Problems after installing new wheels!!!! =/
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Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 130
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From: NYC / Northern NJ
02' C230 Coupe & 92' 190e 2.6
Problems after installing new wheels!!!! =/
Yesterday i picked up some new wheels for my 02 coupe, went from 16's to 17's. the wheels were OEM MB and had no problem with the installation but after they were installed i realized the OEM bolts were too long and the car wouldnt move in 1st gear. so after having a panic attack thinking i broke something i put the original wheels back on and now my rear discs and calipers wont seems to let go of the rotors 
did i actually damage something by doing this? it sounds like nails on a chalk board when i drive the car =// i am planning to order the new shorter bolts from MB tomorrow
if anyone could please help i would appreciate it !!!
(after putting the original wheels back on the problem still wasnt fixed now the car somewhat hesitates to move but it goes, the rears feel like their holding the car back)
did i actually damage something by doing this? it sounds like nails on a chalk board when i drive the car =// i am planning to order the new shorter bolts from MB tomorrow if anyone could please help i would appreciate it !!!
(after putting the original wheels back on the problem still wasnt fixed now the car somewhat hesitates to move but it goes, the rears feel like their holding the car back)
Last edited by kmancoupe230; Sep 19, 2010 at 07:21 PM.
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From: North San diego
C320 2002
Your 200% correct.. If you drove away and heard a ticking noise coming from the back.. That was just your long bolts eating away your parking brake springs =/
I changed to 19's and didn't even see my rims came with shorter bolts for the rear
I changed to 19's and didn't even see my rims came with shorter bolts for the rear
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From: Toronto, Ontario, Canada, eh!
2003 C230 Sports Coupe, Paprika Metallic Red, Auto, Pano, Leather
Are you sure those 17" are OEM MB rims? More specifically,... OEM MB rims for your W203/CL203 C-class? If not, you may need custom lug bolts if you're trying to put OEM MB 17" from a non-compatible MB class/generation onto a W203/CL203 C-class.
Beside your shank length, I bet your ball-seat radius are wrong too,... so don't be surprise if one day you're driving along,.. and your wheels comes off!
You can start by telling us which "OEM MB" 17" wheels you got. From which car it came off of originally. Photos would be nice.
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From: Calgary, Alberta
2007 ML500
Nex time, try out the bolts on the wheels BEFORE putting them on the hub. All you have to do is poke one bolt through to see how many threads show. It isn't difficult people.
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2001 c320 - 2002 ml55 - 2011 c300 - 2014 slk350 - 2015 cla45
i agree with you..... this happened to me.... a national wheel/tire store installed a set of rims of mine with lug nuts that where a little too long.... Only ran me 100 bucks to fix. I was told that it look like the lug nuts where rubbing on the ebrake and it was eventually knocked off its bracket..
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From: Llandudno, Cape Town, South Africa
late 2009 CLK 350 Coupe Elegance, '65 Jaguar S Type wires
Trey is correct. Many threads covering this. You should not have a problem from one OE wheel to the next on bolt length. Something is fishy. The OE short bolts for a steel spare will be too short.
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From: NYC / Northern NJ
02' C230 Coupe & 92' 190e 2.6
i went to my mechanic today and he said i only needed the springs in the parking brake assembly so its a good thing i only went two feet before i did anymore damage. btw these are the exact wheels i got http://www.autoweb.co.uk/WSCarDetails.asp?cdID=12117218
i also picked up 1.1' long bolts at my local mb dealer
i also picked up 1.1' long bolts at my local mb dealer
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From: Toronto, Ontario, Canada, eh!
2003 C230 Sports Coupe, Paprika Metallic Red, Auto, Pano, Leather
The Wheels you got are 17" from Evolution package (C7 package for USA). These 17" are OEM Mercedes Benz wheels for our W203/CL203.
Are your 17" rims:
17"x7.5 ET37 Part# B6-647-1511 A203-401-18-02
OR
17"x8.5 ET34 Part# B6-647-1515 A203-401-24-02
Something isn't right here. The above 17" OEM MB wheels should fit perfectly without any issues using stock OEM MB lug bolts for W203/CL203.
Do you have photos of your 16" that was on the car? Are you sure they're OEM MB rims? Are you sure your bolts are OEM stock?
First of all, you yanks gotta stop talking about metric bolts in imperial measurements! What's this 1.1" long bolt???
Our Mercedes C-class (W203/CL203) have two bolt sizes:
-long- M12x1.5 thread, R12 ball seat, 39.9 mm shank, 17 mm Hex (for OEM alloy wheels)
-short- M12x1.5 thread, R12 ball seat, 20.6 mm shank (for winter "steelies")
The "long" bolts (for OEM alloy wheels) you need are 39.9mm shank.
The 1.1" long bolt you're talking about better not be the short bolt for winter steelies! 20.6 mm shank + ball seat + hex give it a total length of about 1.1"
Bottom line,... with lug bolts sitting in ball seat of rim,... examine the thread part of lug bolts that go through rims to the hub side. Make sure there are about 6 full rotation of threads on the lug bolt. That's the only thing holding the wheels to your car!
Are your 17" rims:
17"x7.5 ET37 Part# B6-647-1511 A203-401-18-02
OR
17"x8.5 ET34 Part# B6-647-1515 A203-401-24-02
Something isn't right here. The above 17" OEM MB wheels should fit perfectly without any issues using stock OEM MB lug bolts for W203/CL203.
Do you have photos of your 16" that was on the car? Are you sure they're OEM MB rims? Are you sure your bolts are OEM stock?
First of all, you yanks gotta stop talking about metric bolts in imperial measurements! What's this 1.1" long bolt???
Our Mercedes C-class (W203/CL203) have two bolt sizes:
-long- M12x1.5 thread, R12 ball seat, 39.9 mm shank, 17 mm Hex (for OEM alloy wheels)
-short- M12x1.5 thread, R12 ball seat, 20.6 mm shank (for winter "steelies")
The "long" bolts (for OEM alloy wheels) you need are 39.9mm shank.
The 1.1" long bolt you're talking about better not be the short bolt for winter steelies! 20.6 mm shank + ball seat + hex give it a total length of about 1.1"
Bottom line,... with lug bolts sitting in ball seat of rim,... examine the thread part of lug bolts that go through rims to the hub side. Make sure there are about 6 full rotation of threads on the lug bolt. That's the only thing holding the wheels to your car!
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From: Llandudno, Cape Town, South Africa
late 2009 CLK 350 Coupe Elegance, '65 Jaguar S Type wires
Well said SunnyRay - man you know your bolts 
I don't understand what's going on here Replicas passed off as OE?
I don't understand what's going on here
Replicas passed off as OE?
Last edited by Glyn M Ruck; Sep 21, 2010 at 10:19 AM.
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From: New Joisey
13 Jeep JKU Sahara w/4" lift Kit & the works,2015 Toyota Sienna XLE,2013 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid
SunnyRay is the man as far as bolts are concerned...........thanks SunnyRay for your help/input when I put my wheel set togather...............he is the bolts guru on here PERIOD..............
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From: NYC / Northern NJ
02' C230 Coupe & 92' 190e 2.6
I met up with Javvy, a great guy to deal with would recommend to anyone and he knows what hes talking about, but unfortunately the lugs were too long, it seems as though the bolts the spares use would clear, i measured it and inside the rim they come out 1.7cm or 6 threads clear and the rim is 2 cm deep. i just want to make sure this is safe and i to answer your question SunnyRay they are 17"x8.5 ET34 Part# B6-647-1515 A203-401-24-0 wheels. if its not safe to use those bolts ill have to go with spacers.. i really appreciate all your input.
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Joined: May 2009
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From: Toronto, Ontario, Canada, eh!
2003 C230 Sports Coupe, Paprika Metallic Red, Auto, Pano, Leather
Yes, correct, the OEM MB rims for W203/CL203 are about 2cm deep (I would say closer to 21mm from ball seat in rim to hub-side of rim). Then there's about a 1mm deep "valley" in the hub-side of rim where it meets the hub. That'll leave you with about 17mm of the lug bolt going into hub. Hub has a hallow cone a few mm deep so the 6 threads are about 12mm (which is what holds your wheel to the car).
The OEM Mercedes W203/CL203 -long- bolt is the one you should be using.
-long- M12x1.5 thread, R12 ball seat, 39.9 mm shank, 17 mm Hex (for OEM alloy wheels)
I'm a bit confused with "it seems as though the bolts the spares use would clear". You have spares,... plural? Or are you talking about your one spare wheel in your trunk? Which came with 5 lug bolts which are shorter than 39.9mm shank.
What's the shank length of the bolts the spare uses? Shank length of lug bolts are measured from base of ball seat to end of threaded end.
The OEM MB 17" rim you described should fit without issue using OEM Mercedes W203/CL203 -long- bolt with 39.9mm shank. Unless,... someone tried drilled out those rims to re-seat it. Or someone changed your hub or rotors to thinner non-OEM specs. Either that or your original 16" rims were not OEM MB for W203/CL203 (maybe aftermarket) and used longer bolts (longer than 39.9 shank).
What's the shank length of the lug bolts that you first used to install the 17"?
The OEM Mercedes W203/CL203 -long- bolt is the one you should be using.
-long- M12x1.5 thread, R12 ball seat, 39.9 mm shank, 17 mm Hex (for OEM alloy wheels)
I'm a bit confused with "it seems as though the bolts the spares use would clear". You have spares,... plural? Or are you talking about your one spare wheel in your trunk? Which came with 5 lug bolts which are shorter than 39.9mm shank.
What's the shank length of the bolts the spare uses? Shank length of lug bolts are measured from base of ball seat to end of threaded end.
The OEM MB 17" rim you described should fit without issue using OEM Mercedes W203/CL203 -long- bolt with 39.9mm shank. Unless,... someone tried drilled out those rims to re-seat it. Or someone changed your hub or rotors to thinner non-OEM specs. Either that or your original 16" rims were not OEM MB for W203/CL203 (maybe aftermarket) and used longer bolts (longer than 39.9 shank).
What's the shank length of the lug bolts that you first used to install the 17"?
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From: New Joisey
13 Jeep JKU Sahara w/4" lift Kit & the works,2015 Toyota Sienna XLE,2013 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid
ray all ur concerns are ligit, given the circumstance that we don't knwo the authenticity of the rims; what I observed is when you pass the spare tire lugs through the proposed replacament rims they protrude like 6-7 threads out and I think it should be the safest route to take given all the unknown's. What I suggested to OP is put them on and start by driving very very slowly and keep ears open for any noise/restriction's during driving if nothing happnes then gradually increase the speed and ultimately push the set up for some DD driving extremes if all works then I think he is good to go with those lugs.............
my 2cents
Javvy
my 2cents
Javvy
MBworld Guru
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 22,058
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From: Diamond Bar, CA
W206 PHEV AMG
as said, oem bolts fit oem wheels perfectly.
either the bolts used isn't oem or the wheel hub has been shaved for maybe the use of spacers/adapters if they were bought from VW/Audi crowd.
either the bolts used isn't oem or the wheel hub has been shaved for maybe the use of spacers/adapters if they were bought from VW/Audi crowd.
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Joined: May 2009
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From: Toronto, Ontario, Canada, eh!
2003 C230 Sports Coupe, Paprika Metallic Red, Auto, Pano, Leather
Given how Mercedes loves stamping their star logo and part numbers all over the place, the authenticity of those rims should be easy to verify. Look hub side of rims and you should be able to find star logo and Part# B6-647-1515 or A203-401-24-02.
The spare tire lug bolts (hollow hex head) should be way too short. Spare tire lug bolts have 20.6 mm shank. Spare tire is about 4-5mm thick where lug bolt seat are. Which means, on spare tire, the spare tire lug bolt should protrude about 16 mm
-long- M12x1.5 thread, R12 ball seat, 39.9 mm shank, 17 mm Hex (for OEM alloy wheels)
-short- M12x1.5 thread, R12 ball seat, 20.6 mm shank (for winter "steelies")
Kmancoupe230 already stated his rims are 2cm deep where lug bolt seat are. Thus nothing should protrude when using the spare tire lug bolts (20.6mm shank).
Javvy stated that with lug bolts in rim lug bolts protrude 6-7 threads (on hubside). It should actually protrude about 9-10 threads. And I wouldn't count the first one on the end of the bolt since that's smaller and only used to guide it into the hub. A few of these threads don't really contact the hub since the opening at the hub has a little cone shape to help guide the bolt in.
The true test is how many full rotation of the lug bolt does it take to put the wheel on at the specified torque. It should talk 6 full rotation of the lug bolts. If only 6-7 thread protrude, then it'll only take 3 full rotation and that's way too little. This is the only thing holding the wheels to the car!
With Lug bolts in wheels lug bolts should protrude about 16-17mm (hub side). Add that to the thickness of rim at lug bolts seats and that's the shank size you should have.
The spare tire lug bolts (hollow hex head) should be way too short. Spare tire lug bolts have 20.6 mm shank. Spare tire is about 4-5mm thick where lug bolt seat are. Which means, on spare tire, the spare tire lug bolt should protrude about 16 mm
-long- M12x1.5 thread, R12 ball seat, 39.9 mm shank, 17 mm Hex (for OEM alloy wheels)
-short- M12x1.5 thread, R12 ball seat, 20.6 mm shank (for winter "steelies")
Kmancoupe230 already stated his rims are 2cm deep where lug bolt seat are. Thus nothing should protrude when using the spare tire lug bolts (20.6mm shank).
Javvy stated that with lug bolts in rim lug bolts protrude 6-7 threads (on hubside). It should actually protrude about 9-10 threads. And I wouldn't count the first one on the end of the bolt since that's smaller and only used to guide it into the hub. A few of these threads don't really contact the hub since the opening at the hub has a little cone shape to help guide the bolt in.
The true test is how many full rotation of the lug bolt does it take to put the wheel on at the specified torque. It should talk 6 full rotation of the lug bolts. If only 6-7 thread protrude, then it'll only take 3 full rotation and that's way too little. This is the only thing holding the wheels to the car!
With Lug bolts in wheels lug bolts should protrude about 16-17mm (hub side). Add that to the thickness of rim at lug bolts seats and that's the shank size you should have.
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Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 783
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From: PA
E Coupe C207, ML W166, ML W164, Sprinter 1500/144, W111 SB220 Fintail(s), A5 chassis Beetle 5+5
The wheel rides on the hub, not the bolts. The bolts simply provide clamping force. So, not, they are not the "only thing".
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Joined: May 2022
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Clk200
Bolts too long?
Hi gus,I know this is an old post,but just having the same issue,my clk200 has 16s on it now,I bought a set of 19s off a c250,and the bolts are too long,there's about a 10ml or so gap...I don't quite understand what the "ball" means either...lol.
Also,the 16s have a big like " spacer" attached to the rims,these 19s will be pretty much sitting up against the brake housing,is this an issue?
Also,the 16s have a big like " spacer" attached to the rims,these 19s will be pretty much sitting up against the brake housing,is this an issue?
Super Member
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 783
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From: PA
E Coupe C207, ML W166, ML W164, Sprinter 1500/144, W111 SB220 Fintail(s), A5 chassis Beetle 5+5
The spacer compels longer bolts. 25mm is the 4standard, and that's what you need. The Ball is the shape of the head of the bolt, how it seats in the barrel ofthe rim.
Best not to mess with it. Fitments on these cars can be very tricky. Don't forget the centering rings if needed. No it's not ok to be against the caliper.
Best not to mess with it. Fitments on these cars can be very tricky. Don't forget the centering rings if needed. No it's not ok to be against the caliper.
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Joined: May 2022
Posts: 4
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Clk200
W 205 19" rims on w209 clk200
The spacer compels longer bolts. 25mm is the 4standard, and that's what you need. The Ball is the shape of the head of the bolt, how it seats in the barrel ofthe rim.
Best not to mess with it. Fitments on these cars can be very tricky. Don't forget the centering rings if needed. No it's not ok to be against the caliper.
Best not to mess with it. Fitments on these cars can be very tricky. Don't forget the centering rings if needed. No it's not ok to be against the caliper.
OK,I have just discovered the problem the wheels I have use a 14ml bolt,whereas mine are 12ml..so my question is..is the ball of the bolt assuming I can find some shorter ones,enough to hold it centred? Or can I not use these wheels at all?
sorry for the confusion,and I appreciate the responses
Last edited by Envy888ed; May 13, 2022 at 12:21 AM.
