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Just spoke with my Vossen local dealer offering me a 25% discount to buy now and not wait until spring. But he also told me that Vossen told him that I need 5mm spacers on the rear wheels. Anyone else running Vossen's bump into that issue..? Needing spacers makes me feel like Vossen may not be a good choice after all, but I love the CVT look.
I'd suggest contacting Vossen directly as you have seen there is an E400 Coupe with CVTs in their photo gallery (hopefully that vehicle did not require spacers). When I was researching wheels for my E coupe several months ago I contacted Vossen and the person I spoke with said they had CVT wheels that would fit without spacers (19x8.5 Front and 19x10 Rear) but I do not recall the offsets they suggested. I have 19x8.5 ET40 Front and 19x9.5 ET45 Rear (Vertini RF1.1) that fit perfectly for my taste (wheel is flush with top of fender) with no spacers so I suppose the offsets would be similar for the CVTs (maybe ET50 on Rear being 1/2" wider). What size wheel were you looking for? Also, tire size should be considered in fitment.
Originally Posted by Richard_P_Harve
Just spoke with my Vossen local dealer offering me a 25% discount to buy now and not wait until spring. But he also told me that Vossen told him that I need 5mm spacers on the rear wheels. Anyone else running Vossen's bump into that issue..? Needing spacers makes me feel like Vossen may not be a good choice after all, but I love the CVT look.
I was planning on going with the same wheel size that you went with and it was the red E400 in the Vossen gallery that convinced me to go with red over my traditional color of black when purchasing the E400. My dealer said it was Vossen that told him spacers were needed but I think I will give them a call just to confirm.
Should the use of spacers concern me..? It does frankly but is it a founded concern..?
Hopefully you won't need spacers (I just looked at a few custom wheel dealers online that have online configurators and the 19" CVTs showed compatible with late model E-Coupe, albeit with slightly different offsets). Personally I would not use spacers if at all possible as it just adds another component of unnecessary complexity (balance issues potentially, added stress on suspension by placing mount points further away from hub, need for non-standard extended lug bolts, etc.) and weight, especially if there are several other quality wheel options with very similar looks and perfect fitment.
Originally Posted by Richard_P_Harve
I was planning on going with the same wheel size that you went with and it was the red E400 in the Vossen gallery that convinced me to go with red over my traditional color of black when purchasing the E400. My dealer said it was Vossen that told him spacers were needed but I think I will give them a call just to confirm.
Should the use of spacers concern me..? It does frankly but is it a founded concern..?
Here's an example of 19" true directional wheel that has similar look to Vossen CVT. It's also Rotary Forged (same casting technology as Vossen VFS/1) which means lighter weight and increased strength.
These are in the exact offsets as my Vertini RF1.1 Rotary Forged wheels (19x8.5 ET40 Front, 19x9.5 ET45 Rear).
I took your advise and called Vossen, turns out the 20" staggered set (8.5/10) will fit without spacers, it's only the 19" set that requires them. Big bummer for me. 20's are not an option as I purchased the wheel insurance package from Mercedes and although they will cover after market wheels only up to 19". Thanks for the alternate directional wheels you posted, although I don't think they are as attractive as the Vossen's they are worth a closer look.
Bad news regarding 19" CVT. What were the recommended offsets and what size spacers did they recommend for the rears? Although my personal preference is not to use spacers - that is certainly a viable option and I would suggest going with quality recognized brand like H&R if you do.
Other brands in 10-spoke directional style I've seen include:
Stance
Avant Garde
Niche
Verde
Although I didn't go with Vossen wheels due to fitment for my vehicle, Vossen has one of the best warranties and they have a manufacturing facility in Miami, FL (although do not know if CVTs are manufactured in the Miami plant). They seem to generally get very good reviews on many car forums.
Where are you seeing the poor quality reviews?
Originally Posted by 2010_E550
One question: Why are you guys buying Vossen? They are cast wheels made in Taiwan. You are all hyped up over poor quality.
The OP sounds like his dealer has crack at discount.
Hmm... guess their marketing dept has consumers in the dark, blinded by the glitz and glamor. Just because you see their wheels on a Lambo doesn't mean they are a quality product. Made in the USA? Miami? NOPE! Think again. Maybe shipped to Miami.
2k for a set? Plus tires? Spend a little more and you can get forged wheels.
2010_E550 - I find your posts a little strange, maybe it's just me. Sure Vossen's are not high end wheels and they are priced as such. If we all had unlimited bank accounts we would all be looking for 3 piece wheels. And what the heck is that link in the above post...?
Let me ask a question, if I were to lower the car via one of the spring kit options could I move back and forth between lowered and not lowered. I'm really not liking the spacer idea so I'm starting to think about a lowered summer ride sitting on 20" Vossen's and then a winter version on stock springs and my current 18's.
Doable but you will have the labor costs of swapping out springs each time and realignment each time.
Originally Posted by Richard_P_Harve
Let me ask a question, if I were to lower the car via one of the spring kit options could I move back and forth between lowered and not lowered. I'm really not liking the spacer idea so I'm starting to think about a lowered summer ride sitting on 20" Vossen's and then a winter version on stock springs and my current 18's.
Last summer I purchased 20'' Vossen VSF2's. The dealer suggested I also use 5mm spacers on my rears. As i left the building and onto the expressway i was getting massive vibrations. 5mm spacers do not come hub centric causing the wheel not to have enough room to sit on the hub lip causing vibration. Hub centricity starts at 10mm and that is too much for the wheels. Make sure Vossen provides you with the best offsets. Technically 5mm is nothing anyways. After removing them, you couldn't even notice a difference and the drivability was perfect again, and looked sexy with the new wheels.
Looks very nice! Is the gap (top of tire to fender) for front and back even? What was the labor cost to get these installed? Did you get an alignment after and if so was the alignment off significantly with the drop?
Originally Posted by andrew c coupe
~ Richard...
I went with lowering springs and the car dropped just over an 1" which is perfect for all season driving and offers the same ride as stock.
I am also running staggered 19" wheels without spacers.
Looks very nice! Is the gap (top of tire to fender) for front and back even? What was the labor cost to get these installed? Did you get an alignment after and if so was the alignment off significantly with the drop?
~ thanks!
the gap is even front to rear with the perfect stance I was hoping for without being slammed.
the labor for the install was $250 and the alignment was still perfect after install. however, I had the car aligned about 2 months later with no real adjustments.
Awesome, thanks! From some E-Coupe owners on this forum, it appears the H&R lowering springs seem to lower more in the rear than the front. I'll take a look at Vogtland. My primary concern is to ensure that I have zero rubbing issues with my tires/wheels (255/35-19 front and 285/30-19 rear).
Your install cost for the set of 4 springs is very reasonable, in northern Virginia I can't find anyone to do for under $450.
Looks like you've had your car lowered for several months now. Any issues with abnormal tire wear (usually inside of tires start wearing more on lowered cars)?
Originally Posted by andrew c coupe
~ thanks!
the gap is even front to rear with the perfect stance I was hoping for without being slammed.
the labor for the install was $250 and the alignment was still perfect after install. however, I had the car aligned about 2 months later with no real adjustments.
Awesome, thanks! From some E-Coupe owners on this forum, it appears the H&R lowering springs seem to lower more in the rear than the front. I'll take a look at Vogtland. My primary concern is to ensure that I have zero rubbing issues with my tires/wheels (255/35-19 front and 285/30-19 rear).
Your install cost for the set of 4 springs is very reasonable, in northern Virginia I can't find anyone to do for under $450.
Looks like you've had your car lowered for several months now. Any issues with abnormal tire wear (usually inside of tires start wearing more on lowered cars)?
I'll do my best to answer your questions in detail.
I have used eibach pro-kit and h&r sport springs (too low in many cases) on many of my cars in the past... However the only spring provider specifically noted for a 4-matic application in the coupe was vogtland (also made in Germany). I had done quite a bit of research before purchasing these and have zero regrets.
The ride is that of factory without any bouncing, crashing, bottoming out, stable on a sharp bump/dips and no rubbing of any sort with a full passenger load or trunk load and the stance is perfect while being level front to rear.
I ended up purchasing these off of ebay from a reputable seller and installed them with less than 1,000 miles on the car and I am now at 8,000 miles. The wheels I am running are staggered with 9.5 x 19 in the rear with a 275/30 (dws extreme conti) and once again zero rubbing due to excessive load or full lock front wheel turn. There's also no excessive wear on the tires as seen on some cars (inner wear).
The factory shocks do a perfect job of complementing the lowering springs with no rebound issues.
As for driving, I have a habit of pulling up or down inclines on an angle to assure no scraping, with currently no marks underneath the front lower bumper. I am a clean freak with my cars so no wheel curb rash, etc.
Sold! Now to find a reasonable and reputable installer!
Thanks Andrew!
Originally Posted by andrew c coupe
I'll do my best to answer your questions in detail.
I have used eibach pro-kit and h&r sport springs (too low in many cases) on many of my cars in the past... However the only spring provider specifically noted for a 4-matic application in the coupe was vogtland (also made in Germany). I had done quite a bit of research before purchasing these and have zero regrets.
The ride is that of factory without any bouncing, crashing, bottoming out, stable on a sharp bump/dips and no rubbing of any sort with a full passenger load or trunk load and the stance is perfect while being level front to rear.
I ended up purchasing these off of ebay from a reputable seller and installed them with less than 1,000 miles on the car and I am now at 8,000 miles. The wheels I am running are staggered with 9.5 x 19 in the rear with a 275/30 (dws extreme conti) and once again zero rubbing due to excessive load or full lock front wheel turn. There's also no excessive wear on the tires as seen on some cars (inner wear).
The factory shocks do a perfect job of complementing the lowering springs with no rebound issues.
As for driving, I have a habit of pulling up or down inclines on an angle to assure no scraping, with currently no marks underneath the front lower bumper. I am a clean freak with my cars so no wheel curb rash, etc.
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