VelociRaptor

My favorite two brands are Goodyear and Nitto. Ive ran different types of these brands and all work very well. I will say that I lean more toward the Nitto tire mainly because of price if the two brands have simular tires for my application.

billbugger

What do you all think about Sumitomos? I'm thinking about getting the Z2's: http://www.sumitomotire.com/theline/...asp?c=per&id=1

C230 Sport Coup

Why bother when the Z3 is out?
Check out the report on tirerack where they can't tell the difference between the Sumi's and the Bridgestone re050 PP's .
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests/...irePageLocQty=

I have 'em on the back. And as a matter of fact the BS's on the front, since the rear BS's wore out so quick, and they work well together.

I'm planning to buy a full set soon. Excellent deal.

There's cheaper places than tirerack to get them too, but can't tell you as TR is a sponsor.

And to those folks who are loving the Exclaims, I say they are Ka Ka!
They don't turn in quickly, and are just basically mediocre as far as performance. I suppose it just depends how you drive. But they are
way down on performance, less then Fuzion's and many other tires including the Sumi's. Though they last longer, but at the cost of grip.

I've got major bucks invested in my suspension.
Putting crappy tires on just makes all that a waste.

I've had-
Mich PS1 (Came on the car)
Continental Extreme Contact (Extremely noisy at around 80)
Fuzion ZR1s (Good tires for the money, STIFF sidewall, rides like a rock, but grips well)
Mich PS2 (Excellent and Expensive)
Bridgestone RE050A Pole Positions- Nice, but the rear went at 10K miles, but also a little pricey when you can get
Sumitomo ZIII- Best overall value. 1/2 the price of the nearest competitor.

Not sure about the Nitto's etc. I tend to think of those as cheap tires, and in cheap not inexpensive but I could be wrong.

C230 Sport Coup

Thats my take on it. I had the UHP's on the back, with the Fuzion's up front, since the rears wore out...wow, was my handling messed even with them just on the rear. Junk!

t1n0

Not a tire question, but related...
I was considering going +1 on the rims for my C32, to 18X8.5 front, and 18X9.5 rear, but wanted to keep same style, the twin bar five spoke original factory AMG rims, but chromed. I have seen on on ebay many shops that produce aftermarket AMG imitataions, "factory" brand they are called, (totally misleading) but I don't want to go that route. I would prefer true AMG rims. It seems my only choice is to get the staggered 18's that were offered on CLS AMG's. Same style, 18 and chrome. (SWEET!)
Has anyone ever upgraded a C32 17's to CLS 18's?
The bolt pattern is the same, and supposedly so is the offset, so it should work, I was just wondering if anyone had actually done it.

There's a guy that has them straight from the dealer when people do upgrades at the dealer, so they are practically zero miles, and he will shoe them with slightly used Mich PS2's which I love, or some Conti 2's, (good enough). this is an added bonus that will ease the impact of the purchase because I won't have the additional expense of purchase/mount/balance 4 new low profile tires at the same time as rim purchase. (2nd link below)

Here's an E class set, not chrome, only 8" and 9" wide staggered, but good price with Mich PS2's:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/18-ME...mZ170275018146

Here's the half inch wider, 18X8.5, 18X9.5 CLS Chrome with "slightly" used mich or contis:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/18-BR...mZ180302620637

Here's a brand new set of the new gunmetal stlye C63 rims, with new tires, seems like a great deal:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/MERCE...mZ110307321209

I'm sure it will look a lot nicer, Is it worth it? Will it really improve the ride of the car that much more?
Why would AMG put 17's on such a sporty car as the C32 is beyond me.
The alternative is to chrome the ones I have. Has anyone ever sent in their stock rims, that are satin silver, to be chromed? Know of a good reputabale place?
Thanks in advance.

Glyn M Ruck

Take the PS2s - Don't touch the Contis - They are noisy crap.

dbvolz

You say you want real AMG wheels in 18" right? Why not just look for a set of used C55 rims? They look better than the C32 style wheels and I'm sure finding a chrome set shouldn't be too hard.

Glyn M Ruck

+1 Why buy a Merc then go cheap on tyres? Makes no sense. Michelin Exalto PE2s & Sport PS2s are clearly the best tyres on these vehicles for Summer driving.

dbvolz

Mostly because (and I feel like I speak for a large number of the members on this group) with our wheel tire setup (aka negative camber) we usually only see like 12,000 miles out of a set of tires if we're lucky. The Exclaims are rated very well by Tirerack (especially wet traction), that was one of the deciding factors for me. I was actually advised to get these rather than some of the more expensive tires available. Obviously to each their own (and I know you and t1n0 have near stock setups), but at $363 a piece for my rear tires Thanks, but I'll stick with my $156 UHPs.

Oh and just a general FYI everyone: Tirerack confirmed that General tires are made by the same people that make Contis!

Glyn M Ruck

Yes, we know General & Conti are the same company & Conti is IMHO crap. Removed them from my car with only 15000 KMs on them - noisy, lousy turn in, harsh - SC2s - & everything just gets worse & worse as they wear - car came new with them - PE2s transformed the vehicle) I partially understand where you are coming from but I would have thought safety would be the number one deciding factor - negative camber considerations included, or is your suspension set up for cosmetic reasons only? If you take your car on the track then that's a different matter.

While you may speak for many - The greatest majority on this thread back Michelin according to the poll above.

dbvolz

Like I said, to each their own. From my experience, tires are like sneakers. Some people swear by one brand, while others find them uncomfortable. Either way, I'm happy with my tires and recommend them to anybody looking for an inexpensive alternative. If I could have my pick (price not an issue) I'd probably go with Yoko AVSs. (they cost $437 in my size ) I also voted for Michelin in the poll btw.

Keep in mind, we are talking about two completely different tire categories (low profile vs. stock)

BTW Glyn, saw you live in SA. How is it driving an MB there? I've heard some horror stories about car jackings and such. Either way, maybe we can continue our tire debate over some cold ones for the World Cup?

Glyn M Ruck

Understood - controversy is healthy!- I'm on 225/50/16 Exalto PE2s at the moment. Waiting for my new wheels & going to 245/40/17 Rear - 235/45/17 front Sport PS2s on 8.5" - 8" ET30 - My car only has 46,000Kms on the clock. Yoki's are great but short life in hot South African conditions.

Driving a Merc in South Africa is great - We have our own plant in East London that makes most of your W204s so we can order pretty well customised cars. MB is the 3rd or 4th best selling car brand in the country (depending on measurement criteria) & best selling truck - this is a Merc market. Cars here have extra security features such as lock up transmission on top of the alarm system. The only way to steal a Merc here is to pick it up if you don't have the key. My car also has satellite tracking fitted should someone get past all the systems. This halves the insurance. Car jacking much reduced now. Many problems experienced on this forum by Benz owners are not common here while a few are. A lot of local testing gets done before production & problems get ironed out locally. This is not a CKD operation. Cars are about 47% local content by weight.

A few cases of frosties at the World Cup sounds sensible

Glyn M Ruck

+1

Glyn M Ruck

I'm reposting this here because the question keeps coming up in unrelated threads & I don't want to repeat myself.

Quote:
Originally Posted by mleskovar
Interesting....I went to Bridgestones after the original Conti's and am going back to the Conti's H95 because of noise. I think the noise is caused by bad thrust bushings causing the tires to cup and the Bridgestones are more prone to cupping because of the tread pattern. At 148K miles I am on my third set of thrust bushings.

Mleskovar - I've done a lot of research on this matter with Benz & Michelin - while driving with shot castor bushing might aggravate tyre cupping or feathering leading to air pumping & other noise on big block tyres -
Feathering is also inevitable with these sort of tyres with the suspension geometry - Noise transmission is also part of the firmer than usual for Benz suspension settings. If you run your hand counter rotation over the tread and can feel any sort of feathering you are heading for trouble. My car on Conti's sounded as though the wheel bearings were failing.

The answer is to fit small block non rotation specific tyres (can be assymetric) with solid tread bands rather than blocks & rotate them every 10,000 Kms opposite corner to opposite corner or across the same axle to change the direction of rotation regularly.

There are a couple of tyres known to stop this problem with regular rotation & Conti don't crack it at all. Yokohama AVS db2 does a good job & the Michelin Pilot Exalto PE2s which I have had on my car for over 30,000 Kms now and not only transformed the car but are still perfectly quiet with no feathering - solid radial bands of tread - 225/50/16. The new Pilot Sport PS2 is no longer directional like the PS was & now has the Exalto tread minus a few sipes so that should also be excellent. My Exaltos are not even half worn yet but I'm going to 17" rims X 8.5 rear 8 front ET30 and I'm going to fit PS2s because they come in the sizes I need. The Exalto PE2 has been a fabulous tyre, - quiet, much better turn in, more comfortable than the Contis - as I say - transformed the car.

BTW My castor arm bushes were replaced FOC at the 45,000Km service because I'm running out of Service plan and my workshop manager said to me now is the time to replace anything you are not happy with & we went through the car with a fine tooth comb. At no time was my alignment out of spec. The castor arm bushes have to get really bad for the alignment to go out of spec. And one other little trick which I will translate to LHS cars. You must run one degree more castor on the passenger side of the car than the drivers side to stop pulling with road camber & also reduce tyre feathering - Typically 9.4 deg drivers side 10.4 deg passenger side

Liqued12

So the conceses is that running 45 series tires will mess with the ESP? Or will they just be to tall? Wonder why my current setup doesn't bother it. 215/35/18 up front and 235/40/18 back.

C230 Sport Coup

Yup, like I said, depends how you drive.
I have some awesome roads around here, and like the grip I get on the twisties. It's amazing, they grip and never let go, as in PS2's, or the RE050A PP, or the Sumi HTR III's .

If I was a soccer Mom (Dad really I suppose) in Kansas well, it wouldn't matter.

I don't drive that way all the time, but occasionally when I push the limits, it good to have tires that can handle it.

Glyn M Ruck

It makes no sense - pics make your front look much wider than 215

215/35/18 = 869 revs per mile
235/40/18 = 820

Your speedo should be a mess and ESP unhappy if it's working?????

Glyn M Ruck

Both

alanchan

hey I have C7 wheels and I have 225 front and 245 rear
seems fine, no errors but my car has OEM suspension, did not lower anything.

Glyn M Ruck

Hey - come guys, this is not rocket science. 225 front 245 rear what profile?
If it is 225/45 & 245/40 then the rolling circumference is the same and you won't have trouble

This has nothing to do with suspension. You need to run tyres with a rolling circumference that is the same within 2% max variation

TruTaing

OT: Im kinda sad ive never seen this car around Seattle

t1n0

Yep, your right, that is the style. (What I call a "twin five-spoke") However, the CLS's are 8.5 and 9.5 width, 1 inch wider, respectively, and yet they claim to have the same 35mm offset.

If I was to do it, I think it would be worth it to also get the increased width, no? However, it looks like it will be a pipe dream for a while...the big project at work that was going to "pay" for it has been delayed, and Christmas is coming up.

Back to life, back to reality...

I do need rears. I am soooo happy with the PS2's up front, but the rears wear so much quicker, I need to find something PS2-like, but with maybe a little better wear characteristics. I didn't think the Conti's were as bad as some claim here...I was happy with them except for the noise.

Anybody suggest a PS2-like tire but with slightly better wear for the rears?

BTW: yes, Continental AG is the parent for General, so they have that in common, but keep in mind, General Motors produces both the Corvette and the Chevette

Glyn M Ruck

CLS wheels are ET28 /ET33 see Tru's car - AMG are ET37 /ET30 - Your ideal would be Exalto PE2 for the rear - same tread as PS2 - longer treadwear but the biggest size in the US in 18" is 225/40 so that's no good unless the Tire Rack size guide is wrong - larger sizes are available in SA but limited.

t1n0

Tru has the CLS500 rims. I kinda like the CLS55 AMG style, its just like the C32 AMG, a twin bar five spoke, just an inch wider and an inch more in diameter, and the ones on sale were chrome. But they're gone.

The ET number you mention, is that what some shops call the setback?

So, Exaltos are basically PS2's with longer treadwear? That would be great thanks for the info.

You had an interesting post earlier about adjusting the suspension to compensate for the slight drift. My car is in spec, not matter what shop I take it to align, and yet it will drift ever so slightly to the right. It does not shimmy or pull under braking, just a little drift if I let go of the steering wheel on the highway Adjusting the castor one degree greater on the passenger side will eliminate this?
Thanks for the info.


PS: anybody ever get by with some used tires? There's a shop nearby, has contis and michs at 5/32 wear, with no patches and no obvious 'bad' wear, and the want about 40-50 per tire.

Glyn M Ruck

Sorry - I understand. I would get C55 wheels

ET is offset in mm see this thread - I explain it all there ie distance between the clamping face of the wheel & the centreline. see pics on other thread

https://mbworld.org/forums/showthread.php?t=267852

Re Exalto's. Michelin has moved from a directional tread on the PS to the Exalto tread (minus a few sipes) on the PS2 so you can rotate them properly - Exalto is longer wearing - only problem is restricted sizes in 18"

Adjusting the castor 1 deg more on the passenger side to 10.4 will stop that drift right on a cambered road. So drivers side will be at minimum spec & passenger at maximum. MB has hammered this into all the tyre shops in South Africa - It works - If you have trouble I can try & scan my alignment set up for you.