mercedeslover

I have a stock 1997 e 420 and it is definitely time for new rims. What is the largest size I can g to without it affecting the ride 17", 18", 19"?

Gregs210

The question you have to seriously answer is "without it affecting the ride" MUCH. The problem is that you lose sidewall as you increase wheel diameter and typically you're also moving into wider wheels, which require wider tires. The wider tires in turn will require a smaller sidewall, and -- generally speaking -- smaller sidewalls equal harsher road response.

That said, the tires are simply your first line of defense to changes in the road surface; the overall ride quality won't change virtually no matter what size wheels you put on since the suspension remains unchanged. HOWEVER, with 20s you'll feel every pebble in the road and the expansion strips on highways will feel like speed bumps, because you don't have any sidewall to insulate you from it; every little road imperfection comes through to the suspension pretty much undamped by the tires. This is usually described as "harshness".

With all of that in mind, generally speaking most people don't notice any real difference going to 17s, so that's a safe bet (again, so long as you don't go to 9.5" widths that force an even smaller sidewall). If you maintain a sidewall profile in the 50-45 series range, you should be fine, and that's about a 215/50/17 or 235(245)/45/17 on rim widths of 7.5" or 8".

You'll sacrifice a bit more if you go to 18s, and if you're a driving enthusiast who appreciates handling and road feedback, you probably wouldn't mind that tradeoff, but if your mom rides in your car she'll certainly notice it. 19s and larger -- at least on the C and E series cars -- will result in a ride that is noticeably harsh.

You can play with sizes at this site (thanks, Miata fans): http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

Happy wheel shopping, and enjoy the ride,
Greg

BlownV8

I've had two E 210's. I thought the one with 18" AMG rims rode as good as the one with 17" sport rims and tires. The 18" look much better too.

mercedeslover

thanks for the info guys . you have really helped me with my decision, so now I am looking for no larger than 18" rims. Now I need to decide on tires: brands, ratings, size etc. I want a quiet , smooth ride and , yes sometimes I drive fast on the highway so performance is a bit of an issue.

Now what about replicas like I have seen on ebay for 6-800 per set? Should I definitely go oem or are some of these replicas ok?