novae500

Just curious as into why so many members are selling their 20" wheels? Are there issues with ride comfort, camber/toe eating the tires too much?

timannnn

probably just moving on to different cars/models.

220S

20" are for bling and bling only. No performance reason.

TPAbnz

"urban" bling.

fortlaudsummer

Anything over 18" starts negatively affecting handling. 20" is just for looks, but not practical IMO

hdtv22

I'd say anything over 19". I have 19" on my SL55 and it is fine, but 20" is just ridiculous. Keep it in the teens.

jangy

+80000000000

The Godfather

20's are nice for looks. No doubt about it. I had 20's on my Lexus, Audi and W211 55. Would I do it again? Probably if the car was a weekender. For daily driving, I stress out too much about potholes. I had 285/25/30. I've hit not gnarly potholes a few times on 20's. I can't remember how many times I pulled over to look at my wheels b/c I thought they were destroyed. If the roads were perfect like in Europe, I'd be on dubs, but the fact is, we have crappy roads here in the US, so 19's it is.

Scraz51

Try living in Sydney, Aus. The roads here are basically the same as they were when Britain first colonized Australia, the only 20s you see are the occasional H3 Hummer.

I thought the US had awesome roads, everytime I watch TV I notice how dominant and wide and smooth your roads are.

rsmith7

One of the first things to go is money towards roads. With the recession and lower state tax revenues, the roads in California have declined into a state of disrepair.

Dema

Jaguar XF nas 20" as no price option and 19" as standard. I do not know if W212 will get 19" as an option.

The Godfather

What people have to understand is while 20's on my W211 required 285/25/20 tires, 20's on an XF for example, and I don't know what the true size is, would be more like 275/40/20 or whatever. So bigger tires 20's or not, is less prone to having wheels bend.

bigben320e

That is the question I have. I have been on the fence with 20's due to issues I keep hearing about on quality, 3pc vs 1 pc, and of course the tire size.

On the quallity, I pretty much am looking at Vossen's now. I am going with the 1 pc. I can't justify the cost increase for the 3 pc. Yeah I know the debate on it, but after talking with many wheel shops, etc. I think I am cool with the 1pc. Any more input on this, cool.

I was interested in the AMG 2 pc, but now I see several people posting that they have developed hairline cracks in them.

Now, on the last issue. Tire aspect size, now I want to run at least 30, on the rear not 25's on my CLS. 25's are just too damn low for me. From what I am hearing 30's would fit just fine on the CLS for the rear. I would imagine I could run 30 or 35 on the front. If you know more info on this, let me know. I am looking to pull the trigger in about 1-2 weeks from now.

Now that I see this debate on 20's being only bling, etc, some 20's, are rather nice looking and not "blingy". My R has 20's on her and handles great. Most of friends that have 20's say the car actually handles better with 20's. One I really talked with has a CLS55 with Asanti 20's on it, and he was fine with it. Except for those damn 25 aspect on the rear. LOL.

Neoii

What is the OEM size for your CLS? Most of the guys running 35/30 staggered combos are running the diameter about 1" taller than OEM. Aspect ratio is only that: a ratio. With different widths, sidewalls can be the same height with the different ratios.

I run 20s on mine and have been pleasantly surprised with the ride on the airmatic. I had 20s on my Lexus with "comfort" coilovers and the ride quality did degrade.

bigben320e

18's, staggered.

Front: 8.5 255/40
Rear: 9.5 285/35

Neoii

The diameter on these is about 26" with a 4" sidewall. Once you go to 20s and you want to keep the OEM diameter (26"), you will lose 1" of sidewall height. In order to do that, you can run 255/30s (not really recommended) or 305/25. Can the CLS handle a wider tire? I am not familiar with the CLS body and wheelwell tolerances. Maybe one of the other guys or the members of the CLS forum can be of help.

If you go with the same width in the rear (285) you will be too small with 25 series (.4") or too big with 30 series (.7"). In this case, I'd err on the bigger as long as there is nothing rubbing. With 20s and bigger wheel diameters, though, you definitely would want to look into a drop.

BTW, the above talks about the rear. The front would have similar issues but with a few different numbers.

bigben320e

See, that's the point. Of confusion rather.

I talked with Vossen, and they said I could run 25's, 30's he would have to check.

Butler Tire and Discount Tire said I could run 30's no problem on the rear.


On the width I have heard of some running 305's if I recall correctly. I think I will give my SA a shout on this as well. I should have asked him before, now that I think about it.

They have several models with Vossen rims on display at RBM and they are 20's.

Al benzo

Sorry to bud in but i made a thread about some lug nuts but no answer ... Any one have a extra set laying around that can be sold .... I need to find the right fit lugs and chrome

559EVO

With 20's it will no longer ride like a mercedes, when someone gets in my car I want them to be impressed by the smooth ride that airmatic set on comfort can provide. No harsh bumps and having to slow down for cracks or to drive up a gas station driveway. I have always liked fast car, I like to drive aggresive sometimes and with 20 inch rims I have to drive in a delicate manner.

bigben320e

What aspect of the tires are you rolling on?

Some that have 20's still have a nice, smooth ride.

559EVO

245/30/20 and 275/30/20 on the rear. Its smooth when the roads are smooth.

Havoc

I'm not getting rid of my 20's because I love the way they look on my SL, but I am getting 18's or 19's for my 1/4 mile track setup.

I'm looking at HRE’s Competition Series C95
I was interested in HRE's CF series but they're just a couple pounds lighter for double the price.
4" for the front and 10" for the rear

whytry

I am going to be looking for wheels for a 07 E350 sport shortly, I was wondering why I have seen many with 20's and 19's, I was leaning towards 19's for a little more sidewall. I have had 19's and 20's on my GS400, and the 20's were a little rougher ride but looked better on that car. I think I'm gonna go with 19's for my E....

Max.H

Yupp! I'm on 20s, no complaints here, only compliments.

MADCAT

Agreed. I see too many idiots with ghetto chrome 20's. Won't help the car at all.