velvet fog

Sounds like it wasn't too bad. I'd feel good it was only $200 to fix.

jdestreza

i completely agree to what you say... thats why I had kept the seller on the phone for a long time asking him how compatible it is and what i need to do.. doing this mod is just a change of tires.. as simple as that is anyone should do it themselves i wouldnt suggest going to a shop for it even now.. its just that you have to make sure youre materials is right and quite frankly i dont think just any shop would be aware if a oem lugbolt will fit a wheel that you buy or not.. if i did go to a shop i would have told them to use my oem lugs base on the info i received..

my shop told me that the other day they had a customer who brought his car to get the wheels changed for a bigger size and said that to them to use the oem lugs.. their customer argued that he was told specifically it will fit.. not even 20 feet out of the garage, the same thing happened to him to what happened to me.. DIY's i still recommend it if you know whats going on.. im an idiot when it comes to wheels sizes, tires specs and all but i didnt say im clueless about putting them on my benz.. i just thought it was a simple bolt on thats all.. good point though...

jdestreza

yep yep... and specially with that price, i shouldnt have a hard time asking those guys that did to pay... im siked to drive!!!

drexappeal

Very fortunate with the $200, but I do agree that you should ask the shop to compensate you at least 1/2 because of the trouble. Obviously, it's not the vendor's fault that you did the install, but...his providing you with the wrong parts was part of the reason you had damage to your car.

Make sure to take some pics once the wheels are on. Good luck with that.

jdestreza

1/2? that is not fair thats not what my lawyer said... especially when I have proof of him admitting it was his fault not knowing that my OEM will not fit and then tell me it was OK to use them.. made it worse too that he send the wrong locks... all in EMAIL!!!

if he told me that I shouldnt use the OEM lugs when I initially spoke to him and i still used them... thats a different story .. i would have deserved what I got and wont even bother them for anything but just to send the right locks...

their lucky im not even asking for a discount for the aggravation .. i had my c240 in the garage for a whole week...

nickgailloux

Personally I think it was his fault as well. If you specifically asked if you could use your OEM lugs, and he said yes, knowing he was just guessing or assuming, then that's his fault. He's supposed to be the expert and part of you buying the wheels from him is his advice on installing them.

If he refuses to refund you the cost of repairs, I think you should either post (if you're allowed) or PM us all his email address or phone number. If a number of us threaten him with a boycott then maybe he'll change his tune?

Good luck.

RES

I'm thinking it might be a certain company in Florida, I'm just glad from reading the owners manual and reading this forum that I was aware of this issue before I had a problem. But I did have several shops try to give me bogus information and sell me wheels that I know now would not have fit. Even with the info on Mercedes being in several wheel shop tech manuals and on there computers as a warning, they still make this mistake daily. Then most of the time they will say that the problem was from something else and you have to pay to fix it. Just like everytime we go to the dealer we need new brakes and shocks, and what ever else they can stick you with. I try and do most of my repaires myself using the Mercedes manual and any other information I can get my hands on. Repaire shops are mostly a bunch of rip off artist trying to milk you for a buck. I had the dealer give me a line of crap about a spring pad they changed. But when I got under the car after they said they fixed the noise and changed the pad I knew it was the same pad as before, still had dirt on it. Even though I was not paying for it I felt lied to and will not trust them again. Ok I'm done with my rant, sorry! But most of the shops that have there so called professional that we pay and trust are ripping us off.

jdestreza

hey thanks, could we really do that??

wingless

It is likely that the "chasing the threads" with a tap and a die will be required for both the hub and the lug bolts.

jdestreza

Yeah its hard to find a great honest mechanic... i have this one thats great, he wouldnt lie with whatever is wrong with my benz.. he actually shows me how to do a fix if its simple enough in case it happens to me again.. he even lets customers use his shop and just charges about $10/hour for tools you will from his shop and doesnt mind helping if you get stuck... sometimes its free.. his shop is always busy with euros.. guy is smart and just a genuine honest mech that doesnt want to waste his time with small stuff even if it earsn him something... anyways, hope theres one like him in every state... he is the MAN.... every one i know pretty much goes to him..

Rick

1) You could have searched the forum and found that the OEM lug bolts are too long for the aftermarket rims.
2) A spacer or even a washer would have temporarily solved the issue until you could get better fitting lug bolts.
3) Please learn to use PUNCTUATION. The mindless ramblings in your initial post were irritating to read.

jdestreza

what the heck is it just have nothing else good to say?
1) A "wheels expert/specialist" told me how to do put it in and with what. Why would I search the forum? For a change of wheels? Its not a complicated matter i was dealing with. ANd before you say thats what cost me the damages, it was a mistake in their part. If a doctor tells me something is this or that with my body and take this medicine... chances are I will take his word especially when its a simple fix like maybe a "cold problem". Why would I search what to do with that when I already know from the past how to "help myself" in getting rid of the cold just like installing my own wheels.
2) I know that a spacer would have done the trick but the owe me the right parts which they sent overnight.
3) You didnt have to read my irritating mindless ramblings if you didnt want to. This is a community where I know I can post irritations, problems, and ask for help regarding our type of car. You are the only one complaining about the "..." that I use, What are you an english teacher? Anyways I wont even bother with you, you have the right to your own opinion and I do too. For me your just an angry person with no one to vent to so you just try attack whoever online!! Get a life buddy.

Love, Peace and Hairgrease. Not trying to make enemies and all I want is peace. I like going to this forums since it offers a lot of help to me when I need it and its a nice feeling that there is a community online where each of us who owns the same type of vehicle can share stories and ask each other for help so we can learn things about our cars. So if other people have a problem with someone else post just PM them instead of posting for everyone to see. This is how "forum fights" gets started since you will just offend and try to embarrass one another in front of all the members. You have to be more mature than that Rick. So what do you say about lets just forget this ever happened?

jdestreza

Have you ever read this from a moderator?

ATTENTION... Request for Civility on This FORUM, and Other Rules... Please Read

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Honestly, I don't want to bring up this subject, because it affects so few people compared to the membership at large. However...

There has been a significant increase in the number of "Posts reported to Moderators" recently... a majority pertaining to the W203 forum, in particular. In addition, all of the Mods are receiving a larger than normal amount of PMs from members asking for intervention to assist in bringing a renewed friendly atmosphere to this forum.

It must be the moon...

This is my humble attempt to ask for cooperation. These forums are intended for the friendly exchange of ideas and opinions. For the most part, this forum has been -- and continues to be -- a friendly place.

However, lately I have noticed (and fellow members have noted in their PMs to us) an increase in the amount of unfriendly banter in this forum, including juvenile name-calling, and the use of creative ways of circumventing the site's auto-editing features to include offensive language in various posts.

Simply put, this trend must stop, IMMEDIATELY.

You are entitled to your opinion related to cars, but not related to bashing each other. The mods are NOT engaged to big-brother your posts. But that also means that we expect all members to self-police their language. If the abusive language is to continue, several members will begin receiving nasty notes from the mods, followed by disciplinary action as may result if compliance is not forthcoming.

Please think before posting... if you think the language you intend to use might be abusive, assume that it IS abusive, and modify your words accordingly.

98% of the folks here already use this sense of self-moderation. It is for this vast majority that we insist that everyone conform to the sense of friendliness that has been a hallmark of MBWorld.

Thanks to all for your attention, and your cooperation.
__________________

drexappeal

That's my point. You weren't knowledgable about wheels/tires. If I werent' knowledgable about wheels/tires, I would never replace them myself. That being said, I do have a sense of knowledge about them, and from the first few words of this thread, I knew right away that the shop provided the wrong parts.

And I disagree that a DIY for taking off and installing wheels is "simple". It's not. If you were knowledgable about the lugbolts, you wouldn't have been in this situation.

Trust me, it is something you could've avoided if you knew what parts you were working with. Like I said, if you don't know what parts you need and what they look like, I highly suggest NOT doing DIY's (even if it seems as simple as take off and put on).

jdestreza

Here is a pic of the wheels installed. Sorry I just used a camera phone and its raining like crazy. Ill post more pics when the rain stops.

Should I drop it? im worried that the ride is going to be a pain. I dont like it when I dropped my old car. I feel like im in a boat everytime I drive in the highway with the car going up and down with just a slight lift in the pavement. It wakes up everyone that is asleep lol. But what would be the best kind with just the right amount of drop for the 18s with no rubbing at all. Eicbachs?

And one more thing, with the pictures which grille do you think looks better? Im installing my HID chrome housing and kit next week both for the fogs and headlamps just fyi. Im just trying to get the best look.

Is there a replacement for the lower grille too?

jdestreza

After reading this... youre actually right!!!!! Yeah I guess if anything what I learned from this is just simply do what is necessary to really know everything and not just from one source like the wheels expert in my case. I should have looked around here too and maybe even asked my mechanic since he knew as well. This way it really eliminates the headaches of doing DIYs in your cars no matter how simple it is just like my car being [I]undrivable[I] for a week since of a very simple MOD. Thanks drex. Sweet ride by the way. Any opinions on my post with the pictures? I would really appreciate any opinions (specially from you) on the lowering kit, grille, and lower grille if you know any.

drexappeal

Yes. There are a lot of knowledgable people on these message boards and you've definitely got the point of what I was saying.

Main thing is, it sucks to see anybody experiencing any sort of problem with their car. I feel bad when people are going through it, but sometimes there are people that do DIY's to save money and it makes me cringe when they seem to have absolutely no knowledge about the car or the inner workings of the car. That's where, even if I'm working on something that I have knowledge about, I make sure that every single piece I'm using is the proper piece. Anyways, it's a good thing the fix was only $200.

Where did you post the pics? I'd be happy to give you some opinions on the car.

jdestreza

Just above my reply that you quoted on your post with this question. (should be 3rd from this message if no one else beats me to it.)

jdestreza

Yeah tell me about it. Im a newbie and glad I learned this with only $200 and with me not even paying for it too. Could have been worst, let say an engine problem!!! Wheeww, Id probably be depressed if that ever happened bc of doing my own MOD instead of letting an expert do it.

Thank you for the look out. To anyone out there, especially the newbies. Try to really, REALLY, search this thread for help with anything even if an expert told you already what to do. They dont own a car like yours so what do they know?? The members on this forums do and so I suggest taking everybodys suggestion from here even after an opinion from an expert especially if their selling you the item you want to put in. Im a sales manager myself I should have known he just said what he needed to make me buy, cant believe I fell for it . And if you are still not comfortable with the replies from the forum Its better to let a pro do the work rather than risk the headache that you might cause yourself even if you think its simple. I have somebody to blame and im lucky. To tell you honestly a 30 min work (maybe less) to replace my grille and hood star cause me to do it for almost 4 hours since I just took the sellers directions on how to install it. I wasnt a member here yet but I should have know better from there. I know sometimes its just so tempting to do your own MOD especially if its soooooo simple. Anyways, enough of my rant.

Just take my story as a lesson and I hope all of you will learn from it too. But dont feel stupid doing a MOD that went wrong and THEN JUST decide to ask or search the forums afterwards like I did. The members here are glad to hit you in the head and then tell you what to do.

jdestreza

Hey Drex, did you ever get the chance to look at the pictures? thanks

Rick

"Wheel Experts" are only glorified salesmen. My comment about searching was not in any way, nor intended to be, inflamatory.

I know full well what MB-BOB listed in that sticky, as I was one of several proponents of said notice that requested it.

There was nothing hostile in my post. I was simply asking you to eschew obfuscation. That is, communicate clearly to avoid confusion.

You might be surprised to know that I am, infact, published and tenured.

kevblah

I don't want to waste everyone's time by continuously asking if a certain rim size and offset will fit my W203 sedan. Can someone just provide a range of sizes from low to high that will fit my car. Thanks.

rlee02135

its usually somewhere from ET28 to ET35

FrankW

correct.

depends on the size here are my knowledge on what should work based on the wheels I've seen and used:

front:
ET28-32 for 8.5" width
ET30-35 for 8" width
ET35-37 for 7.5" width

rear:
ET35 for 9.5-10" width (fender rolling may be required)
ET35-38 for 9" width
ET30 for 8.5" width

note: it'll still depend on the style of the wheel to determine what's the best offset.

drexappeal

Still don't know where you posted the pics though.