Dear all,
I have just purchased a 2017 C43 Sedan with less than 9K miles, and intend to use the car as a daily commuter. I love the car but the ride is very harsh especially since I moved form a Volvo C70. The car came with the optional 19" AMG and run flat tires. I have read that changing to non run flats improves the ride? Can any one comment on the change in ride from their experience?
I also read that changing to 18" wheels further helps.
P.S. I live in Atlanta, GA and don't plan on using the car on track much.

 

yes, changing to non-run flats significantly improves the ride quality.

I put on the Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3+ and got them shipped to my local warehouse from Costco.com. I kept it the same size as the 19" summer tires (including the staggered setup).
I'd imagine 18" would be an even softer ride but I love the look of the 19" tires.

 

Thank you very much UNR1 for your detailed feedback. I'll look into the Michelins.
I love my 19" too but wanted to know if any of you guys experienced the difference with the change down to 18"??
Thanks!

 

I ended up making the same switch as in this review
https://blog.tirerack.com/blog/tire-...t-sport-4s-v16
... and agree completely with the results.

I also have a set of (staggered-size) 18" rims with Michelin X-ice Xi3 tires that I'm now running on for winter. To my butt, the winter tires only provide a slightly softer ride (i.e., compared to the Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires ... when it's warm -- the PS4S tires get harder/rougher as it gets colder, starting at about 60 deg F (15 deg C). I went with the 18" rims for winter tires only because of the difficulty of sourcing any "good" winter tires in the staggered 19" sizes. More detail on the winters at:
https://mbworld.org/forums/c450-c43-...ml#post7316581

I'm also liking the X-ice Xi3 tires and feel they are an excellent all-around choice for winter (i.e., good compromise between snow 'n ice traction, wet and dry traction, handling, ride comfort, noise and longevity -- in about that order of priority, for me).

 

My previous car was a c400 with the 19 inch summer contis ....basically hockey pucks....the front tires were toast before 16000km so I switched to non run flats and it was night and day much much smoother. With this c43 opted for the 18 all seasons and no complaints here. I think the factory supplied summers tires are absolute rubbish good in the corners but like driving a rail car.

 

Thank you guys very much! Thanks user33 and Hungalow for your responses. I feel much better now. I have only had the car for 2 days and I was upset with the ride quality to the point that I was considering returning the car to the dealer and dealing with the consequences!
I will start shopping for the all-season Michelins in 19"s.

 

Be aware that the car does not have a spare tire.

 

I bought same size as stock Blizzaks for winter staggered.
Bought a set of run flats from a guy that bought the C43 on the lot before me. $150 for his brand new tires.
I noticed a comfort difference with the winters compared to run flats. But since I got a deal on a new set I think I’ll be running the runflats for a loooong time.

 

Since people are going into tires (which there are quite a few threads here and all over the place) buy nice tires, don’t cheap out, get a warranty on your tires. Like one poster said, no spare means headache.

Also, i drive run flats (continental pro contact) and enjoy my ride. Although I’m not as picky, my commute is approximately 20 miles both ways of construction, and reaaaaallly uneven and lumpy roads.

 

Yes, switching to the stock 18" AMG wheels/ run-flat tires make the ride smoother that the stock 19" set up.

Every time I switch to the 18" set up for Winter (from my 19" Summer set up), I notice the difference in ride.

 

This x1000. I didn't buy warranties on my tires initially and have gotten 3 flats this year (I've only had 1 flat my entire life prior to having this car). Runflats are basically not patchable in any sense so you're basically out of luck if you get a flat in them and have to buy a new tire. I ended up buying Michelin Pilot super sports and absolutely love them. I've heard the AS/3+ are great as well. I got all of my tires from Discount Tire and bought the warranty for all 4. If you've never driven a car with low profile tires before, you won't realize how much of an impact those little potholes can have.

 

I have also read that the Pilot Super Sports are a good option, how do they compare to the all-season Pilot Sport A/S 3+??

 

The Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3+ is one of the top-rated all-season tires and is very popular for (i.e., so seem to work well on) German cars. They can be driven during "all seasons" (du-oh!). E.G.:
https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tests...Speed+Rated%29

The Michelin Pilot Super Sport is a summer performance tire and, by most reviews, was considered to be the best all-around summer performance tire (i.e., the reigning champion) for many years.

The Michelin Pilot Sport 4S is the summer performance tire that was released in 2016 and is specifically designed to be better than the Michelin Pilot Super Sport and, by virtually all reviews, achieves that goal ... though only slightly.

As always, tire requirements and design involve balancing tradeoffs (traction in dry vs wet vs ice vs snow, handling, ride comfort, ride noise, treadwear, load and speed rating, size availability etc.) and, depending upon a person's ranking of the tradeoffs, tire choices can vary.

It's important to note that the PSS and PS4 (and many other "performance summer") tires _cannot_ be used in freezing weather -- and shouldn't be used in temperatures even approaching freezing weather because their ride and grip degrade signficantly. Their rubber compounds will actually crack if they are flexed while they are below a certain temperature (IIRC, it's -7 deg C or about 19.5 deg F) for the PSS and PS4 tires.

If you only drive (mostly) "normally" on public streets, then an all-season tire such as the PS A/S 3+ is probably a good choice, though an "ice-rated" winter tire (e.g., Michelin X-ice or Bridgestone Blizzak) will yield an added margin of safety during icy and certain types of snowy conditions (Mr. Google can help understand the tradeoffs).

If you do any type of autocross/track/performance-driving events, you'll definitely benefit from summer performance or even a separate set of track-rated tires.

 

 

hey guys, so im a little confused with reading this post and others. I just purchased a 17' c43. Ride is harsh, I live in texas so i dont really need "winter" tires i guess. what is recommended to soften the ride up?
a) do i get the michelin pilot sport 4s? (what do i do if i get a flat)
b) do i try to get the continental run flats-as someone posted they soften the ride
c) help!

 

Yes (get a slime kit and/or dynaplug).

 

arent those tires for the 18 inch wheels?

 

Huh? You can get the tires in whatever size required. PS4's are the way to go. Get slime or plug kit and an AC air pump and keep it all in the trunk where the spare should be. All can be obtained for <$50.

 

+1 PS4S' made a world of difference on ride quality in my car (19" rim). little 12V airpump and some slime in the trunk, and you are all set. best $1000 i spent on any car.

 

I don't know about you guys but I don't find the RFT that harsh lol. Does it get worse over time? I picked up my car yesterday.

 

you will if you ride in one w/o RF’s

 

This is my first run flat car. I've driven 5+ other cars without RF's. One of those was a Lexus and others were big vans with bouncy *** seats.

C43 is not that bad but I do "feel the road" more, bumps themselves aren't intolerable.

 

The only issue i have with taking of my RFT's are I frequently drive from Houston to San antonio. I dont want a flat tire in between these cities and get stranded in the middle of nowhere.

 

let me be more clear, you will be able to tell the difference if you ride in another C43 without RF's not another car without run flats

 

A small can of slime and a small 12V tire pump(that you can store where the spare usually is) would take care of your worries.