pmaru77

Well, got the news that the 4 rims are damaged. I knew 2 were trashed as they were severly cracked. Now Mercedes is saying all 4 rims and tires need to be replaced. I cannot go over there as it is 100 miles away. Waiting for the insurance quote. What are my options for replacing the 18" rims. This is the wifes car and she curb rashes the rims as the rims stick out past the tires, great design? not. Are the 17" alternatives? Are they any better as far as durability? I don't think she will settle for aftermarket, though I would at this point as the car is a 2009.

Alfadude

You certainly can got with the OEM 17" wheels if you want and I'm sure there are quite a number of aftermarket wheels that would fit as well.

As far as durability, not sure how many wheels could hold up to hitting a curb on an on ramp. And any any wheel will get scraped up if it constantly rubs against the curb when parking. I don't know that I would call that a poor design on Mercedes part. Most wheels today are like that and most cars have lower sides walls.

pmaru77

Yes, you are correct in that it is not a bad design for a vehicle that has a speedo that goes up to 160 mph. My problem is I drive a Wrangler and a Ram and I can do curbs
and I get no curb rash. Even my vehicles may have taken the curb crash unscathed. That said, the problem is that the car is at a Mercedes dealer and they wil most certainly want to put 4 new rims on at a cost of $1000+ per wheel plus tax and this is on a 2009 C300 that has a book value of something like $15K. Seeing that it s the wife's main car, I have to appease here. If it were me I'd have it towed out of the dealers lot and get aftermarket rims and new tires for probably under $2k. I may just take a pill and sleep it off and just pay the deductible and bit the bullet when my rates go up.

michail71

Probably the biggest fault of the factory is not making a 360 camera standard on these cars. While not what happened to your car parking this car can be dangerous to bumpers and wheels.

pmaru77

are "18 non AMG wheels susceptible to curb rash or do the tires stick out a tad so they hit first?

Alfadude

For what it is worth in your situation I would just bite the bullet and have them put on stock 17" wheels and tires and be done with it. What else are you going to do? Research for all kinds of aftermarket wheels and then see how quick you can get them shipped to the dealer that is 100 miles away? At least then you won't have the staggered set up and a little more sidewall.

Good luck whatever you end up doing.

Adi-Benz

go with the 17's!

Alfadude

It is not so much a matter of the wheel design as much as it is the height of the sidewall. On something like your truck the sidewall is very tall, so that if you hit a curb chances are the sidewall is taller than the curb, or close to it.

If you have the staggered 18" factory wheels I believe the fronts are 225/40 and the backs are 255/30, so not so much sidewall there to protect from curb rash, not that is the main job of tire sidewall. If your wife bangs up the sides of the wheels that much on curbs, chances are anything short of a balloon tire will protect them. Get some curb feelers!

Adi-Benz

Go for something like these

https://mbworld.org/forums/c-class-w...g-17-reps.html

powerwheelspro has best reps, and prices are pretty good

not advertising for them but its a good alternative.

dchar

Another option is if you want to stick with OEM wheels without paying dealer prices is going on eBay and finding a set there. There are plenty on there for 17" and 18" at a significant discount compared to dealer prices. Just make sure they have the same bolt pattern as your car.