best improvement to ride and handling was to put 40 psi in all 4 corners for mine.. thats with the 20" 245/35 and 275/30 profile goodyear eagle rft's

 

If anyone tries 28psi and sees an improvement - please let us know ! =)

 

Concur. That's what I run now with my Michelin Premier A/S non-RFs and what I ran with my Pirelli P7 OEM RFs. They lasted only 11,600 miles before the outer edges of the rears wore down below the point where they would pass Massachusetts inspection.

 

11600 is really low miles! especially in the rears? sounds defective..

 

Maybe alignment issues, I could see 11k miles on a AMG but these cars?

 

Agree. I have seen opinion in other threads about tires that the MB factory alignment settings are optimized in favor of stability and handling, at the expense of tire wear. When I replaced the OEM RF tires, I specifically told my independent shop (European Auto Solutions in Waltham, Mass.) to prioritize tire wear.

 

Good move. I already did that on my wagon at 10k miles as I do a lot of miles in that car. On my Cabriolet I’m leaving it alone as I enjoy the curves roads on that car and only drive it 4K miles per year. I was just in Waltham last weekend. Went to the tennis tournament in Concord. I grew up in Weston next door. Was good to be back in that area. As far as run flats I’m getting rid of mine for regular tires when the ones I have wear out. The tend to vibrate a little when they warm up a little bit driving on the highway. I’ve played around with these run flat tires enough for one lifetime. The whole idea of the runflat concept is a mistake. Surprised mb went along with it. My next tires will be pirelli P7 non run flat tires have them on my oickuo truck and they are fine.

 

This is what I found for my Michelin A/S tires; the sealant is now available in the US. Here's the press release:

"Group Michelin has launched in Europe an aftermarket emergency tire repair product — Michelin Tire Sealant — that the company said can be removed from the tire with warm water after it's used.

Making the sealant removable “makes it more likely that the puncture can be permanently repaired,” Michelin said.

“Motorists simply apply the sealant through the valve, confident that the tire will inflate to a safe level, even if the puncture has been driven on for a considerable distance,” said Simon Bates, marketing and communications manager for Michelin Lifestyle Europe, a Group Michelin business unit.

The sealant, Michelin said, “enables the motorist to repair the puncture effectively and allows them to be on their way quicker and more safely than changing the wheel in a hazardous location such as on a motorway.”

Motorists are able to drive up to 50 mph after using the sealant, Michelin said, but should have the tire checked over by a professional as soon as possible.





Group Michelin


Michelin said its “user-friendly” sealant, which comes in a 500 milliliter can, is suitable for car tire sizes up to 245/55 R17. Michelin did not disclose what materials make up the sealant.

Michelin said it had conducted internal tests on the product that involved a nail (4 mm diameter, 2 inches long) puncturing a 205/55R16 tire, which was then run for 62, 125 and 250 miles.

At each of these points the nail was removed and the tire sealant was applied. According to Michelin, the product sealed the hole effectively, allowing the tire to be reinflated and driven up to 250 miles, or double the distance of leading competitor products.

Michelin said the product could specifically help the growing number of motorists without spare tires or with a space-saver tire."

 

It says up to a 17 inch wheel my car has 19s. Might work though. All I know is I’m done with run flats after this. The steering wheel vibrates once my tires get warmed up on the highway. I think I replaced my rims for nothing. It’s not the rims it’s the tires. I’ll mention it at my 20k mile service but the dealer will do nothing.

 

The link in TPAbnz's post is to a 500 ml size offered on a UK website. 500 ml is 16.9 US fluid ounces. Walmart in the US offers both a 16 oz size ($9.47) and a 20 oz size ($11.54). The 20 oz size (25% more than the 16 oz size) should take care of your 19s.

Note the single comment on the Walmart website:
This product worked very well BUT IT WILL VOID YOUR ROAD HAZARD WARRANTY!!! I have Michelin tires purchased from Costco. I used this product to successfully plug a hole from a screw, so I could drive to the nearest Costco for repair. Costco informed me the use of this Michelin Tire Sealant in my Michelin tire voided my warranty per Michelin guidelines. "Exclusive Formula Michelin Approved," is a LIE!!!

 

Shipped a set of Pilot Sport AS3+ in factory 245/40/ZR19 sizes from TireRack directly to my dealer and had them take off my Contintental RFT's on my 18 E300. I have the new Michelins all at 33psi cold which is about 37 warm. Overall very pleased with the quality of the ride. I also have the Air Body Control / Airmatic option, so can't speak on the experience for non-ABC cars.

 

What about TPMS?

 

The can says it is safe for that. I don't know how any use of the product would void a warranty. So if you catch a nail in the tread, take it to an indy for repair, the sealant cleans up with warm water and the tire is plugged, who declares the warranty is void?

BTW, I asked the Costco tire manager about this and he said they are very liberal with the road hazard warranty and he could not recall denying a member coverage under the warranty (if the puncture could not be repaired) when sealant was used. YMMV.

I'll take the minimal warranty risk and have my comfortable Michelin A/S tires, Michelin sealant and Costco 12v. inflator in the trunk!

 

As I mentioned somewhere up in this thread, when I had my RFT puncture (which originally precipitated this thread), I unsuccessfully used a can of Fix-A-Flat to try to avoid driving with the tire on zero pressure, and the can said that no permanent damage is done to any component as long as it is cleaned with 72h.

I had the tire (along with the other 3 undamaged RFTs) replaced with a non-RFT 48h later at the Mercedes dealer, and they replaced the damaged tire under the Mercedes tire and rim warranty free of charge. In the work description after replacement was completed there was no mention of a new TPMS among all the items related to the tire replacement, so I think they successfully cleaned it.

 

which tires did you have and which tires did you replace it with? and how much better are they now?

 

The car originally shipped with Goodyear run-flats (can't remember the model, but they were performance summer tires).
After the puncture, and finding out about the inability to have the tire repaired or replaced outside of a Mercedes dealer or a very specialized tire repair shop, I changed the tires to non-run-flats Michelin PILOT SPORT A/S 3+ in the same OEM size: 245/40 R19 front, 275/35 R19 rear (my car is RWD), as mentioned in the OP.

As also mentioned in the OP, "my main impression of the car with these tires is that the steering is noticeably more incisive and precise. The handling in the wet also feels more sure-footed, and they have pretty decent traction in light snow. I was well-impressed with the run-flats in terms of silent driving, as the earlier versions were known to be noisy. I would say these tires are about equally silent. The non-run-flats are also more supple in handling sudden road deformations, like bumps or the occasional pothole. So, overall I am pretty happy with these tires and it's a bit of a relief that any service place can change them."

10 months, and some 12000 miles later, those impressions remain the same, and I have had zero problems with the tires and they keep the 38 psi air pressure I run them at very well.

 

Hearing all of this makes me so leery in having RFs. I just recently bought a brand new set (same as installed when car was first purchased). I'm just inhaling that I do not run into a similar issue. I'm not toss sure why MB even chose to totally negate spare tires, jack and accessories.

 

Most who drive benzs won’t change tires plus to save weight for just a tad better fuel economy. It all adds up.

 

If you liked your original tires (ride, etc.), I'm sure you will be happy with your replacement set. Just as I liked the ride on the new cars I test drove, so don't see a problem with my ordered wagon coming with run-flats.