dmichael

I want to get a set of AMG monoblock staggered 17x7.5 front and 17x8.5 rear for non-winter. I want to use my current C7 (17x7.5) wheels with snow tires mounted for the winter. Are the C7's too impractical for snow or not? I live in MA where the winters can be a crapshoot, but usually lean toward harsh. I am not a skier, I just need a reliable set of winter wheels to reduce the white knuckle effect of a rear-wheel drive in a 3-4 inch work commute. I know the ideal would be to swap the C7's for 15 or 16 inch wheels, but I wanted to avoid the hassle of having to sell/ship the C7's. Anyone here use 17 inch rear-wheel drive snows? If yes, how do they compare with 15" or 16" wheels? Will I regret this decision to go with 17x7.5 winter wheels?

dasMafia

17s are perfectly useful for snow tires... most people just use a smaller wheel if they can because the taller profile of the tire is many-times helpful to snow traction and (most basically) the smaller-diameter tires are less expensive.

you can get excellent snow-tires in a size that will fit your wheels perfectly, but remember that narrower is better. I would definitely call the tirerack, www.tirerack.com

good luck!

viper

As long as you have the appropriate rubber mounted to the wheel the C7 wheel will be fine. At least you will get some use out of the wheel. Are you going to remount your C7 tires on the AMG monoblocks or did you wear them out already ?

dmichael

If will be getting new Michelin Pilot Sport A/S rubber for the AMG's. The Contisports I have now should be as Bald as Hank Kingsley(Larry Sanders Show) come winter time. After 6k miles I have 6/32's thread left. I have never owned a pure summer tire before, and never will again, its just not worth the fuss of yearly replacement to me.

I was wondering if the AMG Monoblocks are any heavier than the C7 wheel. To be honest it looks like the C7 is lighter(more space between metal). Here is a pic of the AMG wheel - it looks like it has much more mass.

dmichael

Sorry - Here is the pic

viper

I hope others that are considering the C7 option read your comments. To only get 6K miles out of a set of tires is going to be a very expensive option in the long run.

KJ-TypeR

You can get more than 6K miles out of the Conti's. Other tires like the Bridgestone S-03 won't last as long, but they grip A LOT better than the Conti's.

tommy

Well, Viper, you do realize that there are other tires out there that wear better? Though I have about 7k on mine (Contisport) and they're still fine. Don't know what dmichael was doing with his tires, but his wear sounds excessive.

It's always good to know that, when someone talks up the C7, there's always a Viper comment just waitin' to happen!

D - per www.wheelweights.net, the 7.5's are 27.5 lbs, and the 8.5's are 28. Luke at Tirerack would be able to verify that, if you want (don't know the accuracy of that website's numbers). I did do the bathroom scale +/- 10 lbs weighing, and the C7 with tire was 44 lbs, though I have no idea how much a 17" tire would weigh. Don't forget that weights are about more than the appearance on the outside, so guessing based on appearance is about as accurate as my bathroom scale.

As das (nice to see him post something that's not BMW-related) said, if you get good winter tires, the stock C7's would be fine, but 16's would be better. You might want to look at selling the C7s and picking up some steelies, but the C7s won't kill ya in the snow.

dmichael

I think my comment regarding 6k miles is being misunderstood. I originally said in that post that I had 6k miles but in the same sentence I said I had 6/32nds of thread left. New Tires usually start out at 9 or 10/32nds of thread depth. When they get down to 3 or 4/32nds, then its time to discard. At that time I should have gotten anywhere from 12k -15k (about one year of use for me).

12-15k is not long enough for me, thats why I am choosing the Michelin A/S - which should give me 25-30k, plus they are so much quieter than the Conti's(loudest tire I have ever driven).

Thank for the website reference Tommy! Very useful.

zimmer26

If I were to get new staggered wheels for summer (which would be nice but I'm reluctant to shell out for) I would keep the C7s for the winter although a 225 tire is a bit wide for snow use you can get away w/it with a good enough tire i think. That is the annoying thing about C7- too narrow in the rear (appearence wise) for summer and a bit too wide all around for winter. Based on that quandry I'm taking the cheap way out and putting Nokian NRWs(gotta love 'em) on my C7s when the Contis are finished (looks as though I'll get about 15k out of them.) They are a V rated (in the 225/45/17 size) all weather tire that I think will serve the coupe well in all conditions while saving $ and hassle.

viper

Actually I like the C7. Its just that I get tired of people saying it is sooooo great and such a great value. Factor everything in and its utility is not that great for the money. Summer performance tires do not belong on a daily driver in my opinion. And don't kid yourself about the cost. MB is making a lot of money on C7. Even more so when some unenlightened customer comes back to purchase new tires.

zimmer26

Very unenlightened to buy replacement tires from your dealer! I personally can't see how MB is making "a lot" of money on it. Considering all the inclusives how can anyone say this factory upgrade is not a genuine bargain.

DrMichael: I just had me a look at the Mich A/S's you're planning on using for winter- I wouldn't. I obviously don't speak from experience on this tire, but I can tell that this tire was clearly developed with a performance bias and don't think snow/ice traction will be at all acceptable in Mass. If you're going to switch wheels for winter, get something that was designed for inclement weather first and performance second like the Dunlop Winter Sports or Mich Pilot Alpins the NRWs. My .02.

dmichael

I plan to use the Michelin A/S on the new set of AMG Monoblocks. The C7's will be the winter wheels with either Blizzaks(had good experiences with 2 sets of these) or Michelin Artic Aplins(I would like to try them for a change). Anyone care to compare these 2 winter brands? Also, it looks like the tire stores are not yet selling winter rubber, I may have to wait, which I probably should to get my full 10-11 months out of the current Conti's. I agree with Viper that a max performance tire is not appropriate for a daily driver, or at least, they shouldn't be coming from the factory this way. For the performance freaks, the stock rubber/wheel is the first thing to go, for the rest of us, A/S will be just fine.

zimmer26

Whew that's good, misunderstanding on my part! Blizzaks offer very good snow performance but lack otherwise. The Mich is better but was beaten by the Dunlop Winter Sport in a Tirerack comparison test and I think they're a bit cheaper as well. I'd go with the Dunlops over your picks, and the Nokians over all.

dmichael

You REALLY like those Nokians don't you Zim. But how can you even think an all year round tire can beat a snow tire in 4 inches of snow with ice pack underneath? You have my attention/curiosity, is this what you can claim?

zimmer26

When did I make that claim? My claim is that Nokian Hakkapelitta Qs are the best snow tires I know of and the NRWs are the best all around snow capable tire that I know of. As far as I'm concerned they're nearly or just as good as most pure snows and just as good as most high performance all seasons in dry/wet conditions, definitely can't say that of the Qs. I'd classify them as high performance all season + snow. Did I mention I'm on a about a 25k mile pace on mine, and they're very quiet too! I've already convinced one happy customer, and he didn't even get to see how good they are in the snow, which is what has me singing their praises.

dmichael

My misunderstanding. So the Hakkapelitta Q is a Pure Snow tire that you would rate better than Alpins, Blizzaks and Dunlop winters? If you say so, I'll bite. These snow tires will only be on the car for 3 months/year, so I don't care about anything other than pure ability to get me through a snow storm, so I want the best for snow/ice.

zimmer26

Yes they are but they are very spongy, and wear quickly. What's worse, I don't think they make them in 17s. In fact I don't know that any pure snows come in a 225/45/17 come to think of it- blizzaks LMs but they're not pure snows. If that's the case, try the NRWs.

dmichael

I can't believe I started a thread on winter tires on June 4th. Please accept my apologies. The Nokian Q's do not come in 17" (checked website). That leaves us C7ers with a choice between Alpins, Blizzaks and Pirelli Winters which all come in 215/45/17. Dunlops are available in 225/45/17, but for pure winter tires, the 215's will fit fine on 17x7.5 rim and perform slightly better in snow than 225's. Hope this thread is useful in the future or to anyone living in the Artic Circle with a C-class.

Duffer

The C7 wheels are "performance" type wheels; the Coupe is supposedly a "Sports" Coupe that is supposed to compare to other "sportier" vehicles made by others. The "others" put summer performance tires - summer tires being a term meaning to use it when temps are not below freezing or there is ice/snow -- on their "sporty" cars. MB is attempting to compete in this market.

If you didn't like those tires at delivery, you should have told your dealer to put something else on -- I have and they have changed tires before delivery.

I have found the Michelin Pilots to be quiet if not lasting for more than 20k miles and fine as a daily driver - of course, one needs to avoid construction sites or you might find little treasures (nails and screws) in all your tread.

If you want less sporty in a daily driver, try a Michelin MXV4 -- which lasts forever and is quiet -- or a Pirelli P6000 or somesuch.

For snow, from a much earlier read in Car and Driver, the thought was the skinnier the tire, the better the performance in the snow -- evidently, you don't want a big patch in the snow. Get some smaller steel wheels and snows to use for the 4-5 months you may need them -- protect those alloys for the spring, summer, fall.

viper

From what I found out from my purchasing agent friend at MB they pay $12 more per wheel and $9 more per C7 tire over the base package. The painted handles cost $3 per set additional and the fancy pedals cost $11 over the base. The lack of a resonator on the exhaust cost -$14. Short throw shifter comes in at an extra $27. Leather trimmed wheel and shifter an additional $16. The evolution mats cost the same as the base mats. When you do the math you will see that it adds up to $116 cost for a $750 option. Don't you know that option prices make major profit for the manufacturer ? Yep this upgrade is a genuine bargain like you say.

Duffer

I really don't care if MB makes a profit, that is OK when compared to the cost of buying stock and then aftermarketing those products - All I know is that bigger wheels/ tires, color coordination, pedals and a short shifter were going to cost me a heckava lot more than $750 elsewhere.

What I do object to are items like a $900 CD changer . . and a stereo system that should be better for the cost, and power seats that cost $1,300, and a COmmand Sytem that is $2k and a telephone system that is another $2k.

Compared to those, that C7 is a deal.

zimmer26

I'd like to see that in writing aside from yours. Personally I don't think there's any way that the wheels and tires aren't worth at least an extra 50 a piece for 400 over base right there, but whatever you say. Whatever it costs MB, it makes the coupe at least 750 cooler/nicer IMO and that's what really matters. Sounds like someone's just ticked that he didn't get it.

viper

Read my previous posts. I did get it. I am just not happy with it after having to shell out extra time, effort and money to buy snow tires just to cope with the winter season. And then have to change the tires back after the season. Then find out they wear out way too fast with a little spiritied driving. If you read my posts and actually thought about how consistent my remarks have been maybe you would understand. What I am trying to do is really spread the truth about this option especially to the newbies that are asking for opinions on these options. If you live in a sunshine state and can use the tires year round then good for you maybe the option is perfect for you. But it may not be the best choice for all and when some of us rave about it I really believe that it may mislead some readers into getting an option that may not be in their best interests long term. And you know you cannot rely on the sales monkeys for this.

The advantage of this forum is to help owners and future owners. We owe it to them to respect other opinions even if they conflict with our own. And besides I am always right.

zimmer26

Not to be a jackass, but you gotta know that the C7 tires are summer only and they wear faster, MB is even nice enough to say that in the brouchure and on the web page for the less rubber savvy. I'll get right on reading you prior posts to see that you're consistent! Everyone's gotta decide for themselves what's right for them, maybe you would have faired better if this site was your secondary source of info rather than the primary, but I've been involved in many a C7 debate here and I don't remember anyone saying that you could leave the tires on all year for us Northerners or that the tires wear as long as the standards because that would be, well just plain silly.