Widest tire on OE 18” rim
Thread Starter
Newbie
Joined: Jul 2017
Posts: 3
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From: Bay Area, CA
2012 CLS550
Widest tire on OE 18” rim
Hello everyone,
I am usually more of lurker here and I usually find all the answers I need without having to post much. But I haven’t been able to find a decent answer to my question. I am going to be replacing my tires in the coming months and wanted to know what the widest tires I could fit in front and back are on my 2012 CLS550 without rubbing issues. I was thinking 275s in the front and 305s in the back, but wanted to get some input before I head to my local tire shop.
I am usually more of lurker here and I usually find all the answers I need without having to post much. But I haven’t been able to find a decent answer to my question. I am going to be replacing my tires in the coming months and wanted to know what the widest tires I could fit in front and back are on my 2012 CLS550 without rubbing issues. I was thinking 275s in the front and 305s in the back, but wanted to get some input before I head to my local tire shop.
Member
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 122
Likes: 12
From: Hawaii
'16 CLS550
To use 275/35/18 in the front, you will need to move the wheel outward about 5-10 mm because there is not much room inside. Once you move the wheel out with a spacer, you will need to roll the fender in order to avoid rubbing. However, 275 is able to squeeze in the 18x8.5 rim. Just have to correct the offset to clear the suspension. using 305/35/18 on the 18x9.5 for the rear is O.K. to squeeze in the rim and you may not need a spacer to push it out.
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1. The safest minimum recommended rim width for 275/35 is 9", while stock is only 8.5". Front will easily fit a much taller than 275/35-18 (which is only about 25.6") tire - 26.7" 245/45-18 easily fits, maybe even 27" 255/45-18 (but not both taller and wider).
2. There are no 305/35-18 (nor 305/30-18) street tires I know of. And if there were, 10.5" wide is a minimum safe rim width.
8.5/9.5 width rims will not safely accommodate 275/305 tires. To go wider than stock's 255/285 (in any rim diameter), one need to go to 9" wide front and 10" to 11" wide rear rims.
It is not safe to use wider than stock 255/285 tires on stock CLS 8.5/9.5rims.
2. There are no 305/35-18 (nor 305/30-18) street tires I know of. And if there were, 10.5" wide is a minimum safe rim width.
8.5/9.5 width rims will not safely accommodate 275/305 tires. To go wider than stock's 255/285 (in any rim diameter), one need to go to 9" wide front and 10" to 11" wide rear rims.
It is not safe to use wider than stock 255/285 tires on stock CLS 8.5/9.5rims.
Thread Starter
Newbie
Joined: Jul 2017
Posts: 3
Likes: 0
From: Bay Area, CA
2012 CLS550
Thanks for the info everyone. I may just have to look into some new rims and tires if I really want to go wider. This is really just an attempt to get traction, not necessarily for the looks. Maybe just a stickier tire would be less problematic and an easier solution.
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Member
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 122
Likes: 12
From: Hawaii
'16 CLS550
Yes, go with a stickier tire. It is all depend on what you want the result will be. Wider but also more body roll because you put a smaller diameter tire in front will make the weight shift to the front a little more. However, 245/45/18 shouldn't meet your expectation of increase traction and may still have problem with suspension clearance if you use the stock rim without spacer. Even thru you want to get new rims, you have to be very careful about the with and offset of the rim and the diameter of the tire in order to clear the suspension unless you don't mind going to a narrower tire in front. Currently, I am using a 265/30/20 in front with 20x9 ET25 rim and still able to clear both inside and out with a little room left. But increase to 275/30/20 may have problem with the air suspension flange because of the diameter of tire. Some people say it is o.k. but I just not quite sure about it. May be you can start thinking about it in this direction. In the rear, there is lots of room to play with. Worry about the front first and find something to match it in the rear after you decide the size for the front.
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