evan8

Hi, could someone suggest the tires to use on 2012 GL450? I have gone through several sets of tires all about 2 years each time. The Continental 4X4 are tough riding, and Michelin Premier LTX are soft riding but both Michelin and Continentals are down to 4mm replacement mark within 2 years. I have about 12k miles each year normal mix city/highway driving. I know GL450 is a heavy car but I am wondering if someone had longer life with other tires and/or any trade off on ride quality with longevity. Thank you!

DennisG01

https://mbworld.org/forums/search.php?searchid=24007309

evan8

Thanks Dennis. Somehow that link says no content. Please advise. Thank you!

repguns

I'm running Nokian Rotiva. about 10K on them so far and great. The best part, they were $104 each!

kombifan

You didn’t say what size you have.


Im Running pirelli scorpion verde as plus on the 19 inch tires. Really happy with them. At abiut 20k miles with 5-7k miles left.

If you want you can try out 275-55-20 sizes for more options.

DennisG01

Sorry - don't know why it didn't take you to the page I found with a bunch of threads on tire options. Weird.

Click on "search", then "advanced". Type "tire" into the keyword search and select "search titles only". Then, in the "forums" search field, select X164 and X166. That will return a bunch of previous threads about this subject and give you lot's of reading material!

For what it's worth, I put on Toyo Versado CUV's and have been happy with them (I had found lot's of recommendations for them on this forum). Do the Michelin's have a warranty? As always, though, maintaining proper air pressure is important - as well as alignment angles.

JamesMitchell

I've had my '07 GL450 since new. It's now got just over 180K. Replaced the tires with Pirelli Scorpions about 6K ago. I love these tires and how it rides/handles with these tires. It came with the Pirelli Scorpions 19". Seems the best I can get is about 2.5 yrs worth before they're pretty worn. I've tried the Continentals and another set, but nothing has compared to the Pirellis when it comes to ride, quietness and handling.

kombifan

Which pirelli?

Scorpion zero?
Scopion verde as plus
Scorpion verde as
Scorpion zero all season?

Lots of pirellis, not all great though.

JamesMitchell

Pirelli Scorpion Zero. I bought them from Tire Rack multiple times and have always had success. They're pricey, but the ride is awesome. Here is a link to the exact tire at Tire Rack:
https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires...um=755VR9SCOR0

kombifan

Really? I was actually referring to the scorpions zero when I said some aren't great. I had them and they were prone to cupping.

Happy for you that you get different results though.
Im liking the scorpions verde as plus

JamesMitchell

That's interesting because TireRack actually discontinued the tire I linked above for a period of time (end of 2017), and so I got a second set of 4 tires at $109/each because they were discontinuing the tire at the time. So I bought a second set knowing I would need to replace them in 2-2.5 yrs. I'm on that second set now with 6k miles. I hadn't looked at TireRack's site till this discussion tonight and see they're at $258/each now. Perhaps Pirelli fixed any cupping issues with the Zero tire since then. IDK. But I really like these tires. I rotate them about 6K miles and keep it aligned. This is my daily driver and I really enjoy the car. I often go off of the reviews for the tires as well before making my decision. I'm always willing to pay more to get more. Glad you're finding success with your Verdes.

DrMel

I've been running Pirelli Scorpion STR 275/55R-20 since last October. Excellent ride so far! I bought them from simpletire.com but it doesn't look like they're listed anymore.

Standuhr

I'm confused. I see serious discussions of various tire brands, as though we have a choice. But when I actually enter my vehicle year and model on various tire websites I always get the same answer. I may see other suggestions but when I dig into the the details I see "this tire will not work on your vehicle."
So is it true that my 2012 GL450 should only use "Bridgestone Dueler H/L 400 275/50R20" ? Thanks!

Max Blast

Abso****inglutely not.

You can put whatever you like on your car, as long as you are prepared to accept a reduction in load or speed rating and it has a rolling circumference close to OEM.

Don’t shop by car, shop by tire size.

Standuhr

I am grateful for Max_Blast's quick reply. Maybe the discouraging tire websites I visited are cautiously respecting the official advice from M-B, which is to not use a tire that M-B has not tested. We can take that with a grain of salt because there may be many suitable tires that M-B has not tested, let alone approved of. I appreciate that we owners can make decisions regarding load and speed provided we get the dimensions right. But I suppose we are crossing our fingers regarding handling characteristics, noise, increased fuel consumption, and metal-rubber contact (all of which are warned about at the end of the owner's manual). That is where the advice of others in the forum is especially helpful. All set for now.

Edit: mbusatirecenter lists several tires for my vehicle.

eric_in_sd

I think I figured out the GL calibrates the speedometer using GPS. My road trip on my brand new snow tires? 2 mph over what my Garmin reports. My road trip on my worn trail tires? 2 mph over what the Garmin reports. The tires are visibly different diameter. It must be calibrating, somehow.

To your main point: The only way I found my Dick Cepek trail tires is by entering tire size, not vehicle. I guess I have to respect the 110 mph upper limit of the Dick Cepeks.

Load ratings are even less of a concern. I haven't looked into it, but I doubt you'll find 285/60-18 tires with a load rating under 1500 lbs. And even so it doesn't mean you can't run those tires. Just don't crazy overload them on a hot day in Arizona.