edgalang

Has anyone ever experienced it eventually grinding itself away?

Reason why I ask is I have recently installed Michelin Pilot Super Sports in 235/40-18 on 18x8.5+45 fronts and 265/35-18 on 18x9.5+45 rears.

Unfortunately while the fronts are a perfect fit (no rubbing from full turns), I slightly rub in the rear on dips, whereas I never did before with the OEM combo (225/255) on the same set of wheels.

Part of me "hopes" that it may rub itself away, but the other part thinks it may be doing damage while it does it.

Any thoughts? I'm currently still in the break in period of the tires and I was given a choice to possibly exchange them for 255s. However, if anyone has ever experienced the rubbing to go away on it's own, then I'll keep the 265 setup and drive conservatively until the tread dept naturally sinks on its own (assuming this is the source of the rub).

shotgun_banjo

Rubbing is not always good Ed. Just do the 255s and it will have the same "tiny" stretch like the one you have on the fronts.

edgalang

Update.

I basically left the car with my tire shop for a day and they were able to isolate the rubbing to the plastic part in between the fender and bumper, then took a grinder to it.

To cross reference a thread...
https://mbworld.org/forums/c63-amg-w...ll-fender.html

This is the area I'm talking about...



With only 1 person in the car it is difficult to tell if the problem is gone for good, however the tires no longer rub when driving on the exact same spots they use to rub before.

Now I need to see if these "fender arches" are functional, since I get too much splatter on the paint with the 265's.

Need4Speed

hmm

rubbing in the rear

the offset is alright for the rear

The Michelin tires are a very straight and stiff sidewall however.

edgalang

Update #2.

During normal driving it was fine...however today I took it for an 80 mile drive and was able to get it to rub.

Example...go over speed bump with front, then accelerate aggressively for the rear. The sound signature is different than before (sounds like the tire may be rubbing the felt this time), but other than this test, I haven't been able to get it to rub in normal driving conditions (including aggressive cornering). Regardless, because I was still able to get it to rub once, I now have doubts if this setup can support 3 passengers in the back with a trunk full of luggage.

I'll keep this setup for now and will report throughout the life of the tire...But if it still rubs after 10k miles, then I'm going back to 255s if I stick with Michelin's.

W204white2010

1. see if you can go up to +50 rear offset on the rear wheels.


2. switch to a narrower tire brand, like Toyo, or Hangook. Michelin PSS tends to run wider and rounder on the edges.


3. if not, then as others suggested, stick to Michelin PSS but 255 instead.

edgalang

FINAL UPDATE...

Went back to the tire shop and replaced the 265/35 rears with 255s PSS. The Michelin tires are DEFINITELY meatier than the stock contis, hence why they still rub even after getting the plastic parts shaved.

As a special note, I compared my 2012 to a 2008 w204 and can CONFIRM the 2008 model does NOT have the extra plastic bits the 2012 model has; however they both appear to have the same felt-like wheel well cover. The 2008 simply had a hole in the same spot where the 2012 had plastic over it.

Also to those that didn't know...
Non-AMG w204 with the "AMG wheel" package is NOT identical (in size) as a stock C63.

18x8.0-50 225/40
18x8.5-54 255/35
vs
18x8.0-45 235/40
18x9.0-54 255/35

The tire tech confirmed 265/35 fits perfectly on stock C63 wheels, however mine is 18x9.5-45. If I had 2-3mm more offset I would of gotten away with it, however after seeing the 235/255 Michelin PSS combo in person, I'm glad I ended up with this setup.

Now I can do all the airport runs I need to in confidence.