midasmike

recently purchased an '01 sl 500. yesterday i hit a pot hole and blew out the r/front tire.
aside from that i'm not crazy about the ride on 18's. would like to switch to 17's. any advice or recommendations about this swap?

Roberte

'99 - '02 non sport SLs came from the factory w/ 17" wheels. I have a set of wheels only in my attic in decent shape if you're interested. PM me an offer as I'm willing to let them go at a reasonable price. The only other things I can add is that most newer MB rims require a larger diameter lug bolt than what you're currently running. There should be some information on here as to which ones you need to purchase that gives you a larger shoulder and the correct thread diameter if you decide to go that route. Also make sure that the ET of the wheel is correct for a R129.

midasmike

it's my understanding that the '01 came standard with the full sport package. my car also has the sl2 package which consists of zenon lites,heated seats and remote cd changer.
my understanding is some of the earlier models which had the sport package were equipped with 17 or 18in monobloc II's, the broad flatspoke model as opposed to the wheel on my car which is the more modern thin 5 spoke style.
it seems as tho the earlier models('96 thru '98/'99thru'00) came with standard 16in wheels. if that's the case, i should be able to fit the earlier 17in mono II sport wheels without any problems, correct? the mono II's i'm referring to could also have other applications such as c43/e55/slk55,etc.
i'm a former c43 owner so my knowledge about r129's is limited. learning more every day tho. hope this response sparks more replies.
roberte, please post pic's of the wheels for sale. pm them to me if you prefer. need spec's including size and et/offset. thanks in advance, michael

Roberte

I'm currently running 18" monoblocs on my car but they are from a '98 SL600 sports model. They fit is just fine. Regardless, since non-sports came w/ 17's from the factory, I would guess that the earlier 17" monoblocs should fit your '01 as long as the offset is correct. I'm not sure if the earlier 16s would fit a '99 up as there was a changeover to Brembo brakes in the update. I'll see what I can do find some pics of the wheels I have - it might take me a day or two. I can say that they're the standard 17" non sport rims that are straight and have a minimal amount of curbing on them. IIRC they are 5x112 bolt pattern with an ET34 offset and 8.5" wide.

m4xm1l10n

I'll buy your 18" for a good price !!

gmacd77

Does your wheels have tires on them, if so what condition are they in?

Roberte

No tires, rims only. IIRC they all do have center caps, but no lugs. As I'm changing jobs soon, there's a good chance that I'm going to be selling/ trading my SL in the very near future. I'll let these go pretty reasonably.

midasmike

thanks for all the response. i've increased the tire pressure to 39/front and 38 rear. so far so good.
i'm still considering 17in momo II's. have not found a set yet but will eventually. if anyone knows the part numbers for this staggered set of momo II's i'd appreciate a heads up.