Luke: tire & wheel question
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Luke: tire & wheel question
Hello Luke:
I am planning to order from the TireRack, this week or next, a set of four 225x45R17 Dunlop Winter M3 mounted on 17x8 Mille Miglia Bello wheels for the coming winter. I came up with this selection after reading your own suggestions for tires, the reviews and surveys from the TireRack, and receiving very helpful feedback on the wheels from Dmatre. I do have some questions for you, though:
(i) Adequacy of wheel size.
We don't get too much snow here (MD, VA, DC areas), which is why I am going with 17-in wheels rather than 16-in. My idea is to maintain as close a match as possible to the OEM setup. Does this sound fine?
(ii) Adequacy of tires.
Good weather or bad, I drive mostly on city roads or B-roads. When we do get snow, I need the car to be able to go up or down hills that are often icy and/or badly plowed. Given these two considerations, is it a good decision to go for the Dunlop M3 rather than the Michelin Pilot Alpin PA2? (I am omitting a third tire that you had also suggested here, the Bridgestone LM25, because I can't find survey results on that tire).
(iii) Fit.
As you can see from my sig, the car is a 2005 C230k coupe. It is stock and I won't be making any mods. The OEM wheels are staggered, but TireRack suggests non-staggered 17-in wheels for winter. Will this winter tire/wheel combo work fine for my car? The last thing I want is for the MB warranty not to work because I have installed aftermarket wheels.
(iv) Aesthetics.
The Bellos are wider (17x8) than some of the other wheels suggested for my purpose on the TireRack site (17x7.5). Will the result look good?
Thanks a lot in advance for the answers!
I am planning to order from the TireRack, this week or next, a set of four 225x45R17 Dunlop Winter M3 mounted on 17x8 Mille Miglia Bello wheels for the coming winter. I came up with this selection after reading your own suggestions for tires, the reviews and surveys from the TireRack, and receiving very helpful feedback on the wheels from Dmatre. I do have some questions for you, though:
(i) Adequacy of wheel size.
We don't get too much snow here (MD, VA, DC areas), which is why I am going with 17-in wheels rather than 16-in. My idea is to maintain as close a match as possible to the OEM setup. Does this sound fine?
(ii) Adequacy of tires.
Good weather or bad, I drive mostly on city roads or B-roads. When we do get snow, I need the car to be able to go up or down hills that are often icy and/or badly plowed. Given these two considerations, is it a good decision to go for the Dunlop M3 rather than the Michelin Pilot Alpin PA2? (I am omitting a third tire that you had also suggested here, the Bridgestone LM25, because I can't find survey results on that tire).
(iii) Fit.
As you can see from my sig, the car is a 2005 C230k coupe. It is stock and I won't be making any mods. The OEM wheels are staggered, but TireRack suggests non-staggered 17-in wheels for winter. Will this winter tire/wheel combo work fine for my car? The last thing I want is for the MB warranty not to work because I have installed aftermarket wheels.
(iv) Aesthetics.
The Bellos are wider (17x8) than some of the other wheels suggested for my purpose on the TireRack site (17x7.5). Will the result look good?
Thanks a lot in advance for the answers!
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Luke:
I would be really grateful if you could answer all of my questions plus the following additional one:
(v) Would you recommend H or V rating for winter tires? I don't under stand why the H-rated tires are more expensive in one case (Dunlop) and less expensive in the other (Michelin).
Please let me know if you prefer that I call your office number. Again, many thanks in advance for the reply!
I would be really grateful if you could answer all of my questions plus the following additional one:
(v) Would you recommend H or V rating for winter tires? I don't under stand why the H-rated tires are more expensive in one case (Dunlop) and less expensive in the other (Michelin).
Please let me know if you prefer that I call your office number. Again, many thanks in advance for the reply!
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From: SouthBend, IN USA
depends on the weather
#1.) makes perfect sense to me
#2.) I really like the Winter Sport M3 alot and it is a very good choice for your Benz
#3.) non stagered wheels and tires works better than staggered for winter use
#4.) the 8" width works very well because is right between the 7.5 front and 8.5 rear you currently have
#5.) "H" or "V" it really doesn't have that much of an effect on winter tire unless you really want to go over 130 mph
#2.) I really like the Winter Sport M3 alot and it is a very good choice for your Benz
#3.) non stagered wheels and tires works better than staggered for winter use
#4.) the 8" width works very well because is right between the 7.5 front and 8.5 rear you currently have
#5.) "H" or "V" it really doesn't have that much of an effect on winter tire unless you really want to go over 130 mph
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Thanks a million for the answers! I'll order later this week. One last question:
(vi) Is the H-rated tire more comfortable than the V-rated equivalent? Given that I am indeed most unlikley to hit 130mph on winter tires, comfort becomes a more relevant issue.
(vi) Is the H-rated tire more comfortable than the V-rated equivalent? Given that I am indeed most unlikley to hit 130mph on winter tires, comfort becomes a more relevant issue.
Last edited by ayilar; Oct 13, 2004 at 08:46 PM.
