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My current tires need replacing. 235/40/18 in the front and 255/318 in the rear on stock wheels. I am not a fan of the stock 6 spoke wheel design. Given that I need tires I was thinking about upgrading wheels at the same time.
If I go 18" wheels , I would like to go wider tires. What is the widest I can go in the front 18x8? 255/40/18? what about the rear wheels?
Research indicates the a serious decline in ride quality by going up to 19s especially upfront as 40 tall wont fit. Most likely will need to go 235/35/19 or something. Can anyone chime in on how much worse the ride quality really is. My car for reference:
Great forum with tools. Give it a try: https://mbworld.org/forums/tire_rim_calculator.php
"...Serious decline in ride quality..." is very subjective. You haven't stated YOUR objective in ride quality.
California is kind of a big place: are you a few miles from Tijuana and you cross the border weekly, downtown in one of the cities or up near the Grapevine with all kinds of weather? What kind of vehicle: Yeah, its an E coupe cabriolet, but since most of us dont own your car, we dont know offhand is it a 350/550, rwd/4matic (I think they only came rwd but this feature is significant variable in the answer you seek.)? Also, DD with a family of four , or just you and your cat once a month on sunny sundays?
So, now that those Qs are out of the way..... I have 19s staggered aftermarket. When I drove rural, no problem. Driving on beaten downtown urban streets twice a month, I have had two rim repairs. I want tight handling, not a soft ride. My setup delivers, but there is a tradeoff occasionally. From what I previously read elsewhere in the forum, my wheel arch volume is NOT identical to yours even though our vehicles are close cousins. This is why I suggest that you list your model specifics so that an owner of your identical model can provide better input. The owners manual, TR and the MB Forum Tool linked above will help narrow the choices you have with the objective you seek. GL
My current tires need replacing. 235/40/18 in the front and 255/318 in the rear on stock wheels. I am not a fan of the stock 6 spoke wheel design. Given that I need tires I was thinking about upgrading wheels at the same time.
If I go 18" wheels , I would like to go wider tires. What is the widest I can go in the front 18x8? 255/40/18? what about the rear wheels?
Research indicates the a serious decline in ride quality by going up to 19s especially upfront as 40 tall wont fit. Most likely will need to go 235/35/19 or something. Can anyone chime in on how much worse the ride quality really is. My car for reference:
I'm pretty sure u can get a 275/40/18 to fit I had them on my w211 I have a e550 like you'res and I'm having the same issue I wouldn't go past a 20 mine is black I saw one with the copper color 20s but it was tight This is with the wrong size tires I got it from a young guy who put215 30 18 so the tires are to small in the front to me
My apologies, I failed to mention its a 2011 E550 Cabriolet RWD. I prefer softer ride over handling its a daily driver to work but I am also interested in improving the aesthetics, hence why I wanted to go 19".
If wheels will be more easily damaged at 19" vs. 18" then I'd rather just go with a different design18" wheels and more wider tires.
the lower the sidewall profile, the harsher the ride. My preference is 17" with 245/45R17 tires, but then I have an E350 wagon.
I recently bought a late model Ford Expedition 4x4 that came with 22" wheels and /45 tires, I replaced them with 18" wheels and /65 tires, MUCH better ride on rough roads. Sadly, we can't put /65's on these Mercedes.
(last leg of a 9900 mile Mexican RV trip, the morning before crossing the border to get home)
My apologies, I failed to mention its a 2011 E550 Cabriolet RWD. I prefer softer ride over handling its a daily driver to work but I am also interested in improving the aesthetics, hence why I wanted to go 19".
If wheels will be more easily damaged at 19" vs. 18" then I'd rather just go with a different design 18" wheels and more wider tires.
Bery nice ride..... You probably know that a softer ride will need taller tire HEIGHT which protect the rims more. 18s will allow taller ride height than 19s (but I think you know that already). With RWD, you can go with a staggered setup which would allow more width in the rear, but not required. The tire/rim calculator is your friend. I have read in the forum that MB members with our model (cousins) prefer the MB OEM wheels for durability. There is a preference to which country the (same) rims are mfr'd, but I dont recall. Also, the composition of the rims is important. Previously, I used an official MB dealer/parts website (with VIN) to determine which E-Class rims (standard and optional) MB 'allows' me to purchase for my ride.
In the back of the handbook that comes with the car
it will list the options for your car
Wheel sizes, tyre sizes, and offsets
There were 18's on mine non-standard when I bought it and I swapped them back to 19's standard
They guy whom I bought the 19's from said he put 18's on his thinking he would get a better ride and he said he didn't
I didn't find any difference between the 18's originally on mine and the 19's I put back on
I'm keeping the 19's on mine because they are low profile and wider and they hang on
The back ones are 9.5 inch rims with 275/30 Pirellis
The calculator on the site is a good tool but it wont tell me how wide I can go upfront before possibly having clearance issues with the coil spring base plate. I think its safe to say 255/35/19 would clear on a 19x8 with a stock-ish offset?
I am leaning towards getting 19" wheels - If I am spending the money on new wheels it may as well be something more aesthetically pleasing. Although the ride quality will suffer - to what extent 235/40/18 vs. 255/35/19 will ride is to be tested.
For rears, I believe I can go as wide as I like. my RWD car does come with staggered wheels/tires in any event. My speedo may be slightly off depending on the setup but that isnt a big concern.
/30 or /35 tires are VERY prone to pinch flats and sidewall ruptures on potholes and such. They are also stupid expensive. They really only belong on supercars and/or race tracks.
Is there any 19" tire with 40 tall that will fit for sure? 225/40/19?
I have a 2010 E550 and with the stock 245/40 R18 there is less than 10 mm clearance between tire snd bottom of the spring base. This does not leave much room for going bigger rims. You need to go narrower tire that will hurt the looks.
Keep 18” wheels in front and 19” in rear that allows wider rubber with lower profile and still maintains some cushion between road and rim.
I bought 17” wheels for mine hoping it would soften the ride but it did not.
I think 18” looks best on this car. Mine is with 245/40 R18 front and 265/35 R18 rear.
I had 275/35 R18 in rear once and I liked it. It made 1% speedo error but that was fine. I’m going to go with this setup again next time I need new rubber.
With after market wheels make sure centering rings are used between the wheel holes and hubs unless the hole in the wheel is the same as with MB wheels.
I have a 2010 E550 and with the stock 245/40 R18 there is less than 10 mm clearance between tire snd bottom of the spring base. This does not leave much room for going bigger rims. You need to go narrower tire that will hurt the looks.
Keep 18” wheels in front and 19” in rear that allows wider rubber with lower profile and still maintains some cushion between road and rim.
I bought 17” wheels for mine hoping it would soften the ride but it did not.
I think 18” looks best on this car. Mine is with 245/40 R18 front and 265/35 R18 rear.
I had 275/35 R18 in rear once and I liked it. It made 1% speedo error but that was fine. I’m going to go with this setup again next time I need new rubber.
With after market wheels make sure centering rings are used between the wheel holes and hubs unless the hole in the wheel is the same as with MB wheels.
Exactly, I have same wheels as yours , I also tried 245 /45 / 17 tires , same brand Michelin but I didn't feel any difference in driving comfort .
Appearance wise , E63's multi spoke 19" wheels are my fave but I love 18" 5 spoke wheels
This trend toward larger and larger rims with rubber band widths for sidewall is silly to me. Forgive me, those of you who love it; feel free to ignore me and enjoy your choice! Everyone knows the numerous compromises one must accept when going with these ridiculous aspect ratios, and all for the "look" ...the look which I, again, feel is cartoonish.
OP, stick with the stock 18s. Heck, I'd recommend finding a good 17, but the tire choices are much fewer which is unfortunate as this would be my preference. Fwiw, on the stock 18s I use 255/40s instead of the 245: marginally more sidewall, bit more tread width, and yes, looks great ...all without the compromise of going to 19s (or 20s, gasp!!)
Low profile tyres are all about handling
If you want handling performance you run them
My car was manufactured with 19's all round and 9.5 inch rims on the rear and low profile tyres
It was also supplied with factory option of lowered suspension one inch
It sits squat and it handles superb. The thing sticks to the road through the bends
To fit 19's you need to make sure the wheel arches can accommodate that size tyre
Mine says option 776 wheel arch enlargement (VIN code specs for my vehicle)
I have a E350 4matic wagon with 17's and the comfort suspension running Pilot Sport AS tires, and I can honestly say I don't think I've ever lacked traction. But, I don't drive on public roads like I'm on a race track.
06-26-2024, 12:15 AM
