Colliot

It seems that people prefer larger wheels for better aesthetics, but personally, I care much more about NVH (noise, vibration, harshness). Thus, it seems best to opt for 19-inch tires. However, I wonder how much difference there is between a 19-inch tire and a 20-inch one.

carlosinseattle

A smaller wheel diameter means you can have taller tires. All things else being equal, a taller sidewall will reduce NVH. So if comfort is more important than sporty handling 19' will be a better choice than 20's. I love the look of 20's, and I probably drive my car in a more sporty manner than most people, so 20's are better for me. And the rice is still amazingly smooth, but not quite as amazing as with 19's.

Tom in Austin

That's a lengthy discussion. The simple answer is that larger diameter wheels use tires with shorter sidewalls. Since the sidewall of tire does a lot to absorb NVH, a tire with a taller sidewall will have an advantage in NVH over one with a shorter sidewall. The tire you use is also a factor as tires vary widely in NVH ... just look at Tire Rack's "Noise" and "Ride Comfort" scores and you can see these differences. Some have posted on here that a W222 on 18" wheels with a certain type of tire is dramatically different from one on 20" wheels and run flat tires.

joeshannon095

If NVH is your biggest concern is NVH and ride quality then I’d suggest you go with an 18” wheel with non run flat, grand touring all season tires. Something specifically designed to be as quiet as possible. Only issue is you won’t be able to fit 18” wheels if you have the AMG line package.

TripleDown

I'm living this right now - the 20" wheels on my 2014 S63 are not a good match for our pockmarked NE roads. Not only are the shorter sidewalls less able to help absorb impacts, but the larger wheel is heavier which accounts for more unsprung weight.

Does anyone know if a 19" wheel will clear the rotors on these cars?

S_W222

I had two W222 vehicles, one with 20" and another with 19", both AMG OEM wheels; so I can speak to that at least from experience and non-biased angle. The 20" were a nightmare, like a true nightmare; just read on the forum how many reports in cracked 20" AMG rims. As for noise and ride comfort, the 19" despite being 1" difference only, when equipped with great non-RF tires, it rides way much better than 20". I would avoid 20" AMG wheels if I can all day long, just based on experience, would never want those wheels ever again. The ride quality is what am mostly interested in, and the 19" is exceptional for the S-class and it is the best balance between cosmetic appearance and ride quality/noise..

tx170754

Had 19" on my S560 and simply hated them ( along with RF tires ) so, I put 18" with Pirelli's P7 Plus 3, night and day !

badq45t

My 19' with MOE Michelins are great not issues for me. I know people complain about the run flats but maybe I just do not no any better!

Mitch Alsup

I hated runflats on 20" wheels
I was sort of OKish with non-runcraps on 20" wheels
I love the new non-runcraps on 19" forged 3 piece wheels
I did 19" knowing that 18" would have reduced tire availability after looking through the grand touring section of tire rack.

DaveW68

18" wheels look too small and the tall tires look almost cartoonish on the S-class. I've got 19" wheels that I run with all-weather tires for the cold months and put the AMG 20" wheels on during the warmer months. To me the ride difference is almost imperceptible. The big difference was changing out the crappy GY RFT's for General G-Max AS-05 tires. They perform awesome in the dry and wet and provide a very comfortable ride.

If you live in a place where potholes are the norm, then you may want to go with the cartoon setup.

waterzap99

If its OEM wheels and you just have the stock rotors, then it should clear.
I am in the same boat. 20" wheels. Looking around for a set of 18". The 20s do look great, but with the roads around here, I like smaller wheels.

BeepBeepBenz

I like to think I am sensitive to NVM, and I went from OEM 20s to HRE 21s and could not tell a difference - I live in NYC so roads all around are terrible

The 21s were on Michelin 4S, which is well reviewed as being a great summer tire, so I think this offset the larger wheel

Tom in Austin

All of this is very subjective and a lot depends on your driving environment and what feel you want your car to have. It would be great if 20 or so of us were all in one place at one time and could drive each other's cars back to back to really see the differences and know what each variable does in practice.

You read people posting on here that they run tire pressures of 40 PSI or more, have 20s, run flat tires, etc. and say their car "rides great".

will_atl

I have 20s with Run Flats, they look great I drive on the highway every day, and there is a stretch that isn't great, the NVH bothers me everyday, it's an S Class, it's supposed to be smooth, then I get on the good section and all is good.
Oh, also, 3 or my 4 rims have cracked, I live in GA, and our roads are pretty good I think that 19s and non run flats would be a great way forward (no evidence to support my thoughts!)

SW20S

Not to me, I drove cars new back to back and the 20s just made the ride too hard for me.

I also agree 18s look way too small, I have the 19s on non runflat tires and I run them about 32 PSI cold and it rides incredibly.

tx170754

The 18" may look small (not for me ) but the ride versus the 19" is way different...at least on our Illinois roads.....
I'm traveling to NM from time to time, since we are building a house there....those roads are a completely different story, when moving there I may try to get back on my 19" since I still have them in my storage.....

SW20S

You didn't try the 19s without runflats though did you? I've had a lot of really great riding cars, an LS400, LS430, two LS460s, my S560 on 19s with non run flat tires rides as good or better than any of them. Might 18s be even softer? Maybe, but at the expense of looks and handling and since I'm really, really happy with the ride I've got I see no reason to do that.

I also drove the car on 18s and I didn't feel there was enough of a difference to make the tradeoff in look and cost worth it, and going to non runflats improved the ride on the 19s substantially. Running lower pressures does also.

tx170754

I did not drive the car on 19"s without runflats, I just put 18" with Pirellis P7 Plus 3 and it is an amazing smooth quiet ride. Apparently I cannot have these Pirelli's on 19"'s and frankly I care more about the ride than the"look". I've bought car with 19"'s and now I'm on 18"'s, appreance wise not much difference....to me !
But who knows, one day in NM I may try the 19"'s. You're on DW's, true ?

SW20S

I had P7s on my LS460s, they're great, can't get them on the 19s but I have Pirelli PZero All Season Plus on it and they seem just as smooth and quiet. My S560 on 19" PZeros rides better than my LS460 on 18" P7s or my LS460L on 19" P7s

I think if you had these tires on your 19s you would be very happy with the ride.

UrBusted

Selling my S so I put my 19" MOE runflats after using 20" aftermarket alloys + ps4s; they ride roughly equivalent. 19" non-runflats would probably be perfect for you

Jay04SL

This! Thanks for sharing. I have 20s w the AMG sports package and was doubtful 18s would work. I may switch to 19s, and it's good to hear that they provide such a different experience. I was skeptical whether the 1-inch would help, but I was confident it would- you can visually see the difference in tire thickness. So tired of driving on edge worrying about every little pothole.