NiTr0u5oXiDe

Yea kinda late on the reply but im also from the Chicago area... Winter tires are a must!!! My rim last winter without winter tires!!! I slid out, almost drove into a conversion van... pulled the other way, and hit the curb... OUCH! Then i invested in winter tires!

girlwithaspirin

Ouch, indeed! If I wasn't sold on snow tires before, I am now. I've never driven a RWD before, so I'm hoping with the right tires, it'll be almost as safe as any other car.

mctwin2kman

I suggest on first snow fall you go and practice in an open parking lot. Slow and with the ESP off. Or in heavy rain with ESP off. Just to get the feel of how an RWD vehicle responds in case of emergency. With ESP on you will not spin out unless you are going to fast, but from a stop you will not slide since the ESP system keeps everything in check. Makes driving a RWD almost like a FWD.

tux2

hi girlwifaspirin,

c mode in winter ie when roads are covered in snow,slush and all the winter road junk. you knew you need snow tires in chicago in winter unless you're new in the city.

and to answer your third question,.. you may have a suspension problem. have it checked.

hth

EricTheRed

Hello and welcome to the forum. I had a 04 C240 4Matic as a loaner car while my 02 C230K Coupe was having some work done. I was wondering what the C stood for. My car has W and S mode. (Winter or Wet, and Sport?)
-Eric

vadim

Comfort

Outland

FWD being supperior in the snow is something of a marketing fallacy. FWD is all about packaging effeciency, saving wieght and saving gas. The winter 'advantages' were just a bonus....being that the drive wheels are under the motor, you have *some* wieight on the wheels all the time, you can't spin out around turns. OTOH, FWD cars tend to slide sideways under power, and when accellerating hard they loose traction because the wieght shifts to the rear wheels.

With RWD, as long as you have sufficient traction(*read* WINTER TIRES), you'll actually have more traction on accelleration, and thanks to the ESP system you won't have to worry about spin outs or going sideways taking off.

You could go with all seasons, but still get Winter Rims. Keep in mind that what is on your car now ARE NOT ALL SEASON TIRES. They don't even have a mud and snow rating. You are truly asking for it trying to drive on them in winter. Its not the RWD, its the C7 package tires which are meant for maximum performance on dry asphalt. They suck in the rain, and are downright dangerous in the snow. So, since youre going to need something, and since it will involve getting another set of rims, you might as well go ahead and get winter tires. You won't regret it.

I put mine on today. Normally I don't use the coupe in the winter, but my old Jeep is approaching retirement age, so I need some insurance if it acts up this winter. I love the look of the 17" C7's, but damn, the car rides sooooo much nicer on 16's.

lars

I would not say that about mine. Agreed though, no way anyone should use the C7 tires on snow.

I would prefer to have a real limited slip differential, but the ESP works well enough for most situations.

girlwithaspirin

Thanks so much for the advice, guys. It's all starting to sink in. Heh.

So what are winter rims? I assumed I could just buy any 16" rims and be done with it.

lars

16" a good plan. They need to have bolt holes in the right places though!

Outland

Like I said, get the old MB 16's people are always selling around here. Then, call tirerack, and get some winter tires. They don't take up that much room in the garage. I changed all four today in less than 45 minutes. Its cake...even musicman could handle it.

Saprissa

I've got some original 2003 MB OEM stock 16" wheels for sale $500 + shipping.
PM me if interested. Only used 3 months, came off the Coupé when I replaced them with Chrome AMG twin-spoke 17" staggered wheels.

Beautiful Brilliant Silver 5 twin-spoke 16" wheels. One has a small curb scratch, but hardly noticeable. anyway, the wheel part # is: 203 401 02 02 (the pic didn't come out too clear)
and the wheel offset is: ET 37
backs of the wheel also read: 7J x 16 H2
Pics:




Curb rash pics:






+ FREE chrome MB wheel center caps (75mm) :


as far as the tires go...
they are
- MICHELIN MXV4 Plus Radial XSE All-Season 205/55 R16 Tubeless
- less than 10,000 miles (very very little tread wear)

Carlos

Saprissa@aol.com

S_kLaSse

Why salesmen always say the same thing to sell car? I got that like twice when they were persuading me to get the Demo.

girlwithaspirin

Oh, I was all about getting the demo... I called the dealership about that car specifically. It had everything I wanted, but it was $6K less than the 2005 coupe with the same options.

Saprissa, those wheels look great. I'm talking with someone at the moment who's offering the wheels alone for $300. If that falls through, I'll definitely contact you. Thanks!

toki999

good question!

haha

welcome to the forum!! You'll find lots of information if you simply Search, because we all had questions....

cracker123

one more girl, welcome welcome,

we serve indian chai here on tuesdays and thursdays.