fltotheo

Hi,

my my name is Florian and i‘m From Germany. There are a lot of MB forums in Germany (as you can guess) but I registered to this because it seems to be the best source of knowledge!

I got a 88 260E from my grandpa who turns 89 and can’t drive anymore. The car hast covered approx. 60k miles and is a first owner car. I even have the delivery ticket from Stuttgart.

Now i want to make „little“ changes and need a little bit advise. I searched the whole internet for this but didn’t find sufficient infos. The wheels I want to run is an AMG Aero II in 8.5x18“ et=44 (from the w140) and my main question is how to make it fit in the front. I know that the wheel will hit the shocks because of the et=44 so i need to run spacers to clear the shocks. What min. size of spacers do I need? Some say 3mm, some 5mm, etc. Is here anybody who is driving these wheels and can help me?


Thanks, Flo

ohollenbeck

Do not put any S class wheels on a 124, forever rubbing problems. The biggest wheels (width) for the fronts should be 7.5", and 8.5" for the rears.

I have run 18" E55 Aero II wheels on my coupe, they were all 8" with et31, and even then they rubbed occasionally

https://www.alloywheelsdirect.net/me...g_ii_wheel_193

The best (and perfect fit Aero II wheels for a 124 are the CLK 17" version @ 7.5x17et37 front and 8.5x17et 30 rear.

https://www.alloywheelsdirect.net/me...g_ii_wheel_192

I ran with those as well, and they never rubbed, and did not require spacers either.

If you insist on 18", (I would not), get the W210 E55 (also a R129 option) versions.

Early CLK's and SLK's have wheels that are compatible, stay away from S class wheels all together.

fltotheo

Thanks for the Info! I guess you‘re right but it’s the best looking wheel in 18“ (in my opinion) and I know it’s been done before. I even have the AMG wide wheel kit to get more space.

ohollenbeck

Great, where did you get that kit, I thought it was no longer available, on my home PC I have the instruction document for installing it.

When I get home tonight, I'll post a picture of my Coupe with the 18" E55 Aero II wheels, they do look great, and fit almost perfect. But with the AMG kit and rolling the fenders they would fit even better.

I'll post back tonight or tomorrow with more info...

fltotheo

You still can get that kit on german eBay:

https://www.ebay.de/itm/AMG-Breitrei...EAAOSw2EJcjQF6


The guy says it’s old stock!

ohollenbeck

Yes thats the one...

Wow, thats great info, I'm ordering a set tonight, and I do have the complete documentation to install this on my home PC.
The instruction set is actually to modify a 124 to fit the 8x17et24 Aero I's, mods to the front and rear fenders...
I'll post later tonight or tomorrow, you will like it... and thanks again for the link

OK, got home early today, nice way to start a week-end.. attached you will find the document I spoke about.

The kit you mentioned is shown in Section C (Modifications to Body), starting at the bottom of page 4,
also the matching part number for the kit you bought is listed at the end of the document...good luck

fltotheo

Good info here! Thanks! Sadly it still doesn’t solve my problem, because my wheel will hit the shock on the inside. And the spacers have to be as small as possible to clear the shock but not move the wheel more than necessary to the fender.

ohollenbeck

Sounds like you already bought the S class wheels, now you understand from first hand experience why they are the wrong wheels for a 124.
I had hoped that you didn't buy them, and even if you get the spacer problem solved, you will need longer bolts to be able to fit correctly with spacers.
It's just so much easier to buy CLK or E55 AMG Monoblock II wheels and bolt them up the same day you get them.
Nothing special to do, and they take the common 40mm shank length bolts which you most likely already have.
If it were me, I would bite the bullet, sell the S class wheels and go find a set of E55 wheels. Even though they look exactly the same, they aren't as cheap because there is a demand for E55 wheels, which are more compatible with other models/years.
W140 wheels fit W140's, and there isn't as big a market for w140 parts in general, thats why you see them more often at lower prices. One other thing I just recalled is that the lug bolts for W140 wheels, (I think), are 14M size, with a 14R ball seat.

As you may know, 124's all use 12M with 12R ball seat lug bolts. If this is true about the W140 wheels, that's another reason to stay away from them.
In a way, I'm doing something similar on my R129's, as I installed R230 wheels on my R129's. In basic sizes they are compatible, but the lug bolts problem is the same as you are facing.
R129's also take 12M with 12R lugbolts like the 124's, where all R230 wheels take 14M with 14R lugbolts like the W140 wheels. There is a company (Otis) that sells hybrid lugbolts, specifically to make later model M14 wheels fit onto a earlier model M12 lugbolt car. They do that by making a bolt that has M12 threads, but with a R14 ball seat, then you need the correct length shaft as well.

What this means to you is that the 124 ball seat on the bolts you are using now to mount the S class wheels are not making full contact with the seat machined in the S class wheel.
Instead of getting full contact along the entire curve of the ball seat, because of the size and radius difference, the 12R ball seat is probably making contact inside the S class wheel seat at one single point along the curve. Which over time would make a ring groove inside the S class wheel seat, and being prone to loosening up much more that the proper R14 ball seat. Hope that's not too confusing. Also, did you know that all aftermarket wheels use cone seats instead of ball seats? If you decide to mount a Brabus wheel for instance, you will need all new lugbolts with cone seats, not this topic I know, but something else owners who swap wheels around should know before they do anything.

Anyway best of luck with what you decide, so many owners of 124's have repeated this larger wheel scenario over and over, and the S class wheels that are cheaper and more available are too tempting.

fltotheo

Thanks for all that sufficient infos! It’s not confusing at all. I already have the M12 bolts with the R14 ball heads. In Germany these bolts are very common in the VAG scene.
I‘m talking about the AERO II wheel and not the Styling II wheel!! The Aero II in 18“ is the best looking wheel in my eyes and even technically it’s more interesting because it’s an forged 2 piece wheel. The Aero II was never made for E55s.
I know that it will work because I read a lot about it, there are even pictures of W124s with this wheel on this site and it would be cool if someone who is running this wheel can tell me about the spacer!

ohollenbeck

OK,a guess, are these the 2 piece S class wheels? If so, now I understand why you need these, as they are not made in other sizes.

Still the same problems with fitment though, anyway good luck...

ohollenbeck

OK, here ya go, on eBay, are these what you want? (not a bad price for a relatively rare wheel)... Best...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Mercedes-AM...frcectupt=true

Edit; hard to believe there are 2 sets for sale at the same time...

https://www.ebay.com/itm/MERCEDES-AM....c100009.m1982