Akuma

what would you guys recommend? which one looks better? with 18's i think i would have to lower the car for it to look and sit right, with 19's i dont think i have to touch the suspension.

what's the best tire size for 18's and 19's, i more into that wide look?

what do you guys recommend, and this goes for 18's and 19's?

doublenickle

What ride ya got player :p

jesej

I have got a 02 CLK 430 and I just put on a set of 18 inch Carlsson EVO's. I wanted 18's because I did not want to touch the suspension and/or lower it. I would have to with 19's.

The ride feels like stock and the car looks great. I'm happy......

doublenickle

I just ordered 19" EVOS they'll be here next Thursday.. Any pics ?

Akuma

jesej, do you have a pic of your car? what is your tire size for those 18's.

the rim shop in new york told me, if i went with 19's i would,nt have to do any suspension work because the wheel would be flush with the fender, giving it that nice wide look

see attached, although, this guy lowered his 45mm

doublenickle

Where at in NYC.. I'm getting my 19" EVO's 1/6 on Thursday I'm in the NYC area .. Also need the H&R's installed.. I think..?


Thanks

Akuma

doublenickle,

i am in queens, i am planning to get a clk, and i am doing some research before i get it. i want to do it up.

lee2375

I would have to say 19s.

Check out my car thread called CLK pics for more pics (it's down there somewhere). Those are 19x8.5 F and 19x9.5 R.

You would need to do suspension work to get it to sit flush.

Mach430

Changing to 18s or 19s would do very little in regards to eliminating the fender gap. When you change to a bigger wheel, you also change to a smaller tire in hopes of keeping the same exact diameter of the wheel/tire combination. Although the 19s will be about 1/8-1/4 of an inch larger with tires, that in no way comes close to eliminating your fender gap. If you chose to put bigger tires than you're supposed to, you would in turn completely screw up your speedometer, because the car would be traveling further per wheel rotation than it thinks.

The only proper way to eliminate your fender gap would be to change your suspension. This would include lowering springs and hopefully shocks. To go slightly lower, you could change your springs pads from the usual stock 4 Front/3 Rear ratio to a 3/2 or a 2/1. Each step down in size represents a 5 mm gap.

If you notice, this car still has a fender gap with 19" wheels on it:

Sleestack

Referring to the picture above, I had my spring pads changed, replaced my shocks with Bilsteins and kept stock springs. The ride is slightly soft, however, the MKB Sway Bars really eliminate body roll. I'm replacing my shocks with Kleeman shocks, however, I haven't decided on the springs yet. I'm hoping that the 1" lowering resulting from this setup will not cause any rubbing.

Mach430

Sleestack,

While I still have my stock 17s on my car, I'm actually changing to a 2/1 pad tomorrow when I change my shocks to the new Kleemann ones. Even when I get 19s, combined with my springs and shocks, I expect the rubbing to be very little if any.

byip25

i got 18s and i am happy. of course, if i had the money, id get 19s. my 18s ride fine and i've only felt my tires rubb once.

B

Akuma

OKAY! THANKS GUYS, I AM GOING WITH 19'S, THEN I WILL SEE HOW IT LOOKS, AND IF I AM NOT SATISFIED, WILL HAVE TO ADD SOME H & R's .

THANK YOU VERY MUCH GUYS FOR ALL YOUR INPUT, THX AGAIN

SteveZ

If you live in NY I woudn't dare to get 19s, you will be replacing them every couple of months, and now that its winter, you have to be even more carefull.

doublenickle

Don't live in NY , I work there..

Sleestack

I lived in NY for the first 28 years of my life before I moved out to the Bay Area 3 years ago. I definitely miss NYC, however, the roads bite. I think if I lived out there I would stick with 18"s or even 17"s.

bodyart27

Of course - just my opinion - but I think 19s look too extreme for the CLK (is it possible to have too much wheel?). Looks like I'm the lone gunman here, but 17's look small on my 55 (damn mercedes should have given us 18s w/275s in the rear like the E55) and 18s look like the should have been put on at the factory.

Still haven't bought new wheels, but right now I'm still thinking 18 AMG monoblocks - Michelin rubber - 265. My second choice would be Braubus but I think they are too heavy.

Akuma

DAMN! YOU GUYS MAKE ME WANNA CHANGE MY MIND FROM GETTING 19'S. BUT, IF I GO WITH 18'S, I WOULD HAVE TO LOWER THE CAR, WHICH I DONT WANT TO DO.

LOL, YOU GUYS REALLY KNOW HOW TO BURST SOMEONES BUBBLE

Sleestack

I really think it depends on the rim. I had 18" Brabus Monoblock V Multipiece rims prior to my 19" BBS LMs. I was hestitant to go to a 19", however, I'm really happy with my decision. Some 19" definitely look huge, especially when they have a very smally lip and are super shiny. As far as the Brabus go, they weigh 33lbs (8.5) and 36 lbs(9.5)... pretty damn heavy. Whatever wheel you get, make sure you consider the weight... it really matters.

byip25

if you got the dough, get the 19s.... you'll be happy. HADOKEN!

B

Akuma

OKAY! I WILL GO WITH THE 19'S BUT, BEFORE I DO, FOR ALL YOU GUYS WHO ARE RUNNING ON 18'S. WHAT'S THE LOWERING SETTINGS YOU ARE USING? AND WHAT ARE THE SIZE OF YOUR TIRES FOR THE 18'S YOU RE RUNNING ON?

I DID MORE RESEARCH, AND IT SEEMS THAT A LOT OF CLK OWNERS WENT WITH 18'S ESPECIALLY IN EUROPE.

O ALMOST FORGOT......BYIP25, SHO-RYU-KEN BACK AT YOU BUDDY,

Akuma

......AS FAR AS THE LIP OF THE RIM (DEEPNESS OF THE RIM OR LIP), IS THERE A MEASUREMENT FOR THAT, IS THAT WHAT THEY CALL OFF-SET?

ON YOUR BBS19, WHAT IS THE OFF-SET SIZE? DOES THE OFF-SET SIZE DETERMINES THE DEEPNESS OF THE RIM?

lee2375

Offset is the distance from the center line to the backpad. Usually the amount of lip increases as the offset decreases, but it really depends on the design of the wheel. Some wheels just add the offset difference to the backpad, others add it to the lip.

Akuma

......SO, WHAT ARE THE BEST WHEELS FOR CLK THAT WOULD HAVE THAT DEEP LOOK TO IT, OTHER THAN MAE AND BBS LM'S.

I WAS PLANNING TO GET ENKEI AEGIS, WHAT DO YOU THINK?

lee2375

The Aegis is discontinued. The only way to get it to find old stock. The Enkei warehouse in Ft. Worth may still have some.

If you wait can till Thursday, check my website when it's up and see if there's anything you like.