rocks55

Hello all

I haven't posted much so please bear with me. I used to own an E55 and am now the owner of a CLS55. I'm trying to help out a friend who has a 2007 SL600.

He just replaced all four tires on the vehicle in an attempt to add a more aggressive "rake" to the car. To get the look he wanted, he changed tire sizes all the way around, going to 255-30-18's in front and 275-40-18's in the rear. The tires are Goodyear F1 All Seasons.

In doing so, he changed the rolling diameter of the tires and now when drives the car, it triggers the ESP and ABS lights after driving about two blocks. He does a reset but the problem reoccurrs every two blocks.

Would changing the rolling diameter of the tires from stock cause this problem? Is there any fix short of purchasing four more new tires? He's thinking about replacing the front tires with 245-45-18's (which he says have the same diameter of the stock tires) while leaving the rears as is in an effort to fix the problem. Will that work?

He said he really wasn't trying to lower the car but just wanted more of a forward rake. I told him he wasn't driving a 1970 Chevelle but what the heck, it's his car.

Any thoughts would be appreciated and I'll pass along the information to him.

Thanks

R230_Nicke

I really want to see a pic of this setup!
Sounds crazy

Anyway, the problem is that the rolling diameter isnt the same in the front as in the rear.
Same thing happend to me when I got a flat on one of my 19" and had to put on a 18" spare tire.
The car went into limp mode and I had to drive to the dealer in 45 km/h with all kinds off errors.
I bet his speedometer isnt working either?

.

lovemysl

One sure way to find out if changing the wheel size has caused the errors. Put the stock wheels back on and see if the same errors appear.

raymond g-

the tire/wheel selection is one of the worst I've seen. that combo is
outrageously out of proportion. the front wheel is rolling 75.5" per
revolution and 840 per mile. the rear is rolling 83.8" per rev and 756
per mile.

in other words, the inches differential per revolution is 9". not only is
it wreaking havoc on the sytems, but his cruise control will never work
properly either.

For want of an 'aggressive' and cool look, he's trashing his car. get pro-
fessional help....FAST! and good lord almighty, stop driving it in this
condition until it's fixed.

to induce a forward rake, mod the suspension, eg shocks, springs,
and spring pads. yes! the new tire choice will be perfect...with the
existing rear

SL2003driver

Why do people think they can improve on such a beautiful car?? Just shows that because someone has a lot of money it doesn't mean they have any common sense

lovemysl

Hey folks, go easy on the fella. He doesn't know better. Lesson learned, I hope. I agree w/ mods on the suspension to get the desired rake, but that will change an already great set up. I suggest getting a muscle car, like a Trans am or Chevelle. Leave the Merc as is.

SL2003driver

I hear ya but it just blows me away that someone that can afford a MB SL can't figure out that extreme tire size differences would not work??? Hell my Golden has more sense then that.