He is selling them for $700 US + shipping probably $150-$200 to ship them. I can get brand new tires/wheels from tirerack for about $1k.

Also, used wheels with new tires for snow tires are not that unusual. People do that all the time.

mogulman

Hmmm..thanks about the pricing on the TPMS though. I figured since they were $65 on Tirerack, that they were going to be pricey everywhere. My last car, the TPMS were like $90/each and then they had to be paired with the car, and only one set of wheels could be paired at a time.

I found TPMS from MB Dealers online for like $25-30. At that price it may be worth it to have a 2nd set in the Winter Tires. Especially, if the TPMS don't have to be repaired with the car at the dealership when changing wheels.

Diabolis

Hey - hats off both to your son and you for taking him around and encouraging him in his hobbby. Again, I meant no disrespect, but without knowing the circumstances it just seemed that perhaps you weren't prepared to pay the "premium vehicle" tax. Just saying - I've both done it myself and seen others get in over their heads with used cars only to realize that they cost a lot more than what they at first seem. I meant no disprespect.

Used wheels with new tires are not unusual at all. Trying to reuse a used set of tires (and looking to find a new set of wheels to fit those on another car) is.

The local Kijiji classifieds were FULL of winter wheels and tires in April, which is when I suspect people start buying and thus returning lease-end cars after the holiday bills have all been paid off. Decent used 17" sets with only one season on the tires were in the CAD $700 - 900 range depending on the wheels. I suspect that if you post a "Wanted" ad you may get a few hits, otherwise I don't think you'll find too many people trying to get rid of snow tires in the summer simply because almost no one is looking to buy a set now.

While the Audi bolt pattern and in some cases center bore are the same as Mercedes, the Audi offsets are usually too low so the wheels will poke past the fenders, and furthermore, IIRC the GLK requires longer bolts than the Audi (same thread size and pitch) but the MB wheel bolt seat radius is different from Audi's - so while it may appear that the MB bolts fit just fine, the contact surface between the bolt and the wheel is not fully engaged and can eventually result in catstrophic failure (as in the bolt or wheel seat deforming and resulting in loose wheel bolts, which can then shear or snap and your wheel falls off). Seen it happen three times in the last five or six years at the small Audi/Porsche/VW shop where I spend a fair bit of my time - all of them from people putting on aftermerket wheels that use a different seat type with OEM bolts that never clamp properly, stretch and eventually break.

As for the TPMS sensors, I was pleasantly surprised myself with the price from MB when I got a set for my last set of aftermarket wheels and they were cheaper than the ones TireRack sells. Moreover, on the C63 there were changes in the TPMS sensor frequency sometime between 2012 and 2013 (the wheels I bought came with sensors that worked on a 2012 but would not work on my 2013). Call your nearest MB dealership parts department, give them your VIN and get them to give you the exact part number for the sensors that go with your GLK, which you can then order online if you wish. And yes, the MB system picks up the new sensors automatically after about 10-15 mintes of driving all by itself, unlike the PITA system that Porsche uses for example where you need to tell the car twice a year what sensor is at what corner, at $159/hour...

Shipping from Alberta ought to cost you around $100, and besides, you can always offer him less than his 'firm' asking price and see if you can reach a compromise - after all, he ain't going to find another buyer anytime soon. And, ask him if he has the bolts that go with the wheels.

Cheers,
D.

mogulman

Hmm...I guess I must have "Special TPMS" or something. I went to the local dealer parts dept, and it was $140/wheel for TPMS. Awesome.

I did notice that I can see pressure for each wheel individually through the dash.

Diabolis

Holy crap - they were about $80 each for my C63. Unless that price includes installation, something is not right. If it does include installation, I'd guess you're paying for ~2 hours of labour in which case it's not that outrageous.

dzl_benz

Diabolis, do you know by any chance how far ET34 17x8 rims will stick out with 235 winter tires? I found these locally but they are from a C class Merc, I think

Dominador

There is a wheel and tire calculator on this site at the top dropdown under Tools. Direct link is https://mbworld.org/forums/tire_rim_calculator.php

Diabolis

Sorry about the late reply. ET34 will move 235-width tires 8mm further out than they sit on the ET42 OEM 20s. ASSUMING THAT EVERYTHING ELSE FITS (not sure about the hub bore or bolt seat radius on those or whether they'll clear the front brakes), the offset is probably going to be OK on the GLK. They wouldn't be my first choice, but they could be borderline passable (as in the tires shouldnt' stick out past the fender edge and blast it with whatever they pick up from the road surface).

An even friendlier "what if" wheel / tire calculator with graphics is at http://www.rimsntires.com/specspro.jsp.

mogulman

FYI..follow up on this... I ended up getting some used OEM Mercedes 17" wheels from ebay for about $50/each shipped. Then I got some OEM Schrader TPMS for around $100 for 4.

Blizzak WS-80 235/60/17 mounted and balanced with the TPMS for another $610.

dzl_benz

Sweet! that's a bargain for the OEM wheels, I think Do you have a pics of them? Are those 5 spoke AMG style?

mogulman

These are the wheels I got. Not amazing looking, but good enough for Winter Wheels.