Winter tires - GL550
Newbie
Joined: Oct 2015
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2016 GL550
Timely discussion.We recently purchased a new GL550 and live in the San Francisco area. While we don't get wintery weather here we do go up to Tahoe on a frequent basis. Curious if the Continental tires do decent in the snow? Also any experience with chains on this vehicle?
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 2012
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GL550
Timely discussion.We recently purchased a new GL550 and live in the San Francisco area. While we don't get wintery weather here we do go up to Tahoe on a frequent basis. Curious if the Continental tires do decent in the snow? Also any experience with chains on this vehicle?
What did your's come with?
Member
Joined: Jun 2014
Posts: 101
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From: FL
2015 GL550 2013 ESV Platinum 2008 Hummer H2 LE UM
Continentals got very good grip on the road. More traction than the Pirellis, imo, even though Pirellis are more for sports cars.
Sadly, I wish there was some Bridgestones or Michelins that has the 295/40/R21 tires.
I heard from Michelin that they made the side walls stronger to reduce the wear.
Sadly, I wish there was some Bridgestones or Michelins that has the 295/40/R21 tires.
I heard from Michelin that they made the side walls stronger to reduce the wear.
Super Member
Joined: Mar 2015
Posts: 663
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From: Bucks Cty, PA
2015 gl450
If the GL is a long term truck and you live in a snow climate, spend the extra $ now and just get a dedicated winter set with a true snow tire.
There is no comparison between any all season and a true snow in the snow or slush. And trashing a 21" $3k OEM wheel on a pot hole isn't fun either.
There is no comparison between any all season and a true snow in the snow or slush. And trashing a 21" $3k OEM wheel on a pot hole isn't fun either.
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 2012
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GL550
I have a slightly different situation and looking for advice. GL550 with 21 Conti CrossContact UHP that say they are M+S.
I'm in CA and my snow needs are only when I'm up to the mountains (we have a place so up there periodically over winter).
So not sure I need dedicated snow tires, but don't really see any alternatives in M+S.
I guess I could buy a set of rims and snow tires, but would be spending a lot of time around home at 50-60oF temperatures. Not too concerned about tire wear.
Any new developments - would welcome thoughts? Would love to put Nokian WRG3s on but don't think available.
I'm in CA and my snow needs are only when I'm up to the mountains (we have a place so up there periodically over winter).
So not sure I need dedicated snow tires, but don't really see any alternatives in M+S.
I guess I could buy a set of rims and snow tires, but would be spending a lot of time around home at 50-60oF temperatures. Not too concerned about tire wear.
Any new developments - would welcome thoughts? Would love to put Nokian WRG3s on but don't think available.
Tire pressure setting at 38/38 sound good?
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Joined: Mar 2007
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From: Central Pa.
2013 GL450 (traded for 2015 Escalade), 2012 Corvette, 2014 Ford Fusion, Previous: 2007 GL450, 2011
The Nokians are absolutely the best winter tire out there ( previous experience with 18's ) .....but when it comes to the 20+ size rims, they just don't have much to offer. Nokian is a dedicated European tire manufacturer , and very few Euro folks have cars with 21 and 22 in rims....so the market their is slim ab best.
Junior Member
Joined: Jul 2014
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gl550
Great Snow tires
Hi,
I looked around and found a set of GL 450 19" wheels w/tires. dumped the tires, and had Tirerack ship 4 Blizzaks 255/55R-19 Bridgestone Blizzak DM-V1 XL (Qty:4).
The GL550 AMG can go down to a 19, and this set up is great. smooth and quiet. only light snow so far, but it drove like a champ. Im having the 21's wheels polished and will put summers on it in April.
Hope this helps.
t
I looked around and found a set of GL 450 19" wheels w/tires. dumped the tires, and had Tirerack ship 4 Blizzaks 255/55R-19 Bridgestone Blizzak DM-V1 XL (Qty:4).
The GL550 AMG can go down to a 19, and this set up is great. smooth and quiet. only light snow so far, but it drove like a champ. Im having the 21's wheels polished and will put summers on it in April.
Hope this helps.
t
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 379
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GL550
They felt very secure, and accelerated uphill like a champ (as I gassed it to try and get them to break free). Braking was okay - they are not winter tires but did a decent job with the ABS kicking in to bring you to a halt with heavy breaking.
I liked them a lot better than the 19" Contis on my past GL450.
Very happy so far.
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Senior Member
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 379
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GL550
Finally had a decent time to try out the Conti DWSs. In a nutshell - I'm impressed as they fit my CA Bay Area, with trips up to the mountains, needs.
Over the last few days I've driven them on plowed Hwy 4, then on Hwy 4 with snow covering. also on the local back roads with a mix of plowed and snow covered. Then finally on unplowed back country in about a foot of snow.
They are a good compromise and fully meet my needs for the type of driving I come across.
I was truly impressed when burning through a foot of fresh snow - they hung in there giving decent braking and climbing up hills (the MB AWD helps a lot with that). If you hit the gas around a slow bend, sure you will get them to push wide but with no issue of recovery and that's driving like you shouldn't.
It's not a winter tire, but perfect for weekend trips up to the Sierras.
Over the last few days I've driven them on plowed Hwy 4, then on Hwy 4 with snow covering. also on the local back roads with a mix of plowed and snow covered. Then finally on unplowed back country in about a foot of snow.
They are a good compromise and fully meet my needs for the type of driving I come across.
I was truly impressed when burning through a foot of fresh snow - they hung in there giving decent braking and climbing up hills (the MB AWD helps a lot with that). If you hit the gas around a slow bend, sure you will get them to push wide but with no issue of recovery and that's driving like you shouldn't.
It's not a winter tire, but perfect for weekend trips up to the Sierras.
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Joined: Jan 2003
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--
Finally had a decent time to try out the Conti DWSs. In a nutshell - I'm impressed as they fit my CA Bay Area, with trips up to the mountains, needs.
Over the last few days I've driven them on plowed Hwy 4, then on Hwy 4 with snow covering. also on the local back roads with a mix of plowed and snow covered. Then finally on unplowed back country in about a foot of snow.
They are a good compromise and fully meet my needs for the type of driving I come across.
I was truly impressed when burning through a foot of fresh snow - they hung in there giving decent braking and climbing up hills (the MB AWD helps a lot with that). If you hit the gas around a slow bend, sure you will get them to push wide but with no issue of recovery and that's driving like you shouldn't.
It's not a winter tire, but perfect for weekend trips up to the Sierras.
Over the last few days I've driven them on plowed Hwy 4, then on Hwy 4 with snow covering. also on the local back roads with a mix of plowed and snow covered. Then finally on unplowed back country in about a foot of snow.
They are a good compromise and fully meet my needs for the type of driving I come across.
I was truly impressed when burning through a foot of fresh snow - they hung in there giving decent braking and climbing up hills (the MB AWD helps a lot with that). If you hit the gas around a slow bend, sure you will get them to push wide but with no issue of recovery and that's driving like you shouldn't.
It's not a winter tire, but perfect for weekend trips up to the Sierras.
Have a GLS coming in the spring so fingers crossed the OEM choice is your tire, but if not, that's gonna be my choice
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 2012
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GL550
No problem. As I said good for my location's needs. If I could justify a true winter tire I would have gone that route for the winter season, but when not up in the mountains it's around 45-60oF so true winter wouldn't work.
They're not going to help you as much on just ice, but worked nicely as I noted above.
So, yes they are a compromise, but work for my needs.
They're not going to help you as much on just ice, but worked nicely as I noted above.
So, yes they are a compromise, but work for my needs.
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From: New York
2025 Range Rover, 2022 BMW M850 , 2017 MB E400 Coupe
In Europe they use 20" wheels for winter setup for AMG package (US GL550) . Wheel part number is a1664012202. Just go on Ebay of Germany and you may find wheel and tire packages (Scorpion Winter). I attached a spec from GL manual which shows 20" winter option. Also attached a picture of AMG A1664012202 wheels I've bought just 2 weeks ago from Ebay.de.
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Joined: Jul 2009
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GLS450
In Europe they use 20" wheels for winter setup for AMG package (US GL550) . Wheel part number is a1664012202. Just go on Ebay of Germany and you may find wheel and tire packages (Scorpion Winter). I attached a spec from GL manual which shows 20" winter option. Also attached a picture of AMG A1664012202 wheels I've bought just 2 weeks ago from Ebay.de.
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From: New York
2025 Range Rover, 2022 BMW M850 , 2017 MB E400 Coupe
Not yet. The wheels are still on the way from Europe. Yes, I have 350 and I'm planning to buy 285/50/20 tires for them. it should look nice with 41 offset of the wheels. I'm planning to keep my original 19" wheels for winter tires.
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From: New York
2025 Range Rover, 2022 BMW M850 , 2017 MB E400 Coupe
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Joined: Jan 2016
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GL450 2016
Timely discussion.We recently purchased a new GL550 and live in the San Francisco area. While we don't get wintery weather here we do go up to Tahoe on a frequent basis. Curious if the Continental tires do decent in the snow? Also any experience with chains on this vehicle?
Member
Joined: Dec 2015
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From: Colorado, USA
2016 GL450
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Joined: Jan 2016
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GL450 2016
R2 SUV. Interesting that my dealership couldn't find me a set of winter tires to buy and put on, except a Pirelli in a width 265! Found these on my own after much research. Curious to see how they do.
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From: Alberta, Canada
'18 GLE63S AMG /'19 PORSCHE TURBO S / '09 CORVETTE ZR1 /'14 LEXUS RX350/'16 RAV4 Ltd
The Nokians are absolutely the best winter tire out there ( previous experience with 18's ) .....but when it comes to the 20+ size rims, they just don't have much to offer. Nokian is a dedicated European tire manufacturer , and very few Euro folks have cars with 21 and 22 in rims....so the market their is slim ab best.
Last edited by Nanook; Jan 3, 2016 at 09:23 PM.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 1,267
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From: Alberta, Canada
'18 GLE63S AMG /'19 PORSCHE TURBO S / '09 CORVETTE ZR1 /'14 LEXUS RX350/'16 RAV4 Ltd
Yup they pushed the Pirelli snow & ice on me which after two seasons and 2 near major crashes (couldn't stop) they are in the bin at the tire shop (nearly like new) that put on the Nokians...and what a difference !
Last edited by Nanook; Jan 5, 2016 at 04:57 PM.
Member
Joined: Dec 2015
Posts: 101
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From: Colorado, USA
2016 GL450
From what I've been reading, the Continentals are really poor on snow, but I'm waiting to see for myself once we get our next snowfall. I'm at least hoping to defer buying some new rubber for a little while.
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Joined: Feb 2007
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From: NYC
18 E63s Wagon 15 GL63 (sold), 10 Turbo TT MT, A36 Bonanza, 20 JLU Rubicon
I think that people should note what size wheel they are discussing.. the issues for a 450/350/ML driver (19-20inch wheel) are very different to those who drive a 550/ 63 (21 inch wheel).....
450/350/ML driver's have a ton of options for winter/ all season / but no high performance (low profile)
550/63 have few options for winter / all season/ and high performance. (I personally still believe that for a 550/63 driver who wants to preserve dry characteristics and the performance end of the envelope for his 550/63 that was clearly setup for that from the factory with low profile tires.. that the Pirelli Scorpion "winter" (NOT THE SNOW AND ICE) is the best choice in OEM sizes for a "dedicated" winter tire... I run 22 inch Scorpion summer high performance tires off season and I have to say putting the"winter" on each snow season is not really a major degrade in performance quality and is certainly does a great job in every wintery condition that I have found myself (16-24 inch snow storms)....
that being said..I am sure that a 21 inch Nokian or Hakkapeliitta would offer G wagon performance in our GLs but the dry handling would suffer significantly.
450/350/ML driver's have a ton of options for winter/ all season / but no high performance (low profile)
550/63 have few options for winter / all season/ and high performance. (I personally still believe that for a 550/63 driver who wants to preserve dry characteristics and the performance end of the envelope for his 550/63 that was clearly setup for that from the factory with low profile tires.. that the Pirelli Scorpion "winter" (NOT THE SNOW AND ICE) is the best choice in OEM sizes for a "dedicated" winter tire... I run 22 inch Scorpion summer high performance tires off season and I have to say putting the"winter" on each snow season is not really a major degrade in performance quality and is certainly does a great job in every wintery condition that I have found myself (16-24 inch snow storms)....
that being said..I am sure that a 21 inch Nokian or Hakkapeliitta would offer G wagon performance in our GLs but the dry handling would suffer significantly.
Super Member
Joined: Jul 2009
Posts: 743
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GLS450
I think that people should note what size wheel they are discussing.. the issues for a 450/350/ML driver (19-20inch wheel) are very different to those who drive a 550/ 63 (21 inch wheel).....
450/350/ML driver's have a ton of options for winter/ all season / but no high performance (low profile)
550/63 have few options for winter / all season/ and high performance. (I personally still believe that for a 550/63 driver who wants to preserve dry characteristics and the performance end of the envelope for his 550/63 that was clearly setup for that from the factory with low profile tires.. that the Pirelli Scorpion "winter" (NOT THE SNOW AND ICE) is the best choice in OEM sizes for a "dedicated" winter tire... I run 22 inch Scorpion summer high performance tires off season and I have to say putting the"winter" on each snow season is not really a major degrade in performance quality and is certainly does a great job in every wintery condition that I have found myself (16-24 inch snow storms)....
that being said..I am sure that a 21 inch Nokian or Hakkapeliitta would offer G wagon performance in our GLs but the dry handling would suffer significantly.
450/350/ML driver's have a ton of options for winter/ all season / but no high performance (low profile)
550/63 have few options for winter / all season/ and high performance. (I personally still believe that for a 550/63 driver who wants to preserve dry characteristics and the performance end of the envelope for his 550/63 that was clearly setup for that from the factory with low profile tires.. that the Pirelli Scorpion "winter" (NOT THE SNOW AND ICE) is the best choice in OEM sizes for a "dedicated" winter tire... I run 22 inch Scorpion summer high performance tires off season and I have to say putting the"winter" on each snow season is not really a major degrade in performance quality and is certainly does a great job in every wintery condition that I have found myself (16-24 inch snow storms)....
that being said..I am sure that a 21 inch Nokian or Hakkapeliitta would offer G wagon performance in our GLs but the dry handling would suffer significantly.
What are the options for all season 20" for a 450? Who has first hand success with this setup?
