George

Tis the season!

Who else is getting snows for their car?

I'm looking at getting a set of 18" rims with Michelin X-Ice 3 225/45 tires.

Tire pressure monitors are about $100 per wheel extra. Should I get them?

Any advice?

BigHat

Good luck to you. I'm just going to leave mine in the garage when the white stuff starts falling so I haven't investigated snows.

I will monitor your post though. Wondering if the absence of the tire pressure monitors causes any false alarms with the car.

Centexhokie

Here in Central Texas when we do get snow, the danger is not getting stuck it is that idiot who is just realizing that snow and ice are slick as he slides into your car. Good luck.

BigHat

This isn't my only car, so I won't be among the ranks of the idiots sliding into the cars of others with the RFTs. I will drive my all-wheel drive SUV instead. Northern VA is probably a lot like the conditions you face and many people think all-season tires are snow tires and I have witnessed a number of nice BMWs and MBs messing themselves up and threatening other cars when we catch a freak storm.

I don't want the hassle of extra tires and wheels, so for my last three cars I keep summer high performance tires on and parked for the winter . Never mind snow, I'm also mindful that sub-freezing temps turn them into hockey pucks. So I buy a battery trickle charger and park it for about 8 weeks. That said, snow tires are a must for those that plan to drive in winter conditions and a call to TireRack would probably be a great place to get this question answered. Dealership probably can answer the sensor question, especially with the large amount of aftermarket wheels that get install on this car and other MB models.

Of course, with the proper tires these cars will do okay. I'm eager to learn about the TPM system though and if the absence of the tire sensors creates warnings.

Centexhokie

My comment wasn't to poke at anyone who decides to put snow tires on the SL. I was just pointing out that here you could be on the best snow tires and have perfect control of your car only to get smashed by the guy in the $2K car who is under insured and has not a clue about driving in snow. Here the snow events are so short lived it is best to just get a cup of hot chocolate, build a fire in the fireplace, and wait till it melts.

Wolfman

I am getting snow tires. After all, we have snow for 5 months a year and I am tired of having the convertible in the garage for half the year

I checked on tires and was happy to find that there is finally a staggered set of snows available:

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....0&autoModClar=

jmkworld

perfect timin on this thread. subscribed!

happyinboca

What is snow ?

California John

I've read about it...

jpeardm

we're getting a little in Boston today. F#!@!*((&IUU!

BillyD

I just picked up a new CLS in Augsburg, Germany. The MB dealer there strongly recommends against using staggered wheels/tires for snow tire applications.

Wolfman

I don't care much for dealer recommendations as they typically know less than informed owners. There is no reason not to do a staggered setup with the only exception of not being able to rotate the wheels. And that we can't do anyway with the SL wheels as the rims have different widths and are already staggered. There is perhaps an argument that narrower snow tires perform slightly better but that is independent of staggered wheels and not a deciding factor. The negatives are more obvious. If you use the SL wheels and put a narrower wheel on it, the rims will extend the tires and curb rash is almost a given, even at a car wash. Also, the front/rear rims on the '13 and up have very different offsets (unlike the R230 ones), so getting 4 narrower front wheels would not be ideal either.

Congrats on your new CLS!

BillyD

[QUOTE=Wolfman;5843113]I don't care much for dealer recommendations as they typically know less than informed owners. There is no reason not to do a staggered setup with the only exception of not being able to rotate the wheels. And that we can't do anyway with the SL wheels as the rims have different widths and are already staggered. There is perhaps an argument that narrower snow tires perform slightly better but that is independent of staggered wheels and not a deciding factor. The negatives are more obvious. If you use the SL wheels and put a narrower wheel on it, the rims will extend the tires and curb rash is almost a given, even at a car wash. Also, the front/rear rims on the '13 and up have very different offsets (unlike the R230 ones), so getting 4 narrower front wheels would not be ideal either.

Congrats on your new CLS![/QUOTE

I should have been clearer with my comment:

Here in Europe, where winter tires are law as of Nov 1st in most northern European countries, most owners have two sets of wheels.

In the case of my CLS, which has 19" staggered summer tire wheels (8.5" front, 9.5" rear rims with 255/35 front and 285/30 rear tires), I have 4 17" 8.5 width rims for my winter tires. The "authorized" winter tires are then 245/45 17V (or H) 99XL.

This winter tire set-up is per the Daimler factory specifications for my model, not only the dealer's reco.

Running tire/wheel combinations that are not on the authorized Daimler factory spec sheet is subject to fine by police and will not pass mandatory vehicle inspections which are done every two years for most countries here.

Hope this helps a little. Thanks for the congrats.

Wolfman

[QUOTE=BillyD;5843355]Understood. Still, keep in mind that German regulations (not sure about Prague) are not that tight.
While there is a requirement for winter tires, M+S tires with a snowflake are sufficient; not the dedicated snow tires I was referring to.
Also, MB offered snow tires are not factory specifications, they are MB's factory offering.
Any TÜV approved tires/wheels for that model car are accepted; they just have to be added to the papers. Certainly no police tickets/fines then.

That said, it's interesting that 17" are even offered for your CLS. Not sure about the R231 SL with the Sport Wheel package, but our old SL's required a minimum 18" wheel just to clear the brakes.

I absolutely agree that 2 sets of wheels are the only way to go. Couldn't imagine switching tires. I am planning to use the stock 19" AMG's for snows

BillyD

Two comments:
1) Mercedes specifies the authorized wheel (rim) sizes (Diameter/Width/ET) and tire sizes for their models, not the tire brands. While it is possible to get the German TUV to enter a non-listed size, it is a time consuming and somewhat costly operation.

2) The Pirellis you are considering just finished 11th out of 15 brands of winter tires tested last month by the German auto club (ADAC.

p.s. M&S tires are virtually useless in true snow conditions.

Wolfman

No disrespect, but adding additional wheel sizes to a car model is standard fare. To your point is isn't even necessary if you add the same tire size on the car...

M+S can never compete will real snow tires, no doubt about that. I do have them on our BMW 750li X-drive which had no problems with our Minnesota winters, so they work (but are crap in the summer to be sure).

Agree on the Pirelli's; they never made a great snow tire like the Blizzak (best IMO), but I still like the fit to my existing wheels and they are rated equal to most at Tirerack.
That said, I find it interesting that the snow wheel/tire (Winter-Komplettrad) package offered by MB for the R231 is in fact the Pirelli Zerosotto...

AutoGuy1314

I agree with Wolfman on the Blizzaks. Definitely top notch tires for snow and ice. But Michelin x-ice that George was going to buy is a great choice as well. I'm actually kinda torn between the two.

Pirelli winter sottozero serie II are pretty great as well. I have not used them personally, but all the users give a pretty good review on them.

Wolfman

Pirelli's are pretty decent. Have them on the SL now and the traction is good for a RWD.