4matic in snow with staggered wheels
 

Drove my 2013 S550 4matic in the snow and ice today and it handled pretty bad, felt real squirrely. I have staggered wheels and 13MM spacers in the rear, could that be causing the unstable feeling. Ready to go back to a square set up at least for the winter. Wondering if having the rear tires sticking out past the fronts is causing it to track weird.

Mine feels fine. what tires do you have? I have conti dws and like them.

I live in West Michigan and have been using dedicated winter tires (and wheels) for the past 25 years. I have tried everything from Blizzaks, Pirellis, Yokahama's and my latest set are the Nokian hakkapeliitta r2s. Which are spectacular.

Should have mentioned I am running Michelin AS3 radials.

Im not familiar w those are they a snow tire? or at least an all season?

All Season.

try with full slicks. i am sure it will be even worse- especially on slush and ice.

dude... really? :p:

lol

All "all-season" tires suck badly on snow and ice. They should really be called "3-season" tires. If you live in a climate that gets very cold with snow or ice in the winter, then you should be running dedicated snow tires in the winter...even if you have 4matic. The only thing 4matic is good for in the winter is acceleration from a stop. But it doesn't help you stop or turn on snowy or icy roads with "all season" or summer tires.

"All-season" tires can even suck on dry roads when it's very cold. The rubber gets harder the colder it gets outside, eventually turning your tires into rolling hockey pucks. Snow tires have a completely different compound that stays supple in cold weather, making tire grip better in cold conditions that are dry or have moisture.

And do not get just rear snow tires. You need a matching set at all 4 corners.

I have Blizzaks 255/35/20 on all 4 corners of my S63 and I'm very happy even in the Buffalo winters.

My wife's C300 4-Matic has all seasons on it and it's a beast in the snow.

Ya, if I was in a colder climate I would get snow treads, it just does not get that cold in Seattle. The only time I face any snow is when I go up to the mountains.

Michelin AS3's completely suck in the snow, at least the original versions do. I've heard that the updated version is better but I wouldn't bet on it. However, don't worry it's not your car it's the tires.

Yes, there's a newer plus version of that tire AS3+ that came out a year ago.