I ordered my 2014 S-class RWD in June. It gets built Tuesday (September 3). Just got the car VIN and build details from Mercedes, and the car has "R66 Runflat" tires. I don't recall seeing run flat tires as part of the car basic configuration. News to you?

 

A few other interesting details under standard accessories:


***** STANDARD ACCESSORIES *****


R02 All Season Tires

R66 Runflat Tires

 

Does that mean the car does not have a doughnut spare in the trunk. keep us posted as you find out more. Truly a disappointing development if true.

 

I really did not like the runflats on my 7 series.

 

Dear SteveVukelich is that info is authentic?kindly confirm

 

Called my dealer. He said all cars are now coming with run flats claiming they are a new and improved run flat tire. No more donut.

I don't see this as good news.

 

The information in my second post is from the build sheet from Mercedes. The car was built on Sep 2 and will arrive in Baltimore on Sep 20. Whether I have to wait until Oct 15 to take delivery remains to be seen.

 

If this year is the same as prior years, unfortunately you will have to wait. The VPC will not release the car until the release date.

 

Just thinking ... more than a dozen vehicles have been delivered to dealers already (see autotrader.com). If they hold the rest of the cars until Oct 15, do they have enough trucks to stock all of the dealers by the release date? And why was the release date moved back almost a month .. not enough inventory, not enough parts, cars do not conform to US law, a major hardware/software revision ??? Anyone know?

 

MBUSA will try very hard to keep this a secret. Most of the time the dealers don't even know. I remember when I bought my SL in 2003, the first new generation SL, I had the second car. The first one came and was delivered and then all the rest were held for about 30 days.

After all was said and done, it was all over a stupid bracket that held some radio module in the rear of the car. My car was fine but the first car had to have this bracket installed and its electrical harness replaced.

On a new car like the 2014 S-class with all the upgraded and first time electronics who knows what is holding things up.

 

Nooooooo. Runflats! The single worst thing about my 7 series. I can't stand it. Maybe, just maybe they are quiet and smooth on the new S

 

Looks like people were worried about Run Flats before even taking delivery.

 

Yep, shame on MB and others for forcing this down our throats.

 

Do you feel like you are riding on metal tires instead of rubber?

 

They're not rubber. They're concrete blocks shaved into a circular pattern!

 

Lets work on it this week. I'm going to talk to my dealer tomorrow and tell them it's giving me back problems.

 

I'll see what my dealer has to say as well.

 

By design, any car with run flats will have nothing in the trunk. No spare, no wrench or jack or tire fit kit. Just an empty trunk. Only thing I found was a tow hook...

 

They are using the same stupid rationale as BMW. Weight savings to show how much lighter the car is than its predecessor and some better fuel consumption rating.

 

I wouldn't blame MB or BMW as much as I would blame these ridiculous CAFE and emission standards being set by an overbearing Government. The manufacturers have no choice but to introduce stupid things like start/stop, ECO mode, plastic cooling lines and plastic electric water pumps and integrating RFTs on cars among other things to shut these special interest groups up. In addition to that now they have to market these things as "weight saving" Either that or the Germans have gone looney.

According to many people RFTs are nowhere near as bad as they used to be. When I was looking for another car before I bought my Benz I test drove a 2008 BMW 328i with the Bridgestone Turanza RFTs and man they rode like crap and were so noisy at highway speeds I thought it had bad wheel bearings. Perhaps you can work a deal with your dealership where they will install regular non RFTs to ensure a smooth MB ride. Only issue with that is you won't have a spare in the trunk.

 

Smaller fuel tanks are next in the weight saving craze to meet CO2 emissions - the whole thing is a total farce. In the meantime, they want people to buy electric cars and 52% of US electricity - is produced from coal burning.

 

Man, you guys are now scarring me. So, these RFT's are lousy even on 18 inch wheels? If so, I will definitely tell the dealer to replace them with regular all season tires.

 

For those ordering a 2015, when I read the DOG it stated that one set of 20inch wheels are NOT run flats. This is the 20 inch wheel option 53 that is NOT part of the sport package. The thing I'm very curious about is option 53 on the 2014 which is what I ordered ( I wanted the 20s but I don't like the look of the sport package).. I will certainly be curious if my 20 in tires are run flats or not.

BTW, car is all bought and paid for. Picking it up at the factory in 15 days.

Tom

 

My Email this morning to the dealership:

Hi Lou and Gary,

Hope you had a great weekend!

I wanted to ask you about something that I have been thinking on for a couple of months. I've been driving an S Class since 1999. This is my 4th. The last two came with sports package, and 19" Rims. I put Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 tires on both of those and enjoyed a very comfortable ride with the occasional flat tire that always comes with these "low profile" style tires. However, performance, road noise, and most important of all ride comfort, were really exemplary.

Since I picked up the new S Class, I have always noticed there was a level of ride comfort just not there. I blamed it at first on my decision to have 20" Rims on the car and left it at that. As you recall, all 4 tires developed bubbles and were replaced under warranty. Currently I have two tires with bubbles but have refrained from making my appointment to come in because the car is still drivable and I don't want to make the appointment until it is absolutely necessary.

However, more important to me than the bubble is the loss of what I consider "The S Class Drive". I feel absolutely EVERY road imperfection, bump, twig, leaf, everything. With the car always in "Comfort" mode, it is no better. In "Sport Suspension" mode, I need a trip to the doctor. The Magic Body Control does its best to scan ahead and compensate but these tires just seem to have no ability to absorb the imperfection and instead translate it to the passenger seats directly.

I went on the Mercedes forums which contains a barrel of knowledge and learned that there were many others who were in the same boat as me. They had selected the sports package plus 1 and were now suffering from the most uncomfortable ride. Included in this are some BMW 7 Series drivers who chimed in on how they suffered as well until they made a tire switch to conventional tires and all the ride comfort has returned and they couldn't be happier.

My conclusion is a request of MB Manhattan / MBUSA to consider switching my tires from these dreadful runflats to conventional Michelin Pilot Super Sports. They are available at substantially less than what the runflats cost, and would insure that this S Class would drive and feel exactly as the factory wanted it to in the first place. I would also ask that my warranty be extended towards these new tires. At the end of the day - it would be less of a financial burden on the dealership and more of a comfortable ride for me. A win - win situation in my book.

If I need to direct this to MBUSA - would you let me know who should this should be addressed to?

I look forward to hearing your thoughts.

I will CC this message onto the forum so that there is a sense of team work going on, rather than disappointed customers feeling like there are no alternatives.

Sincerely,
Bradley Reisman

 

Lou, Gary, Chucky: I have a 2015 S550 on order with the sport plus 1 option, but do not want the run flat tires. The 2015 DOG shows in a yellow highlighted note that the S600 has conventional tires, not run flats, on all of its 20" wheels; so Mercedes must be aware of the ride quality issue. I also pointed out to the dealer that the S600 standard wheel is a 19" multi spoke wheel, I would take that wheel if available on the S550. I am waiting for the dealer's response. Looking forward to hearing how you resolve the tire issue on your cars.