Having had to replace one of my 17" wheels (appearance package 05 E500) due to an encounter with a pothole, I kept the old dented wheel and had it repaired at Wheels America. Now the thought has occured to me that I could put a tire on the rim and have a full size spare instead of the doughnut -- assuming the full 17" wheel/tire will fit in the spare tire well. Has anyone done this? I read somewhere that the Canadian cars have full spares but cannot verify if this is so -- seems improbable that thy'd have different spare tire compartments.

I have a full size spare in NZ.

When I put my mounted snows on last fall, I tried putting one of the oem 16"x8" wheels carrying the stock 225/55 tire in the trunk in place of the baby spare. No go. The trunk floor panel hit the tire and wouldn't fully close. I suppose I could have driven it that way, but opted not to.

Good luck with your trial. Please let us know how you make out. I think mine might have worked if I had a narrower tire, but didn't want to futz around with that.

I have a 225/55-16 tire in the spare tire space and it fits perfectly. Of course, I can't use the tray and the compact spare hold down part. I'll take a picture tomorrow and do a show and tell. Since the 16 inch tire fits, I doubt a 17 inch tire would fit since it is wider. I don't know why khaug was unable to fit the 16 inch tire. Maybe the 2005 is different?

William
2003 E 320

That must have been a serious pothole. Can you tell us approximately how much it cost to repair the wheel?

Btw, have you also checked for other damage to the suspension since the hit?

The pothole was serious enough to dent the wheel. The wheel was replaced by my dealer, who also checked out everything else. The dented wheel was repaired by Wheels America in Farmingdale, NY<www.fixrim.com> (they have locations in other parts of the country) for $129.00. I paid for shipping; if you mention their website, they'll ship back for free. I mailed the wheel the them on a Saturday and I had it back Wednesday (I'm also on Long Island, so I expect the turnaround not to be quite that quick if you're further away). I figured with the potholes here in NY, it was a good investment to have a spare wheel handy.

That is a Dunlop WinterSport M2 tire on the OEM rim size 225/55-16. It fits so that when the trunk floor swings down, the tire is flush with the bottom of the trunk floor. The tire functions as a support to the trunk floor, and it fits perfectly flush.

I happened to find that the tire hold down part from a 2003 Lexus ES 300 screws into the center metal threads of the plastic part the sticks up from the floor of the spare tire wheel well. I didn't bother to find out what the correct Mercedes part is. I imagine that it is a plastic bucket that screws onto the plastic threads just like with the compact spare.
William
2003 E 320

Hey johna1, I would love to see a picture of the spare tire in your car. Or perhaps someone else would like to post a picture of the full size spare that Mercedes supplies in some markets. I would like to see that. In the US, we get the compact spare.

I think it is a good idea to keep that spare wheel, wienschela. If you search this board, you will see some cases of the 17 inch wheel being damaged by a pothole.

I prefer the 16 inch wheels for that reason; they are less likely to be damaged by an impact. It seems obvious to me that the European roads the car is principally designed for must be a lot better maintained than roads in the USA. Our roads are quite atrocious overall.

William
2003 E320

Here are some pictures of the spare. It is a 225/55 on 16" wheel.
I have put one of the floor in place as well so you can see it does close flat!

Thanks johna1 !!! Your pictures are far superior to the pictures that I took.
William
2003 E320

Interesting topic. I have been thinking about a full size spare also, but my tire size is 17" (E320 Sports Package). My main reason for considering this would be if I had a blow out on the freeway where the 50 mph speed limit on the compact spare would be a real problem.

Is there anyone out there that has found a way to conceal a 17" wheel in the trunk?

I don't see whya 17" wheel should present a problem. They are standard on the Avantgarde model here, which still comes with a fullsize spare.

Although the wheel is bigger, the tyre will have a lower profile, so the overall diameter should remain the same (otherwise all sort of things would happen). The only problem would be if the tyre was substantially wider - then when it was flat in the well, the floor may not fit properly...

Hey BWL, you could try the direct method. Remove one of your tires and place it in the spare tire space to see. Get ready to get your hands dirty. I would call or e-mail MBUSA and ask to speak with someone with technical knowledge and ask them or ask the parts counter guys at a dealership.

Even if the 17 inch tire doesn't fit width wise, you could carry a 225/55-16 tire as a spare since it does have the same overall diameter as your 17 inch tire. You might be able to find a used tire/rim. Lots of people want to swap out the stock 16 inch rims for lower profile tires. If I just drove around the city, the compact spare would be fine. But I take long road trips and I do not like the idea of being constrained to the compact spare tires limits of 50 mph top speed and 50 mile range.

Here is what provoked me. I was in South Carolina where I got a flat tire. A screw was stuck through the tread. I found the tire flat after a stop I made. It was not a blowout. I had a bicycle air pump and was able to reinflate the tire. The first tire place I was able to stop at was jam packed with customers. The second did not want to repair the tire and wanted me to buy a new tire which did not match what I had on the car; they wanted to charge me $190 for the one tire. They said the sidewall was damaged even though the screw was in the tread. I ended up driving back to Florida with a screw in the tire, adding air every few hours since it was leaking air slowly. I got the tire properly patched from the inside once I got home for $15. After that experience, I wanted a full size spare, an air pump, and a can of Fix a Flat.

I found a set of 16 inch OEM alloy rims at a place called Ernie's Alloys here in Miami, FL. I paid $500 for the (4) four rims. I mounted snow tires on those rims, and I use those tires when I drive out West in the winter. You could look on eBay and see what you find. Now one of those winter tires is my spare.

Hope you find this informative, BWL.
William
2003 E320 48k miles

William,

Thanks for sharing your experience. What you describe is exactly the type of scenario I want to avoid - long trip involving freeway driving and having a tire blow out. I think I will talk to the MB sevice guys the next time I have my car in and ask their opinion on what would fit in the trunk of the car. I'll also take a look at what can be had on e-bay.

Johna1 - Thanks for your reply as well.

Heh... back when you posted your first response, I was kind of wondering what a Miami guy was doing with a snow tire.

Thats not the half of it. I also have Pewag Sportmatic tire chains.

I like driving the car to Arizona, Utah, New Mexico, Colorado and Oregon; all places where I have friends to visit. I was going to be there now, but I hurt my leg and I ended up cancelling my trip. My leg is a lot better now. I was going to be travelling through California, hence I wanted the chains just in case. My motto: fortune favors the prepared.

The Southwest USA is a magical place for me; I like to be able to visit in all seasons, including winter.

Winter tires for winter conditions just seem like cheap insurance to me. I am amazed at how the winter tire technology has improved from when I was a kid growing up in Illinois.

William
2003 E320

[QUOTE=BWL]
I think I will talk to the MB sevice guys the next time I have my car in and ask their opinion on what would fit in the trunk of the car
[QUOTE]

I just remembered and important point for anyone reading this thread. I had no doubt that 16 inch rims would fit on my car since that is what it came equipped with. If your car came with 17 inch rims, you must be sure that a 16 inch rim will fit on your car because it may not clear the brake caliper. The disc brakes on these cars are not all the same.

I would ask at the dealership or call 1-800-FOR-MERC and ask to speak with someone who has technical knowledge. Of course you could also e-mail your question to MBUSA.

William
2003 E320

Was reading the car and driver article on the 2006 BMW 3 series.
http://www.caranddriver.com/article....rticle_id=9265
Says that all 3 series cars are going to be equipped with run flats. Reviewer says the ride quality has improved; I am still suspicious after reading about Lexus SC owners complaining about harsh ride quality on their run flats. Mercedes has not been at the forefront on this issue and I say good. But I have to believe that the car that replaces the W211 will also come with runflats.

Can't say I am too excited about this new technology that seems to mainly increase replacement tire prices for the tire manufacturers (probably a way of combatting the low price Asian tire makers) and allows the car manufacturer to brag about more interior space. I concede that there are likely safety advantages; just not sure if I am willing to pay for them.
William
2003 E 320

Sorry to bump an ancient thread, but do you happen to know the part number of the plastic basket that holds down the full size spare? I just got my hands on one of the 16" steel wheeled full size spares and I would like to keep it OEM with the hold down. If not I will look for an ES300 one. Thanks!

The basket will not fit with full size spare. Would have to take another look at it, but I think the bolt is too short for deep wheel hole.
I put full size spare on both W211 I do/did own.
On wagon some trims removal made for full floor closing.
On sedan I took all the lining out and 225 wheel lifts the floor a bit, but not to degree to bother me.
If somebody needs 2008 wheel for spare, PM me.