JamesKim

Hello there! This might seem like a silly question, but I was looking into getting some new tires for my c250 4matic as I hit a pothole and one of my tires have bubbled. From some basic research it seems that all wheel drive tires must be precisely equal to make sure the wheels don't revolve at different rates so it doesn't cause any damage to the driveline.

I looked up some tires on tire rack and the only tires I can see that have both the front wheels and the back wheels on a staggered setup revolving at the same rate is the factory Continental Contiprocontact tires. Is this an actual concern that I should be worried about? Do I have to buy the factory tires?

One additional question, if it doesn't matter that the front and rear wheels revolve at a different rate, would it matter if I used Continental Extremecontact pair for my front wheels, but keep the factory pair in the back?

Thanks!

amdeutsch

You can buy any brand you want. Just match up with your OEM sizing.

JamesKim

Is mix and matching the front pair and rear pair ok then? Thanks.

hondafan

You should be fine. I'm regurgitating what the guy at TireRack.com told me, but Benzes allow for 3% of difference in rolling circumference, which is why even on my stock wheels (staggered width) 235/45/17 for my snow tires. The stock rear wheels are 245/45 and the fronts are 225/45, but I was able to do the 235s comfortably. Benzes aren't as sensitive to a difference in size as BMWs, for example. You should be able to mix and match tires of the same size, as long as the actual outside rolling size is within spec. I recommend letting the tire experts over at TireRack make recommendations through their chat option.

JamesKim

Thank you guys, now I feel better. Just wondering though, what makes the 4matic less sensitive to these kind of things?

JPc300

I have never had an issue with any of my customers cars. I try to always accommodate them price wise but stay within the recommended speed rating. As long as you stick with the proper sizes it doesn't matter if the front were Michelins and the rear were Yokohamas, they will work just fine.

JamesKim

Well thats settled then, I'm gonna switch out the front tires for the ExtremecontactDWS and keep the rear.

c350nubie

This is similar to my problem I just got 2 brand new front tires Michelin Pilot HX MXM4. My rear tires are also Michelin Pilot HX MXM4. This morning after 30mins driving in the rain, I found out that the rear tires have worn out so much. I kept losing rear traction when I speed up at stoplight. I chat with the specialist at TireRack and am going to get all 4 Michelin Pilot Sport. I will figure out something to do with the MXM4. From my stand point, I am shooting for best handling performance and grip and thus, my decision to get all 4 tires. FYI... here is what he said about the mix matching front and rear tires.

JPc300

If you are racing the damn thing I would agree with the tire rack dude. BUT in reality that was more of a sales pitch to me. For everyday purposes, rain or shine, and occasional "speed racer moments", mix matched tires will perform just as good given your not using crap tires.

c350nubie

Thanks for the advice! Yeah true that these guys always have $$$ in mind. I will go with 2 tires for rear for now and mix matched them for a while until I can really tell "handling may feel awkward at times" or "never see the full benefit to the better handling" then maybe I will get another 2 front tires.
As a side note, I should have asked him what he meant by "handling may feel awkward at times"

JPc300

You probably won't even notice a difference. Don't get me wrong if money isn't an object for you, by all means go for it if it's going to make you feel better. But to answer the question. If you have good performance tires in the front or back you won't if notice a difference.

TheRulesLawyer

There are two things you have to keep in mind-

On a 4matic you need to keep the tires very close in diameter. Specs are for new tires. They get smaller as they wear. Keep that in mind when matching the rears.

Having two different tires, especially in different states of wear/age can cause handling issues. One set may hydroplane far before the other, or may react to cold differently and you can end up with pretty different traction on different ends of the car.

Its not that it won't work, but obviously nobody wants to recommend it for liability reasons. On a 2wd car its generally okay to do an axle at a time, especially using the same model tires. 4wd with mixed brands and wear...... Its not risk I'd take over $300 or so.

edgalang

You can mix and match different brands. It is not ideal, but on a pinch it's acceptable. Generally speaking however you want the sticker tire to always be in the rear. This is why tire shops always recommend putting new tires on the rear if you were only replacing 2 tires on non-staggered cars.

What you should NEVER do is have different size wheel/tires on left & right (may sound obvious, but a user here had that setup)

To the OP:
You have a 4-matic? If so, that shouldn't be on a staggered setup from the factory.
If I were you, from the 3 remaining tires left (without a bubble), I'd choose 2 to have the most even wear, put them in front, and buy 2 more new tires (any brand will do as long as it's better grip than what you have now) in the rear. Then use the left over tire as a spare.

JamesKim

My car is definitely a staggered setup and it came straight from the factory. I think it just comes that way if you get the sport kit regardless of the 4matic system or not.

greasykid

I strongly do NOT agree that you can have Conti Pro Contact on fronts and Extreme Contacts on rear or vice versa. Have changed from oem Pro Contacts to Extreme Contacts---ALL FOUR. Never mix tires! Extremes have totally different characteristics form Pro's. Far more grip. Mixing different tires is dangerous!

JPc300

I don't mean to offend, but you obviously have no clue about tires. These people are not driving in a race track. Even if in the event that for ex: Vehicle A had 4 different brands of tires all around. IT IS NOT DANGEROUS!!! Might drive funny but definitely not dangerous.

greasykid

Drive funny? To me that means in an emergency or wet/snow conditions you don't know how your car is going to react. As to my not having a clue about tires---I have the experience of over 60 yrs of driving and competing in driving events. Have owned well over 100 vehicles including 32 Mercedes, Porsches,Ferrarri,BMW etc. Also driven @ Watkins Glen, Road America and other road courses. In addition was active in Road Rally competition @ a high level. Have NEVER seen any competition car that had mixed tires mounted.

You may think that you are not in that level on the street until until the ultimate emergency arises and "funny" doesn"t cut it. I am not offended but I am still alive and well after over 2 million miles. From your posts ,Tirerack has no clue either.

Sportstick

+1. The ideal contribution of the tires to the chassis is a balanced amount of traction to allow the suspension and brakes to behave predictably. Significant differences in the ability of the tire contact patch to maintain traction can result in understeer or oversteer precisely at the times when it is least desirable, such as described above. I would not mix brands, models, or even the variation of OE versus aftermarket versions of the same tire, which also differ in the rubber compound used.

As an aside, given the incremental costs of buying a MB over an average car, I never quite understand those who will pay to buy such a car, do all sorts of mods, but skimp on the only piece of equipment - the tires - which establishes the only connection you car has to the rest of the world in those four relatively small contact patches.

JPc300

I'm not advocating to mix and match tires. I myself always use matching tires because I want the most and the best performance. But if you do mix tires, it is not unsafe. Will you loose performance? Yes you will loose some performance. Is it detrimental for the car? No it's not. That's what the OP was asking. I have 20 years experience in the automotive industry and worked for Bridgestone America and I have tested many tires including mixed matched tires on different courses. I think I know what I'm talking about. Driving on bald tires is a safety issue. If you stick to the same speed rating and level of tire and keep matching tires per axle, you should be safe.

To add to this. They make Chinese tires with speed ratings suitable to the needs of our Mercedes requirements. I would never in a million years choose a matching set of Chinese tires over a properly mixed/matched set of quality tires.

Sportstick

So, we have three folks with decades of experience commenting here, and I'm not sure we're that different on facts as much as how we are presenting them. Your comment above seems to have a nuanced comment which actually suggests we agree on a basic....your words were "same...level of tire". Taken literally, this would mean tires of the same capability, which is best achieved by being the same tire!!

This becomes a question of where one draws the line on degree of difference, and the risk which goes along with it. The ideal we all support is having a matched set of 4. How much variation one accepts before driving "funny" becomes a risk for an unexpected emergency is a strategic decision. I see no reason for any variation on cars of our expense. Loss of performance, as you note, is based on loss of traction, which is the same cause as loss of safety. I don't see how you can distinguish those. We all know lots of money is spent among these forum members on far less important aspects of our cars.

So, the bottom line is.....skip a window tint and get a safer tire set up.