silvastarr

What do you guys think? Is it too aggressive?
Any forum member here had experience with riding on 22"? I imagine the ride could turn really harsh?

Specifically, I have my eyes on Lorinser RS9.
http://www.benzworld.org/forums/w251...uned-w251.html

xxGenericSNxx

Do it!

I've got the OEM 21s right now and I don't think the ride is harsh at all. I can't imagine going to 22s and running a 35 series tire will be that much different than my 21 on 40 series.

IMO 22 is the absolute perfect diameter on the R. With such a big car, 20s easily get swallowed in those wheel wells. I think 22 is perfect without going overboard.

supernsx

I had 22 in the past and I could feel all the bumps on the road. If you have airmatic, it may be a bit better since you can soften the ride at 'comfort" mode.

I eventually switched my wheels to 20" after couple of the 22" wheels were bent. Much happier.

silvastarr

What happened? Drove over potholes a few times too many?

xxGenericSNxx

More specifically what kind of 22 in rims and what size tire? (35 profile?)

21 on airmatic feels no different than my 19s.

silvastarr

Wheels: 22x10 ET? I can't confirm the offset. Some sources say 65, others say 53.
Tires: 305/40/22
Definitely prefer a higher profile with 22" rims.
Should be okay?

bigben320e

I went with 20's on the R for obvious reasons. 22's are rough, but it is up to you.

I tried out 20's on my CLS, and it was horrendous 19's were the way to go, just saying.

silvastarr

Hah bigben, we have an almost identical stable.
Confirmed: those Lorinsers are 22x10 ET65.
Bigben, I'm tempted to get the 22" because I found a set of used ones and they are the same price as a set of used 21" AMG. I believe they go for >$5000 brand new. Your R500 has rear airmatic and front springs, right? I wonder if my R550's full airmatic would help soften the ride.

supernsx

Not enough tire/rubber to protected the 22" when they hit the pot holes. If you have airmatic, 22" can work as long as you know what you are getting yourself into.

bigben320e

Airmatic in front, springs with bags in the rear. I know the 22's are tempting, but...you will get it on those bumps and potholes.

silvastarr

Another interesting observation is that in general, 21" tires are double the price of that of 22" tires. I know I'm not making an "apple to apple" comparison, but in the context of available tires, that seems to be the trend.
This translates to an additional $1000 for new tires every 4 years if I chose 21" ... hmm ...

xxGenericSNxx

Yeah something to keep in mind. My 21X9 wheels run on OEM spec 265/40/21 Continental SportConti2 and there are only three total tires made in this size. It's about $1600 for a set of four tires.
Another downside is that in this size they are only summer tires. A few European R63s I've seen stuck some all season or snow tires on their 21s in a 265/45/21 fitment, but IMO too much sidewall for my taste, it really makes the 21s look like 20" or even 19" wheels and you'll run into a slight speedometer accuracy issue since your overall diameter is slightly higher.

The upside is the rims were **only** $2,000 brand new on eBay vs. $1,040 a piece from the dealer.


It may be possible the Lorinser wheels run spacers. I know their older rims have spacers to make them easily fit other cars, maybe the newer rims are similar.

MMMMMBENZ

These were my 22's, they did make the ride a little harder, but acceptable. Now I have a 2012 with 20" AMG wheels on the car, but I will still transfer these 22" on the new car. I am Just waiting for the new linkages to be installed on the full airmatic. The 22" look outweighs the slight discomfort for me. I do have a set of good condtion used H&R front springs with rear air ride linkages for sale if anyone is interested.

xxGenericSNxx

Your R had a Wald and Lorinser body kit?

MMMMMBENZ

Originally, I bought the Lorinser 4-pc kit with Lorinser engraved exhaust tips, but my wife needed the car everyday for the kids and I couldn't find time to have it installed. Then, the Wald kit came out and I liked it so much. I went ahead to buy it and wanted to install Wald kit instead. But now, we like the new facelifted model , so I still have both kits but I can't install any of them. I know the sideskirts should be still the same, but, I am trying to figure out how do I make the front and rear work. Or, I should just buy something else instead. Looking around brands like Lorinser, Brabus, Wald and etc, I don't see anything available for the facelift model. Anyone has any ideas? If not, I will have to do something custom. I prefer selling the two kits I have now and get some money back. I do have the lowering kit and the color matched parking sensor for my last project for sale if anyone is interested. Thanks.

BTW, contributing to the thread, I found my wheel/tire setup receipt. I am running 22"x10" et50 with 265/35/22. Hopefully, this helps you.

MMMMMBENZ

xxGenericSNxx
btw, nice ride, great combination, I wanted to have the same look so much. Where did you get your Wald kit from? I got mine from VIS, but fitment needed work when I dry fitted myself.

xxGenericSNxx

Wow cool! My friend had a full lorinser kit on his R350 and it's quite nice, but I like the Wald (front) better as it's even more aggressive.

Wish I knew you were selling the kit, as I paid retail for mine.

Is your Wald kit authentic? Mine has no issue with fitment. I got mine from Jonari which outsourced to a shop in Texas so they could throw in free shipping for me.


I've searched high and low and have not seen any body kits made for the facelift models. The only thing you can port over are those Lorinser fenders since that area of the car hasn't changed shape.

houseofdiesel

I ran 22" on airmatic with 265/40/22 it was a dream, after the suspension adjusted for the extra wheel weight. Very slight rubbing on the inner plastic fenders at max lock, I would not want a wider tire with the offset/width I have (30mm offset, 10" wheels). I drive on very harsh roads and never felt uncomfortable, but vibrations are an issues (used wheels with new cheap tires) and the R class is very sensitive to wheel balance it turns out so be careful with the tire and wheel quality or you will have shakes at highway speeds. I have three piece forged Asanti wheels black centers with chrome lip, very nice and understated in black on a burgandy vehicle. The ride is better then the 18" stock Michelin Lattitudes, but not as nice as the 17" Michelin snows. Handling is awesome.

benzR350NYC

I have an 09 R350 I don't know if I have airmatic. I do have the C/S button which I thought were for the tranny to shift faster in sport mode

I was looking to get 22in Mercedes concave wheels they are off the S63/65 AMG this is how they look, they are 22x9.5 and 22x10.. Don't know of I should get either the 9.5 or 10 all around. Don't want the staggered set up

xxGenericSNxx

All cars have the C/S button. You have air suspension if you have a Sport/Comf button on the switch row with what appears to be a shock icon. You also get a button to raise the car.

Second button to the left and third to the right indicates airmatic:

benzR350NYC

That's weird I don't have the shock icon it's nothing there that's why I'm confused if I have the airmatic or not

xxGenericSNxx

Like I said, if you have Airmatic, you have those aforementioned buttons. Since you don't, your car lacks the full airmatic system. All US cars without Airmatic have air springs in the rear for self leveling, with springs up front (and subsequently no buttons on the switchrow).

TopEndS62

Hey Generic,

Im in the market for a R500. None of the ones that i have seen has either of the buttons ( shock settings and raise) you've shown. Is it safe to say that only the AMGs came with full airmatic?
Also I thought most R500s came with Air struts on all 4 corners. I appreciate any info, I am planning on lowering but it would really suck if I cant raise her for driveways and things of that nature like my E55.

Spud_Racer

No, Airmatic was an option on the R350 & R500. But apparently a lot of people and dealers ordered them without it. My R500 has the full Airmatic suspension. With that said, I was amazed when looking for an R500 that not many of them were loaded. Mine also has the Bi-Xenon light package with corner tracking headlamps, side illuminating fog lights, and heated headlight washers. That appears to have been a very rare option.

TopEndS62

thanks spud.

do you have a saks 5th avenue model by chance??

ive noticed that those that were equipped with that package, has full air suspension. Im just trying to pick the right car. IMO, its hard to find some concrete information on the W251 chassis/options. I think thats what makes me want it more!!!