Chrisfast44

Thank you for this post! That’s what I was hoping to hear. The problem with take offs, is I don’t want the all season tires. I live in Colorado and we do go up to the mountains. My favorite tire it’s still the Blizzak DM V2, but they don’t even make a 21” tire. Don’t have as much experience with the Scorpion's, but am definitely leaning that way. Especially with your post endorsing them. Thank you again!

mikapen

The 21" Pirelli Winters with the MO-1 (AMG) designation are three steps better than the Blizzaks.

I'm also in Colorado, and I just did some trail running last weekend in ice/slush/6" snow/mud and I was impressed again.

If you really want incredible ice traction, get the Nokian R5 SUV. I've had the R2 and R3 SUV's and they're definitely a go anywhere tire in Colorado, and they handle pretty well, better than the Blizzaks but not as good as the Pirelli Winters.

TireRack didn't carry them until Discount Tire bought them last year, so you don't see them in any of their reviews or tests.

Chrisfast44

thanks for this post. Appreciate the feedback on the Pirelli‘s. I think I’ve already made my decision after the last post and yours. I will be ordering the Pirelli‘s on Monday and having them installed at Mercedes. I believe you about them being superior in this application to the Blizzaks. However the one thing I will say, is we definitely have different opinions about Nokian. I had them on my 2022 Tesla, and have never hated a tire more in my life. It was so bad I finally made discount tire buy them back. Terrible car that got even worse with Nokian tires. Anyway, going with the Pirelli’s and will always have a huge respect for the Blizzaks. Just may not on the GLE. Appreciate your post again!

GregW / Oregon

I have the Michelin Alpin 5 SUV 275/50-20 mounted on my old W166 wheels for my 5th Winter now and they've been great (9.500 mi). Just had a big snow/wind/ice storm here in the Portland area a couple weeks ago and we got around no problem.

wildta

How was noise and comfort of R3s vs Pirelli winters?

vincheung

Greg, thats nice mileage on the winters and still kicking. How is the treadwear looking? I have the same set on another car that isn't driven much so it's been impossible to estimate the overall lifespan.

On the GLE, I'm running Hankook i-pike rw11s slightly narrower than stock 265/50/20, I would say fairly comparable to my previous blizzaks but New York winters have been weak regarding precip. Weekend home in PA sees decent snow and they have been flawless going up grades where other cars with all seasons are going sideways. Still keeping a set of tire cables in the car regardless, learned the hard way stuck in CO.

mykel79

How about these 20"? I love the look and I can put winter or summer tires on them, there's a large selection.

mikapen

Have you checked your Dealer price? In my case I saved almost $300 vs. TireRack, installed. The included road hazard was better - 2 yrs, non pro rated.
Get the MO-1 designation. It's important these days..

mikapen

The Nokian R3 SUV was quiet it's entire life, which surprised me. I used it year 'round on my 164 and got 27,000 - 30,000 miles. Inner shoulder wore out first due to the camber (which I like BTW).

I'm getting a bit of rumbling on some surfaces (fresh chip seal) with the Pirelli Winters now, at about 9,000 miles. If this continues, I'd say the Nokians might actually be quieter.
The Nokian R-5 SUV's are the answer if you want a Go Anywhere, anytime tire in Colorado.
I also towed a 6000# RV with really good stability. Note that I'm talking about the R2 and R3, previous generations.

I'm having balance problems with the Pirelli's. You definitely need a Hunter Road Force Balancer (9100 or better) to get a 315 wide tire balanced. I've had no such problem with the Conti OE tires, FWIW. (Mercedes shops are required to have the Hunter 9100 or better.

I think Michelin and Nokian make the roundest tires available now.

GregW / Oregon

Tread is still at 7/32" F&R, from 10.5/32" new, so very good. Can get another season out of them.

Chrisfast44

I did go through the dealer. And got the M0 tires. As a bonus, they store the summers and then store the winters when we swap back. Thank you guys again for all of the help. Feel very comfortable putting those tires on the GLE even though they are so darn big.

andy57089

Did you eventually find a way to upgrade your wheels to 20 or 21? I am in the same situation and would like to see if this is possible.

suby01

Yes it is possible to use a 20" or a 21" wheel on a GLE. Cheers.

jkaetz

All the information you need is in this thread already. See posts 9, 10, and 15.

andy57089

Thank you! I guess my question is once you upgraded your wheel how would you re-calibrate the system (such as odometer) so that it shows the correct numbers such as mileage, and do you also need to adjust the differential because the larger wheels turn at differently speed.

HotRodW

As long as you keep the overall diameter essentially the same, your speedometer will remain accurate. You do this by decreasing tire sidewall as you increase wheel size. There are factory fitments for 19" through 22" wheels that have the same diameter, making them interchangeable with minimal effect on the speedometer/odometer.

GregW / Oregon

Unless you have a '20-23 GLE with 19s, where the puny 255/50-19s are nearly 2" smaller than the other wheel size options. No way you would keep the 29" diameter.

HotRodW

Yes, you are correct. And while the same sizing rules would apply, 255's on 21" or 22" wheels would probably not be a good look. I still cannot understand what motivated MB to make the 19's so much smaller, or what took them so long to correct it.

andy57089

that's why I have questions regarding how exactly people changed to bigger wheels, what adjustments (odometer, differentials etc.) need to be done. So far, I haven't found answers.

HotRodW

I've been on a lot of forums over the years and discussed a lot of wheel fitments, but I've never known anyone to have their speedometer recalibrated. I don't know if it can even be done on the GLE. In most cases people just live with the inaccuracy if they upsize. But going from 255's to 275's you're looking at a 3.5 mph error at an indicated 60 mph. Maybe something like 265/45/20 or 265/40/21 would be a good compromise? At least you know you won't have any rubbing issues.

wildta

This W212 thread talks about updating the tire size but I haven't heard anyone with a 167 using that OBD2 tool to do it.

https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w...ml#post8936713

andy57089

My other big question that no one seems to be bothered is that why nothing needs to be done on the differential mechanics. I am not a car tech guy, so is the modern AWD/Differential system able to adapt to different size wheels? In this case, all wheels are upgraded from smaller diameter (29'') to a large diameters (30.8'').

HotRodW

Regarding the differential, I was always led to believe that as long as the tires are properly matched, there should be no issue with upsizing tire diameters. I've changed diameters myself in the past without any problems. I do reserve the right to be mistaken on this particular topic, however.

LunBenzo

Exactly!