I've gone through 3 sets of tires on my 2012 E550 4M. They have all been SUPER NOISY. The worst being some All-weather tires by Toyo, and now these all-seasons by GeneralTire.
I am fed up with the low profile tires and limited selection for the weight of the car. Also the oem amg rims have a fair amount of curb rash while the rest of the car is immaculate
So I am considering new rims and tires to try and increase the profile and cushioning of the tires.
I'd like to just move to 17 inch with some kind of OEM or OEM-look rim set. But I am concerned about the brake clearance on this particular car - the W212 E550 4M sedan. All the threads seem to be about going for even lower profile tire-rim combos but I want to put the luxury ride back into this car I've owned since new!. All the rims and tire MFRs try to advise sticking with the OEM diameter rims and offer no info on changing rim diameter.
So will 17 inchers or oem 18 inchers from a E350 fit this E550 sedan? Which rims would you recommend?
Changing wheel size shouldn't effect tire noise. Try some Michelins? They tend to be pretty quiet. You should be able to fit 18s from an E350 on a E550. 17s I'm not sure.
Changing wheel size shouldn't effect tire noise. Try some Michelins? They tend to be pretty quiet. You should be able to fit 18s from an E350 on a E550. 17s I'm not sure.
+1
Wheel diameter won’t affect noise... Generals are okay when new, but I find they get noisy when less than 1/2 worn. Experience based on older MBs. I think it’s a common theme among cheaper import tires.
Whereas on our E350 with 17” Michelins and E550 with 18” Continentals are quiet, no complaints.
17's should fit it just fine, unless it has the + sized AMG brakes like used on the E63s ... if you're running 245/40r18 then 245/45r17 XL should be a direct fit.
and yeah, lotsa tires are just fine when new, but start to suck when they aren't even 50% worn, while every set of Michelins I've had have been smooth riding until they are nearly bald. Bridgestone's, too, at least the sporty versions. I tend to avoid the 60000+ mile tires, as they tend to have really hard rubber compounds to last that long, so I look for 'all season grand touring' or 'all season performance' tires.
17's should fit it just fine, unless it has the + sized AMG brakes like used on the E63s
Our E550s have big calipers up front. I'm not sure if they're the same as the E63, but II don't think 17" rims will fit. (I need to pull out the spare and see what size wheel that is)
Our E550s have big calipers up front. I'm not sure if they're the same as the E63, but II don't think 17" rims will fit. (I need to pull out the spare and see what size wheel that is)
I have the 2010 E550 with the big brakes before MB started shipping cars with smaller brakes here in US. I have American Racing 17” rims on the car right now. I have Michelin MXM4 tires on them that are pure garbage. No wet grip and plenty of noise.
I recently purchased Nitto NT 555 G2 tires for my S550 and while this tire looks very noisy it is quiet. And wet grip beats Michelins hands down.
My car came with 245 / 45 /17 Continental tires .They were noisy .After switching to Michelin Primacy tires not only the car drove nicer but also became quieter .I kept the wheel size as 17s
Remember in wet it is 50% the tire and 50% road composition.
Down here they used to make roads from ground up sea shells and they were slick no matter what.
Now we have concrete with run off grooves are great in the wet.
As for quiet tires the roads you drive on have impact as well... so talk to local friends and tire guy...
But, some tires are cheap and not too noisy. I've run the Continental ContiSportContacts and the Kumho Ecsta PS91's on my E550 and they were both really good in the wet and fairly noise free. The Kumho's are actually quieter, just FYI
I tried Kumhos once, on my Volvo 740 Turbo wagon, 205/55R16... They were ok when new, but 10,000 miles later, they were noisy, harsh riding, and sliding all over in the wet and I couldn't wait to get rid of them.. Went back to Michelin Primacy, could get 60k miles on those, great rain traction, quiet, smooth riding.
I tried Kumhos once, on my Volvo 740 Turbo wagon, 205/55R16... They were ok when new, but 10,000 miles later, they were noisy, harsh riding, and sliding all over in the wet and I couldn't wait to get rid of them.. Went back to Michelin Primacy, could get 60k miles on those, great rain traction, quiet, smooth riding.
Same experience with mine back on my RWD bluetec. Downright dangerous as all seasons. I use continental DWSs on all my cars now and am quite happy.
My car came with 245 / 45 /17 Continental tires .They were noisy .After switching to Michelin Primacy tires not only the car drove nicer but also became quieter .I kept the wheel size as 17s
Are you sure it's a wheel noise?
Not differential noise or maybe a bad wheel bearing?
Since you owned the car did you changed the differential oil? + transfer case because you own a 4m
Check them out
Regards
I'm now nearing replacement time on the second set of Conti's on my 2015 E400 4M, 245-40X18's. The first tires were the original OEM Conti's, and the next ones were the DWS-06's. Both sets of tires were nice when new, but by 10,000 miles, they sounded like there was an off-roader riding next to me. Noisy, noisy, noisy! To top it off, the original tires lasted 28K miles, while the dealer tells me that at 16K on the DWS-06's, it will soon be tire time. I think that's going to be it for Conti's.
My previous car was a Lexus LS430. I ran Dunlop SP5000's on it with good results, but that tire is not available for the W212 platform. I'm going to try the Michelin Pilot AS series next, hoping it not only works well but maybe even stays quieter for more miles.
I've gone through 3 sets of tires on my 2012 E550 4M. They have all been SUPER NOISY. The worst being some All-weather tires by Toyo, and now these all-seasons by GeneralTire.
I am fed up with the low profile tires and limited selection for the weight of the car. Also the oem amg rims have a fair amount of curb rash while the rest of the car is immaculate
So I am considering new rims and tires to try and increase the profile and cushioning of the tires.
I'd like to just move to 17 inch with some kind of OEM or OEM-look rim set. But I am concerned about the brake clearance on this particular car - the W212 E550 4M sedan. All the threads seem to be about going for even lower profile tire-rim combos but I want to put the luxury ride back into this car I've owned since new!. All the rims and tire MFRs try to advise sticking with the OEM diameter rims and offer no info on changing rim diameter.
So will 17 inchers or oem 18 inchers from a E350 fit this E550 sedan? Which rims would you recommend?
that came off of 2014 E350 would like to sell. tires are at 5's and 6's but they are bridgestone potenza - good until you find a deal on tires.
Will be shipped from chatlotte, or can be picked up local.
I agree that wheel size shouldn't affect tire noise; however, my recent experience suggests that it does. In 2017, I bought an E350 with 18" wheels and recently gave it to my daughter and bought another E350 (same model year) with 17" wheels. The 18" wheels had Michelin Pilot AS 245/40/18 tires and I replaced all 4 tires on it with no noticeable change in road noise. The car with 17" wheels came with cheaper Fuzion 245/45/17 tires, but they are significantly quieter and smoother; same roads, same driving conditions, etc. While possible different suspensions might explain the change in smoothness of the ride, it would not explain the noise difference. Everything else being equal, I almost have to conclude that it's the difference in tire profile. When the Fuzion tires wear out or if they start making noise, I plan to replace them with Michelins or Pirellis. I've had good experience with both on other cars.
I agree that wheel size shouldn't affect tire noise; however, my recent experience suggests that it does. In 2017, I bought an E350 with 18" wheels and recently gave it to my daughter and bought another E350 (same model year) with 17" wheels. The 18" wheels had Michelin Pilot AS 245/40/18 tires and I replaced all 4 tires on it with no noticeable change in road noise. The car with 17" wheels came with cheaper Fuzion 245/45/17 tires, but they are significantly quieter and smoother; same roads, same driving conditions, etc. While possible different suspensions might explain the change in smoothness of the ride, it would not explain the noise difference. Everything else being equal, I almost have to conclude that it's the difference in tire profile. When the Fuzion tires wear out or if they start making noise, I plan to replace them with Michelins or Pirellis. I've had good experience with both on other cars.
I think the noise difference comes from the difference in the tires, not the rim size. To compare you should have the exact same make and model tires on both cars to know.
I did this with my 2010 E550 years ago. I had Nokian zLine tires on the original staggered 265/35-R18 in rear and 245/40-R18 in front setup. Changed to the same tires in size 245/45 R17 all around and there was no noticeable difference in anything but the looks, of course.
Going to 17” did not give softer ride, did not give less road noise and I did not notice any difference in handling either.
The only positive it probably gives is the rim protection that the 1/2” more tire wall gives when hitting pot holes etc. on road.
I agree that wheel size shouldn't affect tire noise; however, my recent experience suggests that it does. In 2017, I bought an E350 with 18" wheels and recently gave it to my daughter and bought another E350 (same model year) with 17" wheels. The 18" wheels had Michelin Pilot AS 245/40/18 tires and I replaced all 4 tires on it with no noticeable change in road noise. The car with 17" wheels came with cheaper Fuzion 245/45/17 tires, but they are significantly quieter and smoother; same roads, same driving conditions, etc. While possible different suspensions might explain the change in smoothness of the ride, it would not explain the noise difference. Everything else being equal, I almost have to conclude that it's the difference in tire profile. When the Fuzion tires wear out or if they start making noise, I plan to replace them with Michelins or Pirellis. I've had good experience with both on other cars.
The lower the profile, higher the pressure for the same axle load, noisier the tire.
because they do. on my volvo 740 wagon, I went from 15" /65 series to 16" /55 and they needed almsot 10 PSI more pressure for the same car.
the 245/45R17 on my 'luxury' E350 4m wagon are 35 psi front, 41 psi rear for normal loads, 35/48 for max load. pretty sure the 245/40r18 on a 'sport' wagon are about 5 PSI higher front and rear.
ok, one online tire pressure calculator calculator suggests 38 front for the 18", and.... whoa, says the XL(97) 245/40r18 is over capacity for the rear?!?
lets do this again. my sticker says GAWR Front is 2502 lbs, GAWR Rear is 3219 lbs, for a GVWR of 5721 lbs (geez, this is a heavy car!)
a Michelin Pilot Sport AS 4 in 245/40r18 XL has a load factor of 97, which is a max load of 1609 lbs at 50 PSI, so thats a GAWR of 3218. so yeah, 50 PSI rear.
ok, the ContiProContact MO (Mercedes) 245/40r18 XL(97), same max load, 51 PSI
the same tire model in 245/45r17 XL MO has a max load of 1709 lbs at the same 51 PSI, so 100 lbs more per tire at the same pressure. so yeah, less pressure for the same weight.
anyone who has a 'sport' facelift wagon, could you see what your tire pressure and weight spec plates say?
here's my 'luxury'...
Slideshow: A one-of-one U.S.-spec Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Roadster became even rarer after a factory-backed transformation at McLaren's headquarters.
