Streamliner

When I ORDERED my 2015 S550, I TOLD the dealer that I wanted the run flats swapped out for conventional tires PRIOR to delivery. He agreed. When the car arrived, he emailed me and said that the Bridgestone Serenity Plus tires I had specified would take a few days to get, but if I wanted to, I could pick up the car, drive it no more than 500 miles and then return it for a "while I wait" tire swap. This was the best of both worlds, as I was able to do an almost "side by side" comparison, over the exact same streets, roads and freeways. The difference in ride quality (I have the 18" wheels) was very noticeable, but the noise difference at highway speeds was DAY and NIGHT! The run flats SCREAMED on the freeway, compared to the Serenity Plus tires, which are virtually silent.

Since MB will not even admit that a W222 compact spare exists, after checking with the dealer service department, I bought an unused W221 compact spare, which sits on TOP of my trunk floor and I purchased a W222 jack & tool kit. Both were bought on eBay.

When I drive out of town, or anywhere for that matter, I have the peace of mind knowing that like most every other car on the planet, my $115,000.00 S550 now has a jack & a spare in the trunk.

Mercedes-Benz should be ashamed of themselves for opting to jump on the RFT/no spare bandwagon, in their biggest, most expensive, flagship sedans, without at least giving their customers the frigging OPTION of conventional tires and a compact spare sitting UNDER the trunk floor, where it belongs.

Interestingly enough, BMW, the folks who pretty much started this nonsense, have bitten the bullet and are offering a compact spare as an option on their brand new 2016 Seven Series sedan. Hey! MB, are you LISTENING?