Oh and I'm glad to see you're doing ok man. You should have snagged some photos. They would have been useful for the photo-hunt game. lol

 

I've been using Discount Tire, which has about the same prices as tirerack, but it's easier becase I can go in. There's a guy, Blue, who I've been working with for a while. They do really good work, and will do small things for you for no cost. They patched a tire on my mom's car for naught. She had never been there before. I also saw them change a stem for someone for free as well. I like the shop and the guy, so I'll be asking him about any used tires.

 

drew hope you can get some sleep tonight i know after all my accidents or near accidents i could not sleep for at least one night. the last one which i am sure you all have seen pics of still keeps me up over a month latter. Lets see i have had three accidents 1 last month, one on graduation day from HS lol in my c320 and one when i was like 10 in my moms land cruiser which we totaled a jeep. After all of them i had trouble sleeping. Then of course the few times i thought i was going to wreck freaked me out a lot funny thing is they were never in the sports cars i drove (slk55, 911, corvette) always in some crappy slow car or one of my first two cars around the farm. wow i have never thought about all that before i really need to stop driving that is way to many accidents for a 20 year old i guess only one was my fault so that is good right at least my best friend and i had a memorable graduation day

 

For two months after I was rear-ended (in my mom's car) I braced myself for impact after every time I hit the brakes. I'm glad I got over that! But thanks, I'm going to try to get some sleep now. I told Matt I was going to bed quite a while ago. If he were here, it would explain why I was still up, but I guess I'm up just from thinking about him...




Anyway - sleep is good, or so they say.

 

[quote=LILBENZ230;4122804]If someone comes on here and says you deserve this.. quote]

I promise I wont!

 

My last set I had set at Merc recommened and the front were wearing fine but the rears were done after 20k. I am now using lower pressure in the rears to see if that helps, but it might not based on what you said Matt. Maybe 25k-30k it all the rears are good for no matter the pressure.

 

glad you are ok...............you posted the pics and now Have a some questions for you........I see that you have upgraded front calipers..........hehehehe..........need to know what year model donor mercedes they came from...........I am looking for some one to tell me exactly what year and what trim model so I can start searcing for them ...........please let me know.........

 

1st and foremost, glad you are OK Drew! I am in the same situation as you. My Michelin Pilot A/S +'s are VERY bald in the rear with 31K on them. I have found that ESP on these cars is incredible, but it really goes down hill fast when the tires are bald, especially when wet.

Agreed, they LOOK low, but I have found you can't go by looks for tire pressure.

Why the hell would anybody say he deserved this?!?! Apart from his tires being bald, I don't see that Drew did anything wrong based on his telling of the incident.

I have found that the PSI MB recommends is a good starting point, but with most tires is too low.

Yes, Matt is right, I am a stickler for maintenance and in fact very "****" about always checking tire pressure and wear. I go as far as using a pyrometer and tread depth gauge to make sure I have the correct pressure. Our cars have a lot of caster angle ~10 degrees. This causes lots of camber change during cornering. Age old wisdom says if you are wearing the center vs. the shoulders, you are too high of air pressure. If you wear the shoulders more than the center you are too low air pressure. On our cars, in the front at least, that is opposite. Since the high caster angle puts more force on the shoulders due to the large camber change, you want to up the tire pressure to lower shoulder wear.

In the rear, our cars do 2 things, they tend to wear the inner shoulder more than the rest, due to negative camber. No matter what you do for pressure, you won't change that. But, is is very minor over the life of the tires. I like to run my tires just a touch overinflated, to keep them cooler, and maximize fuel economy. So, I almost always wear the center out before the shoulders, but just slightly. Our cars also have a tendency to wear out the right rear ever so slightly more than the left, as this is the drive tire.

Best bang for the buck tire out today IMO, is the Continental Extreme Contact DWS. The bad, as I was telling Matt via PM, is they are on national back order in most popular sizes. They are relatively inexpensive, and have gotten rave reviews in testing. Matt has a set on his car, and really likes them. For the rear I was quoted $290 out the door for a pair. I just have to wait until they are in stock ~mid August is what I was told.

 

I wanted the DWS too, but I needed them replaced now. Went with the new Sumitomo HTR A/S P01. They have a 40k mi warranty and so far they ride good. Looking forward to the DWS once I blow through these

 

Just checked tire rack and the DWS 225/45-17 will be in stock 6/21/10. They already have 245/40-17 in stock

 

Those look like the stock calipers for the c230 ss

 

good job on not crashing!

 

I know I overreacted the first time around back at the beginning, and I apologize and am pleased we have pretty much started fresh. Drew's MBWorld family though.. I would be really pissed about it if someone had said that about him.

I'd do what Johnand does. Run the rears slightly over inflated. I'm afraid you'll probably have to accept that the tires just aren't gonna make it much longer than your experience. I'd run the fronts higher for sure, though to counter that shoulder wear. My Kumho tires looked ridiculous in the front after 30k miles - no shoulder tread whatsoever.

The DWS tires are good tires, but I can't say I would back-order them. I paid $585 OTD (tax/fees/installation) for my set of 4. Had they been on back order, I would have not hesitated to go with the Ecsta ASX tires again (and saved $50). They treated me well and I can't complain.

Really? I'm running 33 in the front right now (I think?) and if this is true I'm gonna go right now and jack off the pressure some.

Aww, sweet. Keep your hands above the desk.

Those are the stock calipers for the C230 Sport. If you want some, look for a 2005-2007 C230 Sport (the Sport was the only C230 sold in the USA but varies in other countries) donor car.

 

No, no, I think you read that wrong, you want to add some air pressure, go higher, to reduce shoulder wear, which is opposite of conventional wisdom on tire wear. I am currently, at 36 PSI front, and STILL get more shoulder wear, though, I think it has a lot to do with tire design too. Seems the Michelin's I currently have, don't have as much tread depth at the shoulders, as the rest of the tire.

 

[quote=LILBENZ230;4123923]I know I overreacted the first time around back at the beginning, and I apologize and am pleased we have pretty much started fresh.

Me Too!




I'd do what Johnand does. Run the rears slightly over inflated. I'm afraid you'll probably have to accept that the tires just aren't gonna make it much longer than your experience. I'd run the fronts higher for sure, though to counter that shoulder wear. My Kumho tires looked ridiculous in the front after 30k miles - no shoulder tread whatsoever.

The rears were just worn in the center, shoulder wear was fine. I'm afraid it would be worse if I inflate them any more

 

I meant jack up.. Freudian slip.

 

Ahh man, atleast your good. The effects of this economy are everywhere, the star can be straightend out.

 

Thanks again, everyone. I'm going to see if I can get some pictures of the crash site... I drove by today and you can see my skidmarks going off the side of the road and through the grass.. They crisscross like three times - I hadn't realized I started spinning.

On closer examination, I realized I did a little more damage than I originally thought. Where my car was resting on the cement drainage thingy, it took a chunk out of the plastic cover over the lower frame under the driver's side of the car. There is also a crack on the very back of the driver's side sideskirt. There are also some scratches on the front-right side of my car, but nothing that won't come out - I think. Also, the bumper is
*slightly* out of adjustment, but nothing I need to worry about. I'm just glad nothing major happened.

 

Glad you're ok man

Had a feeling that numpre was a tadbit off. BTW, is that video in your sig real?

Milkm4n, PS2's are some of the best ones you could buy. I have them on the M3 currently and they last long enough (with that car) and offer awesome performance, grip, and handling. Havent slipped with those tires yet at all including hard rain driving

 

As a result of the accident, the underbelly piece in front of the front right wheel was damaged. I didn't fasten it back, so the other day - in the rain again - I hit a puddle which knocked the piece loose. I didn't realize it until I got home and found the piece dragging on the ground... at least what was left of it. It's now being held on with a zip-tie and duct tape (embarrassing). I was wondering if anyone could tell me the part number for this so I can order one to replace it. It's the piece with the vents on the front of the wheel well (with the little mud flappy thingy). I'll take a picture tomorrow. Thanks in advance!

 

you can just order it from rmeuropean.com for $35 I think under body panels section shipping's about $6. dealership will rape you $50-57 at least.

if you don't want to wait then just go to the dealership and tell them you need the driver side front L-shape wheel well cover. they'll know what it is. it's the most common thing that falls off on the 203.

 

dude, GET NEW TIRES !!! i should know, i had a 1992 500e - the porsche/mb collaberative car, id take it out most nites for a little porschedes run over my fav curvy roads, well one nite it was raining and my rear tires were almost bald, and i entered a corner alittle hot and tapped the brakes, this loaded the front tires and unloaded the rears and i did what u did, spun out and slid backwards for 100 feet, luckily i missed the trees and only had grass and mud all over, i was only doing 40 mph, never again will i drive w near bald tires, scared the u know what out of me, glad to hear u came out unscathed. now, call tire rack now. ive been thru s02, s03, star spec, goodyear d3, sumitomo III, falken 615, kdw, sport maxx, fuzion zri, pm me if u are interested in any of these.

 

i probably said this somewhere in this forum by dont go cheap on tires and breaks ever!! What's cheaper?? saving a 100 dollars or gettin into an accident and paying ur 500-1000 deducutible plus headache and rate hikes involved. Your cars brakes and steering are only as good as ur tires can handle. you pay for what you get

 

Thanks again! I found the part (Fender Liner Right Front Lower) on RMEuropean for $24.30. I'll be happy to get this all finished and behind me.

I switched my wheels to the others I had with fresh tires. I've been using General Exclaim UHPs which have very good wet and dry performance, plus a very competitive price. This is my second set, and I'm extremely pleased with them... as long as I stay within their useful life.

This is definitely outside of their useful life!