Staggered vs. 4matic...Whats the real story!?
Thread Starter
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 1,609
Likes: 2
From: Wyckoff, New Jersey & Alphabet City NYC
86 190E 2.3-16v, 92 500E, 03 CL55 AMG, 08 E3504M Brabus
Staggered vs. 4matic...Whats the real story!?
Senior Member
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 333
Likes: 1
From: Colorado
05 E500 4matic, 08 ML320CDI
I recently read a thread on either MBworld or Benzworld where owners of '08 C class 300 and 350 4-matics ( US, Europe and Canada) all posted comments that they were taking delivery of their cars with 225 and 245 staggered tires/wheels on their cars, in some cases they owners weren't expecting staggered setups... One owner went so far as to take pics of his tire sizes and post them, which were ContiProContacts... I looked them up on several websites to see what the specs were on the Overall Diameter of the tires and they were 3/10 different... So, while it appears that in some cases 4-matics are delivered from the factory with staggered setups, and the staggered setups aren't the same OAD Front to Rear, getting a straight answer from MB about if it's OK to run stagered setups on other 4-matic cars is still an issue... I'm currently looking to buy new wheels/tires for my recently acquired E500 4-matic and am trying to decide between staggered or same size F & R... The tires/wheel combos I'm looking at either have the same OAD F & R or are within 1/10"... It's interesting to note that my cars tire inflation sticker says to run 29 front and 35 rear in the stock 245-17's and I would think that alone would cause more than 1/10" difference in OAD.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 5,143
Likes: 1
From: South Orange County, CA
4 wheels
Senior Member
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 333
Likes: 1
From: Colorado
05 E500 4matic, 08 ML320CDI
Just spoke to my local Service Manager and told him I'd like to run a staggered set up on my 05 E500 4-matic... Explained that I found a staggered setup where the F and R tires are the same Overall Diameter as stock 245's, and that the only difference would be the width of the tires. He said he didn't see an issue with it and it won't void my warrantee. He did suggest though that I talk with the Master MB Technician(s) at the shop to get their opinions on their experience with running staggered on 4 matics...
I'll do that today if I can and let you know what develops... His only negative comment was that they encourage customers not to get too radical with modifications to these cars... Stay tuned...
I'll do that today if I can and let you know what develops... His only negative comment was that they encourage customers not to get too radical with modifications to these cars... Stay tuned...
Senior Member
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 333
Likes: 1
From: Colorado
05 E500 4matic, 08 ML320CDI
Spoke to a local Master Service Tech last night at my local dealer. His opinion is that as long as the rolling diameter of the staggered tires is the same front to back, there shouldn't be any issues... If you use the tire manufacturers specs to determine Overall Diameter, you can find staggered setups that match OAD's...
Trending Topics
Thread Starter
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 1,609
Likes: 2
From: Wyckoff, New Jersey & Alphabet City NYC
86 190E 2.3-16v, 92 500E, 03 CL55 AMG, 08 E3504M Brabus
Thank you! much appreciated glad we could clarify for all who were confused! We should get all the info from all the posts and put them in a sticky
MB World Stories
The Best of Mercedes & AMG
New Electric Mercedes-AMG GT 4-Door Coupe Unveiled: 10 Things You Need to Know
Verdad Gallardo
6 Mercedes Models That Did NOT Age Well (But Are Somehow Still Cool)
Verdad Gallardo
Manual Mercedes? 6 Times Sindelfingen Let Drivers Have All The Fun
Verdad Gallardo
Mercedes SLR McLaren 722 S Is Extremely Rare Example Modified by McLaren
Verdad Gallardo
8 Classic Boxy Mercedes Designs That Have Aged Like Fine Wine
Verdad Gallardo
Flawlessly Restored Mercedes 190E Evo II Heads to Auction
Verdad Gallardo
Electric Mercedes C-Class Unveiled: 11 Things You Need to Know
Verdad Gallardo
Mercedes EQS Gets A Major Update: Everything You Need to Know
Verdad Gallardo
5 Underrated Mercedes-Benz Models That Don't Get the Love They Deserve
Verdad Gallardo
Senior Member
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 333
Likes: 1
From: Colorado
05 E500 4matic, 08 ML320CDI
I suppose the real test will be when I install and drive the staggered setup... I'm still trying to decide on wheels but when I do and install them, I'll post the results whatever they may be... Looking at WORK wheels right now and they claim 2 months lead time to build them... 
Super Member
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 948
Likes: 110
From: NYC
18 E63s Wagon 15 GL63 (sold), 10 Turbo TT MT, A36 Bonanza, 20 JLU Rubicon
I have a staggered setup on my car..... no issues for 25K miles.. talk to Luke at Tire Rack.. he set me up with PS2s that have about the same diameter when running around 30 F /36 R
my wheels are off of a CLS55 .. they are 8.5 wide front and 9.5 rear.. the offset is 5mm off .. but in my opinion.. they look better.
my wheels are off of a CLS55 .. they are 8.5 wide front and 9.5 rear.. the offset is 5mm off .. but in my opinion.. they look better.
Senior Member
Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 333
Likes: 1
From: Colorado
05 E500 4matic, 08 ML320CDI
I went with 235/35-19 Front and 275/30-19 rear Potenza RE960AS on 19x8.5's and 19x9.5's ET 35 and mounted them last night... This morning the drive into work ( 50 miles) was in freezing rain/sleet and snow... No problems at the moment. ESP worked fine, as did ABS which both kicked in at several slippery intersections... No pics yet but will try once the weather clears...
Super Member
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 948
Likes: 110
From: NYC
18 E63s Wagon 15 GL63 (sold), 10 Turbo TT MT, A36 Bonanza, 20 JLU Rubicon
be careful out there... my PS2s are worthless in the snow.. and I mean worthless! I got caught in an early snow here in NYC last year... all four wheels were spinning! will be switching back to my winter setup with dedicated snows within a couple of weeks..
your Potenzas are fine for "light snow".. but becareful beyond..
your Potenzas are fine for "light snow".. but becareful beyond..
