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The factory bolt is longer than any aftermarket conical I could find but the conical are more recessed and the factory wheel may be thicker at the hub. My calipers aren’t metric but I think the Tire Rack bolt has a seat of about 26mm vs the two available from Otis are 28mm & 33mm. As I mentioned in prior posts I used the 33mm bolt.
I just inserted the tirerack supplied lug bolts into the wheels they sent and I counted roughly 15 exposed threads (with thumb nail). Lighting was poor, but looks like 3/4-7/8" of bolt extends out. Planning on the next week
On that note, I'm assuming there is a lift point in front between the wheels. Took a quick look and it looks like it's a finished area, but didn't get a good look. Figured I'd use the rear diff in back.
I just inserted the tirerack supplied lug bolts into the wheels they sent and I counted roughly 15 exposed threads (with thumb nail). Lighting was poor, but looks like 3/4-7/8" of bolt extends out. Planning on the next week
On that note, I'm assuming there is a lift point in front between the wheels. Took a quick look and it looks like it's a finished area, but didn't get a good look. Figured I'd use the rear diff in back.
I checked the wheel clearances on the winter wheels from Tire Rack. The closest the brakes get to the inside wheel is at least 1/2” clearance at the front wheel & top of the brake. The clearance between spokes & brake is huge so it would look like most if not all 20’s would fit even with high offsets. Suspension clearance looks good but I didn’t crawl under the car to look. I took a pic of the tightest spot but got a little close.
I just inserted the tirerack supplied lug bolts into the wheels they sent and I counted roughly 15 exposed threads (with thumb nail). Lighting was poor, but looks like 3/4-7/8" of bolt extends out. Planning on the next week
On that note, I'm assuming there is a lift point in front between the wheels. Took a quick look and it looks like it's a finished area, but didn't get a good look. Figured I'd use the rear diff in back.
15 x 1.25mm = 18.75mm, or 0.74". However, the bolt has to go through the brake disc before it hits the threaded hub. Anyhow, I measured 20.6mm exposed bolt with the stock wheel and lugs. Here is a drawing I did.
15 x 1.25mm = 18.75mm, or 0.74". However, the bolt has to go through the brake disc before it hits the threaded hub. Anyhow, I measured 20.6mm exposed bolt with the stock wheel and lugs. Here is a drawing I did.
Great drawing, thanks. Did you by chance measure the thickness of the "rotor, unthreaded"? If you did, was it 5mm or thicker? TIA.
15 x 1.25mm = 18.75mm, or 0.74". However, the bolt has to go through the brake disc before it hits the threaded hub. Anyhow, I measured 20.6mm exposed bolt with the stock wheel and lugs. Here is a drawing I did.
‘Greg,
‘I don’t know if the drawing is the way you measured but I think you measure the shank from the top on a tapered bolt vs under like you show on a normal flat headed one. There is a significant difference on a conical vs ball shape because of the longer taper on conical. That’s why I ordered the bolt with a 33mm shank comparing the tire rack bolt to the factory one.
‘Greg,
‘I don’t know if the drawing is the way you measured but I think you measure the shank from the top on a tapered bolt vs under like you show on a normal flat headed one. There is a significant difference on a conical vs ball shape because of the longer taper on conical. That’s why I ordered the bolt with a 33mm shank comparing the tire rack bolt to the factory one.
Edit-I mean from the top of the taper.
Shank length, which is what is usually quoted, is from the bottom of the seat, whether radius (ball) or conical. That is the convention I am used to.
Last edited by GregW / Oregon; Nov 15, 2019 at 11:32 PM.
‘When the taper goes in a counter sunk hole it should be measured as in the pic, IMO. If not you are understating the ‘reach” when comparing to square vs ball vs conical. Semantics aside this is the only accurate way to compare lengths.
Greg your method is probably the correct way to measure shank on a lug bolt. I found one supplier that measured from the top of the taper but others measure from the bottom as in your pic. I lined all 3 up on a 1/4” graph paper. They are aligned at the top of the taper although the angle to avoid shadows make it look otherwise. This is still an approximation because the cast ones from Mercedes and Otis don’t have a sharp edge like the Tire Rack washer. The Tire rack bolt has a blank area before threads begin so it’s thread length is shorter than the others making it’s effective length at least 1mm less so I made that deduction below. I’m guessing the factory AMG wheel is thicker at the hub area than most AM wheels. Here are my bolt measurements:
Stock Mercedes-48mm top of taper-3mm of ball taper
Otis Black-42mm top with 9mm of cone taper-shank 33mm
Tire Rack Silver-37mm with 9mm of cone taper-effective shank (-1mm) 28mm
These numbers should be close enough for making a decision on what will work best with your winter setup.
Installed my winter tires today. The 20-in rims set up from tirerack fit perfectly. I have the same MSW rims as Ron, and went with the blizzaks which look like they will be in snow and ice. The 20-in rims had no problem clearing the sport brake calipers that are part of the AMG line exterior.
I wound up lifting the car at the jack points on the side, could not locate a lift point in the front of the car. No big deal, easy job.
Greg, I used 2 of the stainless steel lug bolt guides you posted, they are an excellent addition to the process. Those 21" wheels are heavy
Got my Michelin Pilot Alpin P5’s installed today. I was able to use the lug bolts from Otis mentioned previously by Henry. I bought the longer ones, 33mm.
But I continue to have a brain cramp with offsets and miscalculated the positioning that 8 1/2” wheels with et45 would have on the front tire location. There was no noticeable difference in the upper tread and tire bulge location from stock 9” wheels with tires the same size as stock. These are very large tires and sucking in the bead does not make them narrower. If there is any difference it is very negligible.
Now on offsets....less offset moves the outside Wheel edge out-not in. The offset is from center and I know better but continue to get it wrong until thinking about it. This came up early in the thread and is the reason I didn’t buy Titanium extended length bolts and spacers. Promptly forgot!
So I’m glad I went with et45 instead of using my et32’s. I measured from the widest point of tire bulge before and after using a level along the wheel trim. This is not exact but close enough for my purposes. My new tire at the widest bulge moved out beyond the trim more than 1/4” - they were just about 1/16 inside with factory tires and wheels. The tread is still inside the fender.
The net change shouldn’t cause any rubbing but will slightly increase mud and debris on the body. I found some mud flaps for the 167 GLE with AMG, shipping from China 3 weeks out. I’ll post pics and fitment when they arrive. They are small and won’t offer much protection (if they fit).
Anyone considering spacers might want to double check their wheel offset and calculations.
Here are a couple of pics.
Arriving tomorrow...shipped from China. I might be able to tape one on the front and post a picture. They look small in the picture but were the only ones I could find.
Arriving tomorrow...shipped from China. I might be able to tape one on the front and post a picture. They look small in the picture but were the only ones I could find.
I guess these are the official ones? Front - A1678902600 , Rear - A1678902700. You can find them at dealers and online sites if you search for those part numbers.
I guess these are the official ones? Front - A1678902600 , Rear - A1678902700. You can find them at dealers and online sites if you search for those part numbers.
I guess these are the official ones? Front - A1678902600 , Rear - A1678902700. You can find them at dealers and online sites if you search for those part numbers.
I don’t have running boards and couldn’t find that set for AMG package. But if China has them there’s a good chance that they are OEM knock offs or back-door of OEM.
Just a one year review for Blizzak DM-V2, bought a set for my 2016 GLE last fall and drove through ridiculous ice and snow every weekend heading to our weekend place in ski country. I could not be more pleased with these tires. Not one single time all winter did they feel less than locked to the road and even when local main roads were closed during snowstorms I could find my way on unplowed back dirt roads. They are now back on for another winter and looking forward to more safe and low stress winter driving. Glad to read all you guys are putting winter tires on, I wish they were required equipment where I live.
Just a one year review for Blizzak DM-V2, bought a set for my 2016 GLE last fall and drove through ridiculous ice and snow every weekend heading to our weekend place in ski country. I could not be more pleased with these tires. Not one single time all winter did they feel less than locked to the road and even when local main roads were closed during snowstorms I could find my way on unplowed back dirt roads. They are now back on for another winter and looking forward to more safe and low stress winter driving. Glad to read all you guys are putting winter tires on, I wish they were required equipment where I live.
I loved my Blizzaks too. What size did you end up going with?
275/50R20 113S
255/55R20 107T
I ordered the second set. Wanted a narrower tire to cut through the snow and reduce aquaplaning/snowplaning.
I thought the 19" rims didn't clear the brake calipers for the AMG-Line GLEs.
255/50-19 is what I had on the 2016 W166.
I'm not from Canada, but if it comes with the sport brakes in that Sport package, then I believe that you are correct. In the USA, there is no option to get 19" rims with the AMG Exterior Line package (that's what includes the sport brakes); I guess that doesn't necessarily mean the brakes won't clear on those rims, but its a risk.
My 20" rims cleared without issue (thanks to Ron for confirming that before I installed)
I'm not from Canada, but if it comes with the sport brakes in that Sport package, then I believe that you are correct. In the USA, there is no option to get 19" rims with the AMG Exterior Line package (that's what includes the sport brakes); I guess that doesn't necessarily mean the brakes won't clear on those rims, but its a risk.
My 20" rims cleared without issue (thanks to Ron for confirming that before I installed)
This is why I'm surprised, the sport brakes only come with 20-21" rim options. That's why I posted the tire sizes above. I would hate for a wheel weight to be knocked off by a caliper after the first rotation.
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