Need tire/wheel education
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 175
Likes: 5
From: Virginia
2012 E350 - Cabrio; 2017 GLS 450
Need tire/wheel education
Hey all -
I am in need of an education on this whole tire/wheel thing I guess. I took in my C350 for it's A0 service and was told that it needed new tires front and rear. Rears I can visually see that they are shot, but the fronts have more than plenty of tread on them. The dealer says that they are "cupping" because they can't be rotated which is causing the vibration that I had them look at. I thought it needed balancing. SO, when I go out to look for tires I find that they are dang expensive, and that none of them offer a tread life warranty because they are considered high performance. The underlying tone seems to be that since they are different sizes front to rear that is causing a lot of my issues and driving up the cost. My question to the dealer was couldn't I just get a new set of rear wheels the same size as the front and be good then? You would have thought I asked him to paint my car pink. So I guess my question is has anyone done this with any success? Can you really get rid of the larger rear wheel set in lieu of a standard front size set and been okay?
Thanks in advance for the information and education.
Matt
I am in need of an education on this whole tire/wheel thing I guess. I took in my C350 for it's A0 service and was told that it needed new tires front and rear. Rears I can visually see that they are shot, but the fronts have more than plenty of tread on them. The dealer says that they are "cupping" because they can't be rotated which is causing the vibration that I had them look at. I thought it needed balancing. SO, when I go out to look for tires I find that they are dang expensive, and that none of them offer a tread life warranty because they are considered high performance. The underlying tone seems to be that since they are different sizes front to rear that is causing a lot of my issues and driving up the cost. My question to the dealer was couldn't I just get a new set of rear wheels the same size as the front and be good then? You would have thought I asked him to paint my car pink. So I guess my question is has anyone done this with any success? Can you really get rid of the larger rear wheel set in lieu of a standard front size set and been okay?
Thanks in advance for the information and education.
Matt
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Joined: Jan 2008
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From: Ohio
X3 and 2012 C coming soon
You can use the same size all around. I believe the luxury has four matched wheels and tires. You'll sacrifice some handling sharpness, but it can be done. Go to tirerack.com and check out the sets.
Super Member
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 519
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From: Mississauga
GLA45 AMG, GLC43 AMG
Are your rims all of equal size ? width wise....
If not you might have a hard time putting the same size tires on all 4 rims
You don't want to stretch out a smaller width tire to fit a wider rim
If not you might have a hard time putting the same size tires on all 4 rims
You don't want to stretch out a smaller width tire to fit a wider rim
Super Member
Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 519
Likes: 50
From: Mississauga
GLA45 AMG, GLC43 AMG
then you should have no problem.....
I run the same size rims and tires on all 4, on my winter setup, and have had no issues, with handling, or the 4Matic setup
if they are all the same, your good to go....
Cheers
I run the same size rims and tires on all 4, on my winter setup, and have had no issues, with handling, or the 4Matic setup
if they are all the same, your good to go....
Cheers
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Joined: Apr 2002
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From: Diamond Bar, CA
W206 PHEV AMG
unless you have a C350 luxury (if you do then you're probably not in the states) you should have staggered wheels which you CAN run the same size all around, but the rear wheel will look very stupid and with the tires stretched.
never buy any tires from dealership. They always over charge you on tires and tells you you need new tires every time you are there.
There are wear indicator cross strip in each vertical grove of the tires (it's like a small bump in the grove) those are your wear indicator for 40-50% of the tire tread. you really don't have to change the tires unless they're down to like some 10-20% or they have extreme camber wear or over or under inflation wear which cause them to have no tread left on the tires.
few conditions that would require immediate change:
1. sidewall bubble: means you have broke the wires that does the actual supporting of the tires which with some hard impact you might have a blow out from that bubble.
2. rubber cracking: means the rubber has lost its elasticity.
never buy any tires from dealership. They always over charge you on tires and tells you you need new tires every time you are there.
There are wear indicator cross strip in each vertical grove of the tires (it's like a small bump in the grove) those are your wear indicator for 40-50% of the tire tread. you really don't have to change the tires unless they're down to like some 10-20% or they have extreme camber wear or over or under inflation wear which cause them to have no tread left on the tires.
few conditions that would require immediate change:
1. sidewall bubble: means you have broke the wires that does the actual supporting of the tires which with some hard impact you might have a blow out from that bubble.
2. rubber cracking: means the rubber has lost its elasticity.
Super Moderator
Joined: Jun 2008
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From: Llandudno, Cape Town, South Africa
late 2009 CLK 350 Coupe Elegance, '65 Jaguar S Type wires
If you want to keep your staggered set up run non direction tyres (ones that don't have a specific rotation direction)
Rotate across the same axle to change the rolling direction every 6 to 8000 miles & you will minimise feathering & cupping & it's nasty side effects.
Rotate across the same axle to change the rolling direction every 6 to 8000 miles & you will minimise feathering & cupping & it's nasty side effects.
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 175
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From: Virginia
2012 E350 - Cabrio; 2017 GLS 450
My thought process is not that the tires are cheaper, but they will last longer. If I have to spend 1000 every 30,000 miles for new tires, which for me is once a year, then maybe I'll spend the extra to get a non-staggered setup and be able to rotate and get 60,000 miles out of a set of tires. I mean I'd have to outlay the cost of two new rear rims, but in the long run it seems like it would pay for itself.
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 175
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From: Virginia
2012 E350 - Cabrio; 2017 GLS 450
So I'm considering buying the regular staggered setup for now, since it's painfully obvious that I need new tires. Lets just say that rainy roads and my tires don't get along much any more. I'm thinking about the new Continental "DWS" tires. Any comments on these? They are fairly cheap from Tire Rack.
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 2005
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From: NJ
ML 350-Black=Sold. New 08 C300 4Matic, Black/Black, P1, Ipod, Auto7speed, 10/10 hit 100,000 miles
Get the michelin Pilots, i ran them for 60,300 miles, mostly highway. so, I replaced with the same exact tires. $249.00 USD each.
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 175
Likes: 5
From: Virginia
2012 E350 - Cabrio; 2017 GLS 450
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 371
Likes: 0
From: NJ
ML 350-Black=Sold. New 08 C300 4Matic, Black/Black, P1, Ipod, Auto7speed, 10/10 hit 100,000 miles
Mine are staggered, they were just amazing in their longevity. They still had tread on them but started to cup and were making more and more noise.
Super Moderator
Joined: Jun 2008
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From: Llandudno, Cape Town, South Africa
late 2009 CLK 350 Coupe Elegance, '65 Jaguar S Type wires
That is truly amazing mileage - when you say Pilot do you mean the HX MXM4, Primacy HP or PS2? - I can't believe a PS2 is capable of that mileage much as I love them & the Exalto PE2
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Joined: Apr 2002
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From: Diamond Bar, CA
W206 PHEV AMG
$245 for all-season junk? yes, I do consider MXM4 & Primacy junks.
If anyone's looking for all-season tire with good tread wear rating and affordable. nothing beats Nexen N7000. Runs less than $100 each and performs pretty much on par with any all-season junk out there. actually only paid $85 each for 225/45/17 I slapped on my sister's CLK. AND Yes, I have experienced the above tires I mentioned. had the MXM4 on the 1.8T Beetle and had driven cars with Primacy. I think the MXM4 was also the tire came with the C350 which I replaced it with the C63 setup. (word of advise: don't buy PZERO. rear's gone in 10k)
If anyone's looking for all-season tire with good tread wear rating and affordable. nothing beats Nexen N7000. Runs less than $100 each and performs pretty much on par with any all-season junk out there. actually only paid $85 each for 225/45/17 I slapped on my sister's CLK. AND Yes, I have experienced the above tires I mentioned. had the MXM4 on the 1.8T Beetle and had driven cars with Primacy. I think the MXM4 was also the tire came with the C350 which I replaced it with the C63 setup. (word of advise: don't buy PZERO. rear's gone in 10k)
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 175
Likes: 5
From: Virginia
2012 E350 - Cabrio; 2017 GLS 450
$245 for all-season junk? yes, I do consider MXM4 & Primacy junks.
If anyone's looking for all-season tire with good tread wear rating and affordable. nothing beats Nexen N7000. Runs less than $100 each and performs pretty much on par with any all-season junk out there. actually only paid $85 each for 225/45/17 I slapped on my sister's CLK. AND Yes, I have experienced the above tires I mentioned. had the MXM4 on the 1.8T Beetle and had driven cars with Primacy. I think the MXM4 was also the tire came with the C350 which I replaced it with the C63 setup. (word of advise: don't buy PZERO. rear's gone in 10k)
If anyone's looking for all-season tire with good tread wear rating and affordable. nothing beats Nexen N7000. Runs less than $100 each and performs pretty much on par with any all-season junk out there. actually only paid $85 each for 225/45/17 I slapped on my sister's CLK. AND Yes, I have experienced the above tires I mentioned. had the MXM4 on the 1.8T Beetle and had driven cars with Primacy. I think the MXM4 was also the tire came with the C350 which I replaced it with the C63 setup. (word of advise: don't buy PZERO. rear's gone in 10k)
MBworld Guru
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 22,058
Likes: 18
From: Diamond Bar, CA
W206 PHEV AMG
Senior Member
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 432
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From: Chicago
2018 E300 4MATIC Sedan
