MGV156

Close to 15k miles on the stock rears and it's pretty much toast. Wondering if anyone has upgraded to a different size. I was thinking 255/35-18 or 265/35-18... What do you all think?

dsb

255 will fit without problems. however, there is little selection in this size.
265 will fit and may have problems if your vehicle is lowered.

kaze81

I will go with 255/35/18 tires.

Shark

DSB, so 265/35R18's will fit my '55 with stock wheels with no rubbing at all? Will that create any handling, speedometer, or Dynamic Stability Control issues?

Anyone have any idea if 285 or 295/30R18's will fit?

dsb

265/35/18 will fit the 8.5" rear wheel. I tested it out for a few days during which the front size was 225/40/18. I had no errors. I do not know how the ESP calculates an issue. Apparently, it was not too far off in size to create a problem. The handling was fine. I am sure the speedometer was off but that didn't concern me since these were going to be track-only tires. The real issue I had was the possibility of rubbing under EXTREME manuevers. Note, I already lowered my car with Brabus springs, so I ran a greater chance of them hitting the fender wall. I've attached a link at the bottom for you.

In regards to wider tires... Anything above 265/35 would require a wider wheel. 265 gets squeezed onto the 8.5" wheel. Usually, people have 9-9.5" wide wheels for that size. I don't think you stand a chance to fit anything wider. First, you need a wider wheel with a different offset. Second, I still doubt you can even fit >265 without some fender modification. And, btw, there's no fender to roll. So, it would require much more work!

Link to previous post. Look at post #17
https://mbworld.org/forums/slk55-r171/154679-what-tires-track.html

MGV156

I just had them changed this morning. Went with 265/35-18 Rosso's and the car isn't lowered. Here's a website I was using to see the difference in stock size to a plus size.

http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html