The irony lol

^^ hahaha!

OP, if you can afford it. 18's winter, 19's summer. everything is subjective to ones taste and preference. but imo, the difference between 18 and 19 is not east and west. its not like the OP is asking between 18 and 22.

Actually it was like east and west on my E550 4matic. The car felt sluggish and slower. Especially at highway-speeds and beyond. That was the reason, why I even thought about doing the "test" shown in the video.

I just watched your video and im not sure if i can agree with the results you got. 0.8s slower is east and west difference to you? Maybe when youre drag racing. Do you accelerate that fast to 200km/hr everytime you come out of your garage to go to work? Nope.

You should have done a real road situation imo. As i dont disagree with you that they both have pros and cons and 18 may be the best size for OPs car, for me, 19s will look better or even 20s. I dont mind that it makes the car slower. I dont do street racing anyway. Still enough power on my sedan if i need it even with the 20s.

About the ride, yep it harsher. Do i mind it? Nope. Looks way better than the 212 next to me on the light with stock 18s.

Yes, I do. Besides: I did this test, as the car really felt slower. The shifts were not as refined.

Yes, the car was harsher. I did not care that much about that. What I did care about: The suspension response on small bumps during cornering was just ridiculous. The car -especially the rear axle- is a lot more unstable during spirited driving.

It's hilarious how you confirmed that you do come out the garage daily going 200km an hour LMAO. I consider myself a fast driver and I've never gone that fast yet. Usually take it down a notch after I hit 100-110mph.
Them boys be on the prowl if you know what I mean.

100mph is Grandfathers Cruising Speed on the autobahn. Those cars are limited at 159mph. So of course, I (and many others) use that potential!

Trust me if I could I would also. Over here we have a limiter keeping us to 131 I believe or in that area. I will eventually get it there but it has to be a perfect storm to pull it off comfortably.

like some people would say...its your funeral.

To me, all of this talk just confirms what I have felt all along. I drive a 2015 S550 sedan. 18" wheels, comfy tires, no sports package, etc. The car is so tremendously capable. It is so fast and so quick, to the point where nobody could ever LEGALLY use it anywhere near its limits in the U.S. other than on a race track and we all know the odds of that happening with a two ton luxo sedan. So, the AMG cars and all the aftermarket "tuner" cars, with all of their ridiculous horsepower enhancements, are nothing more than the price of admission to the "mine is bigger than yours" game. Unfortunately, this is a game participated in by way too many crazies in this country, one or another of which we unwrap from the telephone pole they wround themselves around, every so often. Oh well, to each his own, I just hope nobody I care about is in their path when the next one loses control of their overpowered abortion and finds an obstacle with their name on it.

You had me up until this point and then you just went off the deep end with a bunch of crazy talk about "mine is bigger than yours", telephone poles and abortion.

Streamliner you seem REALLY uptight, more so than usual, hope it works out for you

I know. Sorry.

I'm in Florence, Italy as I write this, wrapping up a 12 night stay, and I CAN'T WAIT to get home. This trip was my Christmas present to my wife and I believe that even she is a bit disillusioned now that we are here. Without going into all the details, suffice to say that four nights in Rome sort of set the tone for this mega buck disappointment. EVERYONE here smokes. EVERY shopkeeper stands on the 12" wide sidewalk in front of their place, chain smoking. The traffic is Manhattan on steroids and there are at least as many motorcycles & scooters as cars, all driving like Mad Max. Add to this thousands of gigantic tour busses, all spewing diesel exhaust on streets barely wide enough to accommodate them, and walking down the street becomes an assault on one's lungs, eyes and ears.

The most interesting thing is that you can rent a new Ferrari 458, Porsche Turbo, Rolls Convertible & other cars, right from our hotel. The cars are actually parked right here! That said, you couldn't get me behind the wheel in a big Italian city if the rental was free.

Anyway, I'll try to lighten up a bit. Wheels up Saturday morning. I can't wait to get home. Did I already say that?

^^^ Sorry to hear you're not having a good time in Italy. You should have gone to Venice, no cars or trucks allowed, so the only assault on your nose is from the canals . Last time my wife and I were there we got picked up at the Rome airport in a nice W221 S class and dropped off at the hotel, other than that I walked and took the train cause I knew I didn't want to drive there. I do remember my dad driving there when I was a kid in the 80's and it was horrid even then.

If you need serious snow traction but want winter performance, get the Alpin PA4 and put them on your stock 18" rims. You will have great winter traction (on dry and wet pavement as well). In general, I don't think the aesthetics changed much between the two rim sizes.

In the summer, go to 19" rims and put 255/35/19 Pilot Super Sport Summer Tires. They completely change the cornering characteristics of the car. How do I know? Because I did it. The ride is in general the same. Some bumps feel like they hit harder, but it is because you are going faster

If you do decide to just have one set of rims, go with the Continental DWS. I went from DWS to AS3s before I changed seperate winter/summer rims. The AS3s just didn't have the winter traction of the Continentals.

There is a lot of here-say in this thread. I am the only person you should listen to

Streamliner, If you need a recommendation on a place to eat in Florence try Restaurante Oliviero

Via delle Terme, 51/R, 50123 Firenze, Italy
ristorante-oliviero.it.


In Rome, I recommend the bucatini all' amatriciana at

Trattoria Tritone
Via dei Maroniti, 1, 00187 Roma, Italy

Ahh, that explains it
I like other culture.....but am not a huge fan of traveling long distances....
it's always awesome to 'come home' too

Do not go 19 unless you get good wheel insurance and want to give up on the ride.
My 2011 E 350 Wagon came with 18". I used 17" for winters.
The ride was great on the 17", the handling was essentially the same and I never bent a wheel. The 18" got some road rash and the guy who fixes it tells me he gets 19" off MB cars in every week bent.

Updated! ....went with the 18 ins

The test was a result related to the weight difference. Get a 19'' rim that's lighter & stronger than the factory 18'' rim. I did notice about a 10% drop in ride quality and a 10% increase in road noise. Nothing shocking or major.

I guess I'm keeping my 18s now. I think I'm just gonna get some good performance all season tires and call it a day!

Good move, I pissed thru aftermarket 19" s on my last E....bent 6 of 8 in less than 2 years and I did not run them in the winter...that would have been a perfect 8/8 for sure

You drive very aggressively ??

My 20" hasn't got a single bent on any of them in 6 months.
We'll see in 2 years...

Pot holes, crappy roads, no likely poor quality wheels