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I am getting a 2015 GLK 250 BT this weekend and I want to make it a little more aggressive looking. I found out through Tire Rack it has 7.5” front and rear and run flat only with no spare. I also found out it can handle an 8.5” wheel in the front and 9.5” wheel in the rear. The Mercedes service said not to change anything because of the AWD system and antilock brakes. I am wanting to run only wider wheels with Michelin tires and not any height difference. Is it possible to get them wider without damaging the systems or tracking issues?
Just google "tire height calculator" and you'll find plenty of tools which will help you find the right tire size to stay near stock. That said, you technically can go taller or shorter than stock, you just have to keep the fronts and rears very close to the same. Best to go with no height difference between the front and rear, but you'll typically be safe if you stay within 1%. I run with 8.5" width up front and 9.5" rear on a 4matic and have no issues.
Also, I found that wheels from the w220 and w221 S-class cars fit GLKs perfectly.
i’m doing the same thing you are 8.5 on the front 9.5 on the back I need to know what tire size you got and how’s it doing? I’m hoping you’re still there and I hope you still have it.?
Originally Posted by RollTide92
I am getting a 2015 GLK 250 BT this weekend and I want to make it a little more aggressive looking. I found out through Tire Rack it has 7.5” front and rear and run flat only with no spare. I also found out it can handle an 8.5” wheel in the front and 9.5” wheel in the rear. The Mercedes service said not to change anything because of the AWD system and antilock brakes. I am wanting to run only wider wheels with Michelin tires and not any height difference. Is it possible to get them wider without damaging the systems or tracking issues?
i’m doing the same thing you are 8.5 on the front 9.5 on the back ( S class Wheels ) I need to know what tire size you got and how’s it doing? I’m hoping you’re still there and I hope you still have it.? How do these look and specs?? TPETE! hOPE YOUR still on here AND Rolltide????? And if im posting this right....So super Depressed so getting some wheels.... Im doing the same thing. So im getting S-class Wheels the front are 20x 8.5 wide and back are 9.5........ I lowered it with H&R springs i think like 1.2 inch.......... PLEASE HELP! So what kind size tires do I need to get size etc?????? Here is wheels im getting......... hub bor should be 66.6? maybe typo ??
Originally Posted by TPete19
Short answer, yes.
Just google "tire height calculator" and you'll find plenty of tools which will help you find the right tire size to stay near stock. That said, you technically can go taller or shorter than stock, you just have to keep the fronts and rears very close to the same. Best to go with no height difference between the front and rear, but you'll typically be safe if you stay within 1%. I run with 8.5" width up front and 9.5" rear on a 4matic and have no issues.
Also, I found that wheels from the w220 and w221 S-class cars fit GLKs perfectly.
Last edited by MilesGLK350; Jan 1, 2023 at 09:42 PM.
Reason: add pics
2013 GLK350 4Matic; 2010 Audi A4 Quattro; 2004 Yamaha R1
I went much more aggressive in sizing and stance, with a set of coil overs on my setup to lower it down. You can find adjustable rear upper control arms as well to help dial in the alignment after lowering it.
Front is 255-40-20; rear is 295-35-20. Wheels are AG, 8.5" front, and 10.5" rear.
HELP> Not sure posting this right lol Mercedes GLK wheels?
Originally Posted by TPete19
Short answer, yes.
Just google "tire height calculator" and you'll find plenty of tools which will help you find the right tire size to stay near stock. That said, you technically can go taller or shorter than stock, you just have to keep the fronts and rears very close to the same. Best to go with no height difference between the front and rear, but you'll typically be safe if you stay within 1%. I run with 8.5" width up front and 9.5" rear on a 4matic and have no issues.
Also, I found that wheels from the w220 and w221 S-class cars fit GLKs perfectly.
TPETE! hOPE YOUR still on here AND Rolltide????? And im posting this right....So super Depressed so getting some wheels.... Im doing the same thing. So im getting S-class Wheels the front are 20x 8.5 wide and back are 9.5........ I lowered it with H&R springs i think like 1.2 inch.......... PLEASE HELP! So what kind size tires do I need to get size etc?????? Here is wheels im getting......... hub bor should be 66.6? maybe typo ??
I went much more aggressive in sizing and stance, with a set of coil overs on my setup to lower it down. You can find adjustable rear upper control arms as well to help dial in the alignment after lowering it.
Front is 255-40-20; rear is 295-35-20. Wheels are AG, 8.5" front, and 10.5" rear.
tawatts! Holy ****! Your GLK is awesome!!! wow... love it! using as my wallpaper...Ok Im getting the S-class wheels, 8.5 front and 9.5 rear...... Tpete19 above said they fit perfectly on GLKS..... have h&r lowering springs think only 1.2 drop maybe 1.....I need to know what Tire sizes to get??? And do these specs look right ??????? see pics....
Ok, when I was looking to figure out what would fit, I came across the previous generation GLK that Brabus offered builds for. Here was one of their wheel/tire package options that I could safely assume would fit very well. If you are going to do a staggered setup and you have a 4Matic, make sure the overall tire rolling diameter is very close from front to rear. If you are rear wheel drive only, it won't be an issue. For staggered setups on an AWD/4WD car, it should be within 1-2%. My setup is 1% difference from front to rear.
for my setup, if I could have had a slightly deeper offset on both the front and rear, it would have been better. (I have to have the camber to clear the rear fender lip, but I am very very low) But, I am able to have zero rub, but tires only last two seasons like this.
TPETE! hOPE YOUR still on here AND Rolltide????? And im posting this right....So super Depressed so getting some wheels.... Im doing the same thing. So im getting S-class Wheels the front are 20x 8.5 wide and back are 9.5........ I lowered it with H&R springs i think like 1.2 inch.......... PLEASE HELP! So what kind size tires do I need to get size etc?????? Here is wheels im getting......... hub bor should be 66.6? maybe typo ??
We sold the GLK a while back, but it ended up with those same H&R springs, W212 S-calss AMG wheel (the black 10-spokes), and our stock GLK spec tires. The rear tires are slightly stretched, but nothing extreme. Everything worked flawlessly together. Also ended up throwing an AMG package front bumper on as well. Terrible photo below...
I would've liked to go the coil-over route, but I couldn't justify the cost difference.
Also do you know the size of the tires ?? you had 20X8.5 on front and 20X9.5 on back
Originally Posted by TPete19
We sold the GLK a while back, but it ended up with those same H&R springs, W212 S-calss AMG wheel (the black 10-spokes), and our stock GLK spec tires. The rear tires are slightly stretched, but nothing extreme. Everything worked flawlessly together. Also ended up throwing an AMG package front bumper on as well. Terrible photo below...
I would've liked to go the coil-over route, but I couldn't justify the cost difference.
TPETE! dope!! so awesome...... you have pic of front bumber??? Also do you know the size of the tires ?? you had 20X8.5 on front and 20X9.5 on back ? and yours was 4matic too??
Ok, when I was looking to figure out what would fit, I came across the previous generation GLK that Brabus offered builds for. Here was one of their wheel/tire package options that I could safely assume would fit very well. If you are going to do a staggered setup and you have a 4Matic, make sure the overall tire rolling diameter is very close from front to rear. If you are rear wheel drive only, it won't be an issue. For staggered setups on an AWD/4WD car, it should be within 1-2%. My setup is 1% difference from front to rear.
for my setup, if I could have had a slightly deeper offset on both the front and rear, it would have been better. (I have to have the camber to clear the rear fender lip, but I am very very low) But, I am able to have zero rub, but tires only last two seasons like this.
tawatts Awesome and great info... ok to mine is the 4matc.... I have the h&R springs... 1.2 or 1inch drop...... here are speca of wheels im getting so what size tire you would advice putting on ??
You show me where it says a 1% diameter difference is ok on a 4 matic !! You can’t , not even MB will back you up . You can do damage to the system because of the constantly different rotation speed and the system can try to constantly compensate and burn out!
2013 GLK350 4Matic; 2010 Audi A4 Quattro; 2004 Yamaha R1
Originally Posted by Mmr1
You show me where it says a 1% diameter difference is ok on a 4 matic !! You can’t , not even MB will back you up . You can do damage to the system because of the constantly different rotation speed and the system can try to constantly compensate and burn out!
OK, so with my setup, which has been perfectly good for 3 years and over 50,000km's my front tire rolling is 28.0", rear is 28.1".
You don't think that Mercedes would allow for any difference in rolling diameter because the front and rear tires are wearing differently. There are clutches in these systems that allow for the differences in rolling diameters due to normal wear and tear of the tires.
What is my % difference, I think it comes out to 1%.
Tawatts.... YOu are right.... he doesnt even know..... like HELLO we and HE (twatts & rolltide did it) and is doing it and everything works fine... always someone...... Twatts so what size tire can you tell me to get?? The front wheel will be 20x8,5 the rear will be 20x9.5...... ET S class 35-42 offset......... not sure why the specs says wheel hub says 66.45 in pic.... typo?
Last edited by MilesGLK350; Jan 3, 2023 at 12:30 AM.
Reason: Forgot words
I do know, your manual says don’t go it , MB corporate told me don’t do it. It can cause excessive internal wear from the computer thinking there is slippage on 4matic and trying to compensate. Your experiment , your $
I do know, your manual says don’t go it , MB corporate told me don’t do it. It can cause excessive internal wear from the computer thinking there is slippage on 4matic and trying to compensate. Your experiment , your $
Don’t have my GLK any more, so I can’t check the manual. But it’s curious because the F/R factory tires sizes for 20 inch wheels are 235/45R20 (28.32 inch diameter) and 255/40R20 (28.04 inch diameter). That 0.28 inch difference works out to 1% difference in F/R diameter. If 1% is outside of 4matic design tolerance, then they supplied all 20 in diameter equipped vehicles with tires that are out of specifications.
I do know, your manual says don’t go it , MB corporate told me don’t do it. It can cause excessive internal wear from the computer thinking there is slippage on 4matic and trying to compensate. Your experiment , your $
Mercedes has to tell you not to do stuff because if you do it and then the car breaks you can blame them and lawyers are expensive. When you round a corner your inner wheels spin faster than your outer ones. When you go over a speed bump your front wheels spin faster than your rears due to the increased travel distance, and then your rears spin faster as your rear axle goes over. 28.0” front vs 28.1” is a .357% difference. The car won’t know the difference because there are built in protocols in the computer to account for tire tread variance. Also this is not a locking direct drive system (as stated above).
Service manual says you should replace both tires on the same axle at the same time, but does not state you need to replace all 4 at once. So if you have new 11/32 tread up front and 0 tread in back (which MB is okay with) then <1.3% variance is fine. But honestly you could probably do more without issue, as these cars are over engineered. 🤙
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What is 4matic tire diameter requirement?
