I like to keep the same brand/tread pattern front & rear.
The normal way to get maximum mileage out of your tyres is to rotate them...obviously impossible on a C63.
So, if I want to keep the same tread pattern, odds are the rears are going to wear out before the fronts, so I'll just be buying rears.
My question is....how long do the fronts last?....I mean rears can be anything from 6/7000ks to ?
So, on average, how long do fronts last? If they last twice as long as rears, then maybe I should buy a set of rears now, so that when my current rears wear out in maybe a year, then I'll still have an exact match with the fronts?
Why buy them now?...because maybe in a year, the existing tread pattern will be superceded.
Hope I'm making some sense here?
Cheers, Pickles.

 

Pickles, I have been told that the cheapest retailer of these tyres in the country actually imports them by the container load and that is Tempe Tyres in Sydney. I have never dealt with them and have no affiliation to them. Was told they are $300 a tyre cheaper.

 

The rear tyre wear really depends on how you drive. If you go mad with burnouts and race starts you could easily destroy a set of rears in only a few thousand kms, but the fronts will wear much more reasonably (unless you get into them on the track where i hear they can cop quite a beating).
So in road use I reckon you will get say 2-3 sets of rears for each set of fronts. (I am well into my second set of rears at 15000 kms - I tend to run tyres close to but not right down to the tread wear marker bars - and there appears to still be a fair bit left in the fronts).

Avoid Tempe tyres - them and their mates at St George Tyres down the road - are a bunch of crooks.

www.tirerack.com is all you need. Shipping from the US is expensive (about $250 for 2 tyres) but at about $300 each for a rear tyre you are already miles ahead (so to speak) compared to how much you will be stung lobbing in to your local Bob Jane or whoever. If you stay under $1000 value you will not attract any GST/import duty, tirerack do all the paperwork and the tyres will sail thru Customs and AQIS and get delivered to your front door literally a few business days after you order and pay for them.
I get them fitted by the dealer I bought the car from - my last pair of tyres fitted, balanced and torqued cost me $60 to fit. I am sure the dealer outsources the work but you can guarantee that the tyre shop they use is not going to jeopardise the cosy relationship with a big client like the local MB dealer by having some half trained, half witted punk with a bad attitude butcher your expensive alloys with tyre levers and/or thread all the wheel bolts.
I wouldn't bother buying a set of tyres and storing them - you will be amazed how bloody awkward tyres are to store - and besides if you do find a particular tyre design/tread pattern gets superseded or whatever you will be able to still pick up the older tread design for quite a while through their distributors or worse case scenario have to replace a half worn set of fronts so that all match.

 

Thanks for the advice Jimmy. I went on to the tirerack web site and they only list the C63 coupe. I am guessing the 18 inch rear tyres for the sedan are exactly the same? Curious question, how did you transport the tyres to the dealer? Do 2 rears fit in the boot or did you fit them in the car itself?

 

I just put on my third set of rears 285/25/20 in 27,000km. Only reason I need to replace the fronts is they have scrubbed out on the inner due to a bad wheel alignment after lowering, I would say you will go through 3-4 sets of rears before you need to replace front tyres providing you don't drive to aggressive.
Try www.mswt.com.au in Melbourne they also import containers of tyres from the US and usually have most sizes in stock.

 

Thanks mate...good info there.
Cheers, Pickles.

 

Im at a ratio of 3 sets of rears to 1 set fronts...

So fronts are lasting around 15,000km

 

same here...3 to 1

 

Why do you say Tempe tyres are crooks?

Try Taleb tyres down the road I had some toyo proxy R888 fitted to my old HSV and they were the cheapest in town about 200 cheaper than tempe.

Cheers

James

p.s. I use to follow you pickle on ls1.com now i too have a c63, birds of a feather eh?

 

G'Day mate....great forum that.....some fine C63 Owners/Enthusiasts on there too.
Cheers, Pickles.

 

I just searched by tyre brand/type/size not by car.

I have the sedan and you can't get both rears in the boot - you might get 2 fronts in but probably not - so one in the boot the other on the back seat.