KIRA

pics tells all...



yup, those shiny line are my tires being shave by the fender..



well if you guys try here, the fender actually feels like a knife curve in, i think that's where it shave my tires



even i got 235 front, my wheels doesn't seems sticking out or whatsoever compare to the SLK, and yes, SLK does also have the sharp shaving thingy too inside the fender


i talked to Carlab, they don't seems to had that happened before, and i am sure Moven C16 or Carlsson 1/16 are similar rims ( quite number of peoples here has them)

i didn't install any spacer or whatever, they told me i might need 225

i am worry if i slam my coupe with Tein Basic would it be dangerous driving like that?

TruTaing

most of the peeps who run 8.5 up front w/ coilovers/springs/what nots generally run 225 - or thats what i gather from the aftermarket wheel/suspension thread.

KIRA

yea i am gathering info from that thread right now, just tooo many pages...

Yacht Master

Can't a body shop roll the inner fender? It is a common practice.

B189s

I have 235s with Tein Basic and No problem at all. It actually helps if you lower your car even more, the negative camber helps your shaving issue here..

FrankW

whoever tells you to run 225 to solve the problem should be shot or maybe they just want you to bent the wheel and buy'em again.

the only time the fender would shave the tire is when you are going over bumps while turning which the suspension travels causing the bigger wheel to hit the fender. Normal driving it shouldn't even be a problem unless you've got some very soft suspension.

judging from the tire wear you either do a lot of spirited driving via canyon (which in this case because the w203 have a tendency to understeer and when that happens all you are doing is eating up the outside front tire) or the tire pressure are always on the low side which the sides wear out quicker than the middle.

jolenicz

I disagree with this diagnosis, though I don't think I'm nearly the expert FrankW is on the subject.

I am assuming the car is lowered, and on non-stock rims. If the car is lowered the gap between the tires and fenders can be small. Even with stiff springs, suspension travel can still result in rubbing of the tires against the fender.

This is more likely to happen if your alignment (camber) is correct. Usually, lowering the car results in negative camber, and the top of the tire tips inboard. When I installed adjustable rear camber arms and aligned my rear tires to have 0.0 camber, I had exactly this result. Under suspension travel (cornering, or bumps), the fender would rub the tire and leave those score marks on the tires. I ended up adjusting my rear camber negative a small amount to tuck the tires inboard a tiny bit and avoid the rubbing.

Switching from 235mm wide tires to 225mm wide tires would also result in tucking in the tire edge (by about 5mm). I don't see exactly why FrankW believes this is a bad solution to the problem. The only other solutions I can see are: Shaving the fender to remove the lip, adjusting the alignment to have negative camber, or installing wheels with a smaller offset. Shaving the fender might be the best way to go, but if you're considering new tires for any reason, getting 225s would also address this issue.

B189s

Having 225s means less protection to the lip, not sure if this can bend the wheels easily.

I think Brabus_X2 has stock shocks and these shocks are just too soft. Get Tein Basic, should be fine

KIRA

yup they are stock shock with tein S-tech, gonna go for Tein superstreet soon

FrankW

1. his car IS lowered.
2. stiff springs with a good sport shock will not have that problem. i.e. I had the Carlsson 1/16 BE in 19" running the GS-D3. No issue with fender shaving the tire even when I was doing canyon runs.
3. yes, you can run 225/35 however it's not only the width you are losing. you are also losing sidewall. the 35 is the aspect ratio of your width and when you are running smaller width with the same aspect ratio you also lose sidewall.
4. without the camber kit you can't adjust camber on the 203.
5. shaving the front fender is not ideal because the kink from the fender is suppose to hold onto the plastic liner inside.

B189s

Guys, he's getting Tein SS anyway , so he should be alrite

KIRA

ok noob question

yup, i will listen to frank NOT to get 225 cuz it will weaken my sidewall

and i think i get it..

i am getting those cut because when i go over some potholes and speed bump with the WHEELS turning so the tires would jump up and hit the fender...

but if i get Shock, wonder if the tires tucked in a little, would it still rub?
if so i think i might need to get camber kit together to adjust them together



some more crazy pics



yup, THATS A BIG CHUNK!!



opal SEXY slamming look on his W208, that's too low and i know is not good for the car


anyway, my car and his... is a big difference..

02~c230coupe

hey brabusx_2, how did u scratch your rims? hah

KIRA

neighbor, bro, mom, sister, and road rash, and once by me... hidden curb..

i never curb the driver side, just the passenger front is beat up..

jolenicz

1,2) People with lowered cars have rubbing issues all the time, at least in the rear. Depending on the amount of lowering, stiff springs can still allow rubbing. The issue here looks to me a combination of ride height, spring rate, alignment, and tire width. The easiest of those three to address is tire width (unless you have adjustable height coilovers).

3) 225/35 have a sidewall 4mm lower than 235/35 (78 vs 82mm). This is theoretically worse. However, this also fixes a known problem. It is certainly worth considering, in my opinion.

4,5) Shaving the fender or negatively adjusting the alignment both sound like bad ideas to me. But, they are an option if hardware changes are out of the question. If Brabus_x2 doesn't already have the crash bolts, those could allow for .67 degree of camber adjustment.

Coilovers would probably be the best start to addressing the problem (assuming the spring rate of Brabus_x2's current springs isn't as high as the coilover springs). But, even with coilovers it is possible to have the same problem. It will still depend on the lowered height, alignment and tire width. It is always possible to set the ride height too low for the spring rate. With coilovers, now you can just increase the ride height to eliminate the problem. But, if you were going to stick with your current springs, you don't have that option. If this is the case, I think it is still reasonable to consider 225s to remove a real problem, while being aware of the potential it brings.

FrankW

boy, are you thick skulled or what...

this issue has nothing to do with tire width. I'll say it again...the ONLY time the front fender would shave the tire is when you are turning the wheel which the tires are exposed in the direction you are turning to. It only happens when you are doing this at a slow rate of speed WHILE going over bumps or dips which the suspension travels (when you are going on the freeway or spirited run you never use that much steering). I'm sure even if he drives slowly over these bumps/dips...the times when other people drive his car won't be the same. When shave happens it's always the side that you are turning to.

theoretically worse? he's running on the 8.5 rim which on 225/35 will leave the lip extremely exposed.

no one's telling him to negatively adjust the camber. you CAN'T adjust the camber on these cars period unless you have the camber kit or camber bolts. BECAUSE you can't adjust the camber, the lower you go the more negative camber you get. however this is not even the problem he has.

my car on DCRs was set lower than his with 235 and had no problem with the tire shaving issue. my car on 1/16 BE on RENNtech springs was the same height as his front with no issue. The difference? firmer shock vs his stock shock. Of course, if you do slam the car you will have the same problem when going over bumps like I did.

tire width is not what caused the problem. if you hasn't figured out by now. there's no point to keep on talking to you.

Hummell

I'm sure your mom is upset about her cars tires getting shaven off. Let me know what you'll do different once you get your own!

jolenicz

Not sure why you need to get insulting here. I am just trying to share my experience. I believe the logic in all of my posts is correct.

The two things happening are: 1) Downward suspension travel and 2) The tire being outboard enough to contact the fender. Fixing EITHER of these things will correct the problem. (If they had 5mm spacers on, the first thing you would say is to remove the spacers, right?) The BEST fix is coilovers with matched higher stiffness springs and shocks, and adjustible ride height. However, this does not mean that that is the only fix. If someone reading this were on a budget and didn't plan to get coilovers, it may still make sense to consider tire width as a secondary fix, which costs less but poses additional problems.

I am running on 8.5 rim with 225/40 (because they are 18s). My lip is not extremely exposed, though this may be because my tires (Dunlop SP Sport Maxx) include extra rubber at the base of the sidewall to protect the rim. 235/35 is safer for the lip in general. But, as TruTaing mentioned earlier in this thread, there is discussion on this board indicating 225/35 is a common size for 8.5" wide tires.

Tire width isn't the root of the problem, but it can still be part of the solution. It isn't the best solution, but for some people it may be the most cost-effective one. For this reason, I thought it was worthwhile to share my experience to balance your comment that anyone mentioning tire width should be shot.

In short, if someone had this problem, the best bet is to upgrade to coilovers or other stiffer shocks to go along with already stiffer-than-stock springs. If they were unable or unwilling to change their shocks/springs, narrower tires *may* resolve the problem, at the cost of less sidewall stiffness. Given that people replace tires much more often than shocks/springs, I thought this perspective could be useful.

OPALW208

Jordan-

Have we rolled your fenders yet? If so, just swing by, I'll hook you up with some S-techs.

AL

KIRA

lol i already had Tein S-tech lowered...

i need coilover now, if i get SS i could adjust the damper, but if basic works too to save my car, i might as well just go for a cheaper one

FrankW

experience... if by sharing experience means telling people incorrect resolutions. have you not read a single word that I posted? This shaving issue does not happen other than when he turn the wheel while going over bumps or dips which doesn't matter if the tire is 225 or 235, when he turns the wheel to climb over the bumps or over dips the tires will be exposed at an angle and that is the only time the fender has any chance of shaving the tire.

the best bet is not to tell him to spent more money. The best bet is to suggest him to drive carefully over the bumps when the wheels are turned. In fact, I've had the same issue with fender shaving the tire when I was running 19". The solution was simply paying more attention when going over bumps and dips.

I had the 18x8.5 on 225/40 as well, so I know in that case the rims are not exposed by much. why? because the 40 profile offers more sidewall. On 19x8.5 with the 225/35 because the sidewalls are thinner you will get a stretch effect which leaves the lip exposed a lot.

obviously you've not been here long enough to see the 6 sets of wheels and 3 sets of suspension that I've gone through with different things happen and being taken care of.

FrankW

if you want to have a more comfortable ride every day and have the ability to change that damper when you are doing spirited drives then get the SS.

if not, TEIN basic will be good enough.

KIRA

hmm, when i go speed bump or driving on driveway i tend to move my wheels sideway becuz i don't wanna scrap my BUmper, well now i think that's a stupid way for me doing it (yea my car is not THAT low..)

FrankW

and if you are going up the driveway at some speed that's where your shaving problem comes in. if you are doing that just make sure you do it slow. there is a reason for us who lowered their cars looking stupid going over bumps.

KIRA

lol people honk at me all the time becuz i slow down to 5MPH on a 40MPH road to get on the shopping mall drive way... and when i encounter speed bump, i slow down again i guess those shaving happened when i did spirit driving when i was going Highway 9 going 70+ and hit some "road bump"