IwoS500

Hello Everybody,
I would like to introduce myself to all the W220 lovers.
I'm European who so far was a BMW guy. After owning 3 Bmw's and moving to US, I realize that unless I'm on the race track.., there is no freedom here of driving the way I like it. So I came to the conclusion it is time to get in to MB World :-) After doing some research I decided on 2006 model as a lot of features is standard (usually all my cars I buy used and from the last year of the given model production)
So I just purchased 2006 S500 with 70K miles. It is black 040 with 845 stone leather. It is coming from a different state and I should be getting it on Monday. I'm very excited and already have plans to make it even more special.
So far I already got original Brabus 19' Monoblock VI wheels (my AMG wheels will be up for sale) and my first question is: can I fit tires 245/45/19 in front and 265/40/19 rear without problems ? I would like to keep the ride as comfortable as possible and 35 tires is a little harsh based on my BMW experience.
I also already got the fridge/cool box but I'm not sure how am I going to fit it since I don't have the ski bag.... so that also might be for sale.
I'll take new pictures as soon as I will get the car on Monday.
Thank you in advance for all the help and looking forward to be on the forum.

Iwo

classyS

Cheers mate!!! welcome to the forums, as for the tire question - im pretty sure our expert veterans will chime in here very soon

i like brabus rims and i do own the monoblocks 6 in 20x9.5 with et44 offsets all around, they were up for sale but i couldnt let them go even with how cheap i got them for, not a scratch or ding on it, i took this pic today here she is:

CarboyS

Yay I love your car with the brabus wheels

IwoS500

I would really appreciate help with tires sizes. I'm not sure if I should go with 35 or 40
I'm going to carry people in the back and I want the ride to be as comfortable as possible.
Is 18 vs 19 going to be that much of a difference ?
Thx

classyS

it depends if youre trying to achieve the lowest ride height with your 19s - with both tire sizes 35 and 40, u wont notice that much of a difference however if youre not touching ride height, u probably wont notice at all and also it depends if u plan on using the dampening of suspension (comfort/sport/very sport) leaving it on comfort, u can hardly tell..

i noticed youre still awaiting shipment of the vehicle, youll have to drive it and feel how smooth the ride is, i know 35 or 40 is a hard decision to make - in the meantime try posting in wheel & tire section of this forum and benzworld.org

make sure to take some pics of her when she comes in!!

IwoS500

Great, thank you classyS

I'm also not sure if I should run spacer or not ?
Any idea ?

classyS

spacers.. do u know the offsets of your brabus rims? i guess it depends once your at the tire shop and they mount the wheels and give it a test spin while bolted on to verify clearance of calipers and lug bolts being too long, they should verify all this.

another thing is your stock wheels lug bolts, i recommend getting a new set of "ball seated" lug bolts for rims as all brabus wheels are ball seat, most tire shops should have a set of ball seated bolts with proper length for fitment - not sure about the length in mm but the only way is to have the tech measure the lugs with the physical rims, hope this helps and keep us posted!!

IwoS500

Thank you classyS
The spacers and ball seated bolts with proper length for fitment came already with the rims which are 8.5 and 9
They came off W220 so I assume I'll need the spacers but then having 40 profile rear tire is I think out of question.... Not sure...
I will do as advised and I'll experiment with the settings on 18' first.
I understand that in the sport setting the car lowers itself a bit..?

classyS

it actually lowers while driving once youve hit 70-80mph about 1/2 to 3/4 inch and returns to normal height at returning speeds of 30-40mph, not too sure about exact mph of when it lowers and raises but with the average of what others said, threshold is 70-80mph and normalizes 30-40mph..

for some odd reason i never thought to check if the very sport or sport mode in suspension lowers the car, i always thought it stiffens the suspension but i may be wrong lol im going to test it this weekend, it does feel like it drops because of the stiff effect or maybe both.. experts!!!!!! where are u guys lol

IwoS500

That's interesting. I didn't know it adjusts itself based on speed.
I looked on Youtube and there are videos showing cars lowering and raising..
but I don't know if it's custom or that's standard airmatic option ?
if yes how big of a gap is it ? 1inch or more ?

classyS

its between 1/2 and 1 inch that it lowers, i think if u ask everyone here about what they love best about the car.. its how smooth the car drives via airmatic suspension!!!

i love my car and youve got the upgraded model!!! youre in for a good one!!!