Hi folks-

Well, it's almost time for new tires on my 2022 GLS 450. This car came with the Pirelli Scorpion Zero tires, and I've gotten good service out of them, but after 50,000 miles it's almost time for a change. My question is this: Many or most Mercedes-Benz cars come with MO tires installed. I believe you can generally buy the same tire in the open market but without the MO designation. Can anyone tell me what makes tires with the MO marking different or better than those not carrying the mark? And, can they be purchased through any other channel aside from going through a Mercedes-Benz dealer if one wishes to keep the vehicle 100% stock?

Thanks for any information you can provide.

 

The MO just means the tire was tailored in some way to Mercedes. I have never seen any data showing what the changes are. Porsche has done this with its N spec for years and there is always debate in the Porsche community about the benefit, or lack thereof, of the N spec. I am seeing this spread now, with Genesis and Audi spec tires and there may be others. Most folks don't pay any attention. All of those tires are available through the regular marketplace. Tirerack, Discount Tire and local shops carry them. You don't have to buy them from a M-B dealer. I have MO spec Michelins on my ML350 - I bought them from Tirerack.

 

"MO" means co- developed by the tire manufacturer and Mercedes. Similar to Porsche's N-spec tires.

There are certain characteristics that vehicle manufacturer wants emphasized with the tires, such as wet traction. Or noise. And/Or ?.

I think the spec becomes more important as vehicles become more advanced. Such as the AMG spec MO-1.

I have stuck with the MO-1 spec for my my AMG 53. I'm on my second set of Summers. I'm not a Continental fan, but the MO-1 Conti's match the car better than any combo I've had for decades.

 

Related video worth watching:

 

Folks, thanks as usual for all of the great info and advice. Perhaps I could ask one more question on this topic.

When I replace the tires on my GLS 450, I'm considering getting a set of run-flats instead of regular tires. Does anyone have any experience and/or recommendations for doing this?

 

I just replaced my tires. Went with the Michelin CrossClimates. I'm in Massachusetts.

 

As with any technology innovation, there are advantages and disadvantages. If you use your car as your commuting DD and you want to avoid the inconvenience of changing a flat that's bound to occur at the worst possible time under the worst possible circumstances, run-flats could serve you well. However, run-flat manufacturers recommend replacement instead of repair for even small punctures, because if you've driven several miles on a flat one, the tire construction has been compromised. Some tire shops will repair them, and others won't. Even if the run-flat manufacturer has an unconditional replacement warranty, this still leaves you in a dilemma if your tire set is past its half life. Do you mount a brand new run-flat with 3 worn tires, or replace all 4? In other words, a simple flat repair on a conventional tire can cause you much consternation with a run-flat. Others will disagree, but I would not repair a run-flat if I'd driven on it further than a hundred yards to get off the road.

My X7 came with a set of staggered size 22" Continental run-flats. We use the car mostly for road tripping throughout the western U.S., and I didn't want to get stuck in some small town in the middle of nowhere waiting (and paying) to have a replacement exotic size run-flat express-shipped in from some distant location. So I swapped the tire set to a square 20" configuration and mounted conventional Michelin CrossClimate2s. I have the donut spare option to get me to a tire shop where a simple puncture can be quickly repaired, or a replacement tire is likely close by if one is required.

Some drivers complain about the harsher and noisier ride on run-flats because of the stiff sidewalls. I changed my run-flats at 1K miles before I was able to comprehensively evaluate this.

 

The ideal configuration is, NON-run flat WITH a spare tire kit in the trunk........ Again another reason so stick with the Pirelli Scorpion Zero NRF with the MO tag. I found the tire to be soft enough at 33PSI; and road noise is acceptable (this car is so well insulated honestly).

I installed an aftermarket dashcam and had to extend some wires for the rear camera and fuse box for parking mode camera operation. With each panel I removed, I was shocked by the amount of insulation and padding almost behind every single panel I pulled, and there is a ton of insulation around the trunk area too. Even around the fuse box. The car is huge, and even though it's slightly larger than the X7, sets higher than the X7, It was just as quite.

 

My favorite "tyre" reviewer.
I'm familiar with his work, for several years.

He is a big believer that MO- or any OE spec tires are the best for the car, and worth any premium.
This video is the exception - but he's talking about a few years after introduction of a spec tire.

And that tire tech is evolving more rapidly than in the past, and new generations can be significantly better than 4-year-old tech, on a 4-year-old car.
He still believes in MO an N spec, unless or until a new generation replaces it.
He has a couple of vids in the past two years that restate the value of spec tires.

In short, I'm with him about MO and especially MO-1 AMG spec - for a few years after the spec was first built.