When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Glad to help Dingo.
What brand tire does MB HK gave u ? Mine originally was on Bridgestone RE050A, I don't like it and at 3 years old, albeit +-10,000KM, I switched to the Michelin PS4.
Set ur tire to 30/31 psi front rear for HK city driving.
When u change to 16" rim, make sure the ET ( offset ) matched original design. Your ET would be 45 to 48. Inside the wheel there would be a marking.
.
My tyres are 4 year-old Michelin PS3
Will lower the tyre pressure today and see how well it goes..
Actually I'm hoping to get a set of 2nd 16" rims which come from E200, do you think they fit my car?
So u'r saying it's not helping the riding confort just by changing the springs, even they are softer than the original ones?
It won't be significantly softer, that is what Kajtek1 is referring to.
There is a set of rules among suspension designer which they can't breach for comfort cars with a minimum target for road holding ( handling) quality.
Bottom line is, suspension designer will work on the ride frequency target and don't stray too far for the KG per mm spring rate with
handling consideration, aside from comfort too and between low load and max passenger load.
I am speaking of non intelligent air-matic suspension, our basic steel spring suspension.
The flexibility of our car payload between 1 driver only and when fully loaded is actually a design challenge to make all nice n sweet at lowest and highest load suspension.
Approx 400kg extra out of 1850kg ( ur car ) = 22%
2nd hand 16" wheel from an E200. Assumed OEM wheel from a W212 model too.
As long as you car front brake disk/rotor ( which is bigger than rear ) is the same diameter as the E200 or just a bit bigger, it will fit and will maintain the factory ET/Offset well.
By logic, a 16" wheel clean useable internal diameter is easily 14.5" or 368mm. An E250 CGI 322mm disk brake + extra 38mm caliper protrusion is = 360mm , should be okey.
W212 E250 CGI 322mm rotor https://www.bremboparts.com/asiapaci...47/000031042-1
Michelin PS3 is not a comfy tire , just like my PS4.
Tire for me is a 3 years old max regardless of mileage. In my climate they dry out fast, get to be noisy and less grip after 3 years.
When you buy new tires do watch out for the year of production.
Your mileage is low, so your tire will age sooner than being worn out. Accept only a tire <12 months old. https://www.continental-tires.com/ca...eplacing-tires
I pre-order my tire to make sure they are under 6 months old when I get them, because till ending 2020 my E400 will do only 8,000KM per year as maximum.
As of today, these Michelin PS4 only done 9,000KM in 18 months of age.
Comes ending 2020, my daugher will go to UK or US for higher education and she is the mile killer , due to her school distance.
My daughter schooling and extra tution and hang out is minimum 23,000KM per year...LOL, I was doing the numbers sometime ago.
Due to Jakarta stupid traffic scheme of ODD/EVEN registration number ( last digit only ) allowance of use at peak hours based on ODD/EVEN dates too,
so all my cars can't roam freely everyday. I then have to split use between 2 or 3 cars of mine....hence low mileage and I will need to replace these PS4 by May 2021.
I work from home and rarely go out. Crazy traffic jam drive me nuts.
S-Prihadi your information is so amazing! Big thanks! So is this shock absorber you are talking about? It is actually a comfort (485) one according to mercedes product code! So this will fit my car?
When doing replacement and assuming you have time, do 1 week a part between tire+wheel change to 16" and the shock absorbers.
This way you can tell the difference by experiencing changes for 1 week.
This is an important baseline for you as owner.
Have fun.....
Last edited by S-Prihadi; 11-23-2019 at 06:05 AM.
Reason: correction
Sweet.... would love to hear your report. 31 psi front and 32 psi rear is enough.
Thanks S-Prihadi!
The suggested tyre pressure for 16 inches tyres are 38/38, which are much higher than 31/31 for 17 inches.... So l do have a bit hesitation lowering too much tyre pressure, right now is 34/34, and honestly l dont feel much difference than 17 inches, will try to lower it a bit more and see how it goes....
Tire pressure as high as 38/38 is for high speed long distance, as in German Authobahn. Where tire side wall flexing cause heat.
The real suitable tire pressure if not based on above is : the even wear on the tire itself. ( but don't go lower than 30 psi )
You can't run fast in Hong Kong above 120 KM/H for more than a few minutes before a cop will bust you.
What tyre brand n model is on the 16" ?
Last edited by S-Prihadi; 11-28-2019 at 10:57 PM.
Reason: add info
Tire pressure as high as 38/38 is for high speed long distance, as in German Authobahn. Where tire side wall flexing cause heat.
The real suitable tire pressure if not based on above is : the even wear on the tire itself. ( but don't go lower than 30 psi )
You can't run fast in Hong Kong above 120 KM/H for more than a few minutes before a cop will bust you.
What tyre brand n model is on the 16" ?
Understood.
My tyres are Falken Azenis PT722 , does it has soft tyre wall ?
BTW you may find it interesting how l got the rims n tyres. I found a guy selling his E250 on internet, the rims are 16 inches. So l asked the guy if he wants to swap the rims and tyres with me or not, and he said yes!
And actually his tyres are much newer than mine, and l only paid US$50 for the labour cost. Lucky me!
WOW...he surely would want ur tires + wheels. Good one, the swap.
The Falken review : http://www.tyrereviews.co.uk/Tyre/Fa...enis-PT722.htm
Category is Ultra High Performance, which usually is not the most comfortable kinda tires.
Too bad the review does not include real test vs other tires, but buyers review only, which is not easy to compare as there is no reference point.
Above kind of test usually uses same car models and since its test is continous and at the same location,
tester can reference easier their overall impression on the tires A, B and so forth.
Dingo. So next stage is new Bilstein B4, all around
In Singapore, W212 E-Class are used as taxi.
Jakarta also uses W212 and also C-Class W204 . For premium market. W212 using 16" wheels for sure.
Singapore
Jakarta - yellow registration plate means public transport vehicle for Indonesia. Regular car black plate. Government car red plate.
However, in Singapore its common taxi class is using Hyundai Sonata.
The W212 is actually a nicer ride than the Sonata.
In Jakarta, semi premium taxi uses Toyota Camry 2.4. W212 ride is nicer than the Camry, which I find more harsh on rough road and overall ride I don't like the Camry.
So based on that, if you been on Sonata and Camry and find them "softer" than your W212, I guess shock absorbers change would be a good idea for ur W212
.
Thanks S-Prihadi!
Well, l did get a softer ride of my E250 now, but not as you expected, I changed the springs instead!
l put the springs for "Elegance" model into my car, that make my car half an inch higher, and l could feel obvious improvements of shock absorption.
One of the reason why l didn't change the shocks is because the garage guy told me B4 shocks' performance is similar to the original ones.....
Actually l am now very satified with the front wheels' riding quality, while the rear wheels are still a bit "hard" (purely by personal feeling) , so l'm thinking to change the rear shocks....
Thanks S-Prihadi!
Well, l did get a softer ride of my E250 now, but not as you expected, I changed the springs instead!
l put the springs for "Elegance" model into my car, that make my car half an inch higher, and l could feel obvious improvements of shock absorption.
One of the reason why l didn't change the shocks is because the garage guy told me B4 shocks' performance is similar to the original ones.....
Actually l am now very satified with the front wheels' riding quality, while the rear wheels are still a bit "hard" (purely by personal feeling) , so l'm thinking to change the rear shocks....
Sounds good, the improvement.
So this spring from ELEGANCE model is higher, so more suspension movement allowance or perhaps less KG force per millimeter of compression too.
As long as you feel the improvement, that is good news.
Allrighty... keep up the update yah.
Drive safe
Sounds good, the improvement.
So this spring from ELEGANCE model is higher, so more suspension movement allowance or perhaps less KG force per millimeter of compression too.
As long as you feel the improvement, that is good news.
Allrighty... keep up the update yah.
Drive safe
Thanks S-Prihadi!
l just hope l'm heading to the right direction of improving the riding quality....
Will let you know if l should get the rear shocks changed!
A short update after 2 months' drive with 485 comfort springs and 16" wheels.
The ride is softer and definitely more comfortable, l believe more spring movement of 485 springs really help, and l am quite sure it is softer than 677 and 486 (sport) springs in order to allow more spring movement on the same vehicle.
And after consulting with a very experienced MB technician he doesn't suggest to change the shocks absorbers, he said the shocks for Elegance (485 comfort) and Avantgarde/standard 677 are of more or less the same 'stiffness' , while the 485 shocks only have more suspension movement to match with longer springs.
Hope this help to those who also find their w212 suspension too hard or less comfortable as expected.
Thanks S-Prihadi!
Having said that, l'm still considering get all shocks changed since as you suggested some shocks like Bilstein perform better than others.....
Thanks S-Prihadi!
Having said that, l'm still considering get all shocks changed since as you suggested some shocks like Bilstein perform better others.....
Come back when you done that and drive enough to feel the difference.
I am sure you will like it
I have a 12 with the 485 suspension and 17" wheels, I also have a 13 with 677 suspension and 18" AMG wheels, the two cars are completely different rides, the 12 rides softly and the 13 is like a truck compared, I guess hard to notice unless you drive them both, but when I go from car to car on Saturdays to wash or gas them back to back, it is very noticeable.
I have a 12 with the 485 suspension and 17" wheels, I also have a 13 with 677 suspension and 18" AMG wheels, the two cars are completely different rides, the 12 rides softly and the 13 is like a truck compared, I guess hard to notice unless you drive them both, but when I go from car to car on Saturdays to wash or gas them back to back, it is very noticeable.
Also my 13 with the sport suspension sits at least 3/4 of an inch lower
11-21-2019, 09:56 PM
