Have done some forum searches and surprised there aren't a gazillion threads on tires--just used search term "tires"
oh well
My 2014 CLS 550 4-matic need new tires--after only 23K miles. Been with Michelin Pilot sport AS--bought 2.5 years ago--and was everybody's go to set at that time. HOWEVER--my indy shop guy just told me the road noise I was getting was due to BADLY cupped tires--and is typical on this car due to it's suspension characteristics--super hard on tires. Further--he tells me that he's seen a lot of Michelin problems over the last 5 years and no longer recommends the brand. He said he'd go with Continentals--OR Bridgestones
Maybe I should just ask for a poll?
What's the go to set/s I should consider?
all feedback is very appreciated
thanks! Dave

 

I have continental's on mine and just had the two rears replaced because they were scalloped. The car sounded like it had a bad bearing when driving in high speed. Luckily it was only tires. My advisor told me the rear tires were the original ones the car came with, he could tell by the DOT # on them. i have gone through a lot of tires on this car but they were always the front as they are the ones that usually take the pot hole hit. Outside of that i haven't had any issues w the tires.

 

thank you
I bought the car at 34K miles and it had Continentals on--with only 10k miles on them--and the noise was horrible. Determined it was my tires (after the stealer replaced front bearings fortunately under warranty etc etc)
bought a set of Michelin Pilot AS (as recommended by most on this forum)--and they proved the problem was the cupped Continentals. Car road noise greatly improved
now--at 57K miles (only 23K on the Michelins)--same issue
this model just eats tires--which I kind of knew before ever buying it---now I am sure

 

I'm amazed that I haven't gotten more response. I thought tire chatter was usually hot and heavy on these car sites
Wondering what other CLS fan sites I can check

 

I'd recommend Michelin 4S, despite your guy saying NO to Michelin. Excellent grip and wear, a bit louder than the others you have, but it's not an issue.

 

Micheln 4S?
I'm not seeing those on Tire Rack at least that they apply to my car
however, my guy is one of the top exotic euro car guys in the Midwest--knows his stuff--Bentley--race cars--you name it
All I know so far about Michelin is that I have gotten about 20K good miles out of my set and took super care of them (crossing-proper inflation--wheel alignments regularly etc)--unfortuantely--they have plenty of tread--just noisy as h*ll--very disappointed

 

When I purchased my 2013 CLS550 CPO car last February, it had 17,800 miles on it and per the CPO requirements, the tires were replaced because they were too old but had great tread left. They installed Continental ContiPro tires and I now have approx 25K miles on it and the tires show little wear and are quiet. It had a 4 wheel alignment prior to purchase and I've had the tires rotated and re-balanced once since I've owned it. For me, 4 wheel alignment, proper tire pressure and rotation are key to good tire wear.

 

tire rack doesn't list that Continental model
I baby my ride--do all the right things---as posted
tread isn't my problem--it's the cupping and road noise---I don't drive it hard.
Think the staggered set up has something to do with it. At least my car has this chronic problem since it was new according to the records I got when I purchased it in 2017 with 34K miles on it and am now experiencing it again
Can't believe I'm unique

 

I didn't mean to come off as criticizing you, I just stated what I've always done on my cars. Here is a good website on tire wear https://www.knowyourparts.com/techni...ing-tire-wear/ I looked at my tires and they are actually ContiProContact. I would go to a good alignment shop to see if you have a damaged suspension causing wear. Marv

 

no--I didn't take it as criticism at all
I take mine to an MB dealer for an alignment every Spring (whether I think it needs it or not)--and I know they check it out thoroughly --because when I bought this car -it was still under warranty and driving it home from where I bought it--I noticed some tire noise. Took it to my home town MB dealer and had them check it out--align it and they also replaced some front end ball joints etc.
maybe it's just my car--
and thanks for the link

 

I’ve got continental DWS tires on mine and have had no issues so far (around 15k miles), they’re considerably better than the P-Zeros that came on it.

everyone I know with all kinds of cars (Merc, BMW, Lamborghini, Ferrari,etc) all swear by Michelin tires, I didn’t want to spend $450/each so went with the Continentals.

there’s a good thread on here about the Continentals - https://mbworld.org/forums/cls-coupe...their-cls.html

 

thanks
I get it--I put on the Michelin Pilot sports with full confidence--and they sure did quiet my ride--but they ended up cupping with the same road noise I was getting off the Continentals I bought the car with.
maybe I got a bad rig

 

Tires don't cup by themselves, something is making it happen. Has your car been in an accident? Just thinking out loud! Marv

 

I bought it used--in 2017 with 34K miles on it. At that time--I had the service records which did indicate there had already been new tires put on it and a couple of trips to the stealer to deal with tire issues. Before I bought the car--I was told by a guy who knows German cars that the CLS has always had tire issues--Sure enough -- mine does
Surprised more folks aren't replying and commenting about that--good news is I'm semi retired and only put 8-9K miles on per year--so--it's not a killer to put new tires on every 20K miles--I'm just not used to it--having driven primarily Audi-s over the years
think it has something to do with the staggered set up--

 

Running Conti ExtremeContact on mine and I also have a lot of road noise. The original Conti ProContact tires had much less road noise and I'll be going back to them.

 

The Michelins I had on my Cadillac CTS SportWagon got noisy after about 20K miles. I changed them out to Falken and they were quiet and lasted 40K miles when I traded it in for the CLS550. Marv

 

I just got a tire education as it relates to our CLS cars. As I suspected--it's the staggered set up that is our problem--causes excessive tire wear and resultant road/tire noise
I took my unit to NTB and got with an experience tech. He said my fronts were feathered and the rears cupped.. He explained how a staggered wheel set up typically would cause this--but a main reason for the uneven wear is the fact we can't rotate our wheels like a typical wheel set up. Further he said that switching back and forth might help some--it probably isn't worth the time and that minimal expense to switch them (same thing my indy tech guy told me last week)
SO---My solution is to just live with it--and when I buy a new set--just buy the cheapest tires I can find

 

I see that there are Discount Tire locations in St Louis and I've always had good luck with them. They have some cheap tires (you might have to have them ordered for you) that are $378 per set plus balance and I'd buy road hazard insurance for them too. I thought I saved the link, but it's not here. Just go to their page, put in your car and you'll see them. I'm sure they will try to upsell you, but it's your car. Marv

 

thanks, Marv
I don't want to write off performance (mind you)---think I'll just order from NTB or Tire Rack and pick their cheapest All Season Performance set that works for the CLS
but--I'll sure work on your angle first. I'll just ride these through the pot hole season--and probably change them out Spring 2020
appreciate your reply, Marv

 

Not sure I’d recommend the “cheapest” tires however my situation was similar to yours in that my P-Zeros were getting so noisy even though there was still decent tread left. I have 19’s and wanted a compromise between performance and cost so after researching available options, I decided on the Yokohama Advan Sport A/S tires, saving $100 plus over Michelin Pilots and Conti DWS (which I’ve had on other cars and liked). I’ve had the Yokos for several months and am quite happy with them so far. Will see how they wear with miles but at this point they are very quiet and handle well so I can recommend highly.

 

I second Discount Tire for the best service and prices too

 

those Yoko Advans--are in closeout at Tire rack--$809 for the set. Otherwise the next ALL SEASON set cost wise is the Bridgestone Potanza RE980-s at $867.96

I go with the all seasons in my climate

How many miles approx do you have on your Yoko-s--maybe I should grab those
Was planning to live through winter with what I have and replace next Spring--like you--I have plenty of tread on my Michelin pilot sports

 

I put the Yokos on at the beginning of September and probably have 3000 miles on them,
having completed a Pa to Montreal road trip and many daily turnpike commutes. So far they have been flawless. I suspect that the higher priced options might handle a tiny bit better but let’s face it, these are not Autocross machines. The ride and quietness has been great and brought the joy back, as the P-Zeros had me thinking the rear end was going out!

 

I'll bet that before 20K miles--your Yoko-s will be loud like your P-zero-s
That's what these cars do -- bought my car used at 34K miles and saw that new Continentals had been put on around 20K--
Noticed the road noise immediately (only 14K miles on those Continentals)--and now 23K on the Michelins I put on to replace them
3K miles isn't enough to chop them up

 

You may very well be right, though I’d hate to think that we’ve got a $1k yearly tire expense. Would be interested to hear from other forum members who have had their car for a while and can speak to 20k plus miles noise/ride performance on their tires...and what tires they’re using.