Sandman3769

I am ready for new tires on my 2017 G550, and I was hoping to put some aggressive looking tires on the car. I will mostly be driving on paved roads, with occasional beach driving. Nitto Ridge Grapplers were my first choice because they are supposed to be relatively quiet on paved roads. The only problem is that they don't make them for 19 inch wheels, and I like my OEM 19 inch wheels. I don't like the look of really big wheels on G Wagons, but I might be willing to go up to 20s. The other option is to go down to 18s.

Is there another aggressive looking tire that comes in 19 inches, that is relatively quiet on pavement?

If not, what are your suggestion for alternative wheels?

This is my current setup, and I like the look, except for the tires.

shiann

With the 19's, you basically have no good options for an aggressive looking all terrain tire. You have to go up to 20" or down to 18".

Nitto Ridge Grapplers, Toyo Open Country, General Grabber, and BFG KO2's are all aggressive but pretty quiet for street driving.

I have the KO2's in 285/60R18 and the exhaust and wind noise is louder when cruising on the highway. The 285/60R18 is roughly a 32" tire. I wanted to stay with a 'smaller' size and not step up to a 33" or 34" yet due to a toddler and this being the wife's primary vehicle. Also take notice that you will also have to change out your spare with a same sized wheel, which will not fit under the tire cover.

For 18" wheels, you have the OEM choices, then there are a few aftermarket ones. I personally like the AlphaEquipt Echo that you can find on tirerack or several of the other G-Wagon specific parts vendors (JackWagon, Viking Offroad, etc). They keep the 5 spoke look that I'm a fan of, come in some good colors, and have 2 spots for tire filling. They're more 'aggressive' than the OE size wheels so the face will sick further out than your 19's currently. I calculated for my AMG 18's (and your AMG 19's should be the same), that the Echo wheels will sit ~20mm further out than the OE G55 wheels without the need for spacers.

G55 with KO2's in 285/60R18 - no lift


Spare tire cover - plastic back shell with vinyl tire surround from Boomerang - boomco. They have this version, one similar to the OE style, and just plain ones with whatever graphics you would want.
Boomco - Mercedes Tire Covers

Sandman3769

Thank you. I like these. So these should work fine on my 2017? Also, will they fit in the OEM spare-tire cover?

shiann

Should fit your 2017 but you may want to go larger with a 33" depending on the look you want. Up to you. The larger you go, you may need wheel spacers to get rid of all fender rub.

Any increase in tire size WILL NOT fit in the OEM spare tire carrier.

Sandman3769

You said the wheel sticks out further, so if I get a tire that fits the OEM cover, will the wheel cause any issues with the fit?

Let's pretend I don't know anything about wheel and tire sizes for a minute. LOL. What is the exact wheel/tire combination I will need in order to keep my OEM tire cover on the back?

Also, if I keep the spare as it is, and change the regular tires, I assume I can still drive with the old spare to the tire shop, as if it was a donut. Or no?

shiann

It all starts with which wheel you choose to go with. OEM and aftermarket options will both work, but their width will dictate the tire width starting point, and then their offset will determine how far away from the hub the outside of the tire sits.

I don't' know how wide the OE fenders on a G550 are compared to the G55, so it will be difficult to armchair direct you to what combo will work the best without more information.

All Terrain tires like the KO2, Ridge Grappler, etc all come in sizes in the 265-305mm width range and in all different aspect ratios (second number in the tire size). In order to keep the OE tire carrier, you'll need a wheel that is ~30-31". Take a look at the OE spare size and go from there. The theory is with OE tire sizes, you can get away with the OE spare, but keeping it under 45mph or so to not freak out the computers due to the different sizes in tires. If you go bigger in tire size, this difference will be even greater which can cause more problems. Damage to the differentials will of course be bad.

I just replaced the 5th spare with a same sized tire as the other 4, and I rotate it in to the mix every 5k miles when I do my tire rotations.