GLE 400d Prem Plus /22" twitch ridiculously on road imperfections

[craggleboy]

Hi Guys and Gals,

Have the above on a 69 plate. Had the car for 6 months, took it to MB initially as the car twiches violently on manholes or road imperfections, the rear shoots left on nearside holes and right on offside.. First I paid for a 4 wheel alignment and that didn't make a difference, then the rear of the car started to wallow heavily on the rear so they replaced the rear suspension, that made the wallow better, but not Land Rover like, but didn't fix the twitch.. Since the 4 wheel alignment and rear suspension, I have now done 2k miles and now can see irregular tyre wear on the insides of the front tyres..

I am at the point it drive so badly I need to sell the car which is a real shame, as I love the look, speed etc, just how it drives is %^&*(...

Any ideas? Want to drive another at the dealers, but they haven't had one for months...

KR
Craig

 

[ajlsl600]

What tyres are on that?

 

[malcolm E53 AMG]

What size wheels are you running and profile of tyre and are they runflat? If as your title of the thread suggests they are 22in wheels with
low profile tyres that is the most likely the problem on our third world roads. I bought a BMW 435i a few years ago and that was equipped with 19in wheels with low profile run flat tyres which was almost undrivable on anything other than perfect roads. I didn’t downsize the wheels but did ditch the run flats and the car now handles how you would expect not pitching from one bump to the next and trying to off-road. If I changed from 19in to 18in on this car that would be the optimal for handling but I’m reasonably happy with it now.

I suggest you ditch the 22in wheels and downsize to 20in, my son is running 20in wheels on his E class and it copes well with those. Airmatic can add to the problem depends again what ride settings the has car and how MB have set it up but from what I read on your particular vehicle MB have been experimenting with a new E-Active suspension….

 

[Benz17]

I had found run flats twitching on manholes, since I replaced all to non run flats, the twitching doesn’t happen anymore.

 

[NJS5]

Welcome craggleboy.

I totally agree with the suggestion that you ditch the 22in wheels and downsize to the smallest wheels & highest aspect ratio tyres that you can fit, avoiding run-flats, as has been suggested.

I did this on my SL to great effect.

NJSS

 

[brandwooddixon]

I have now done 2k miles and now can see irregular tyre wear on the insides of the front tyres.

So not an even width line of lower tread depth as you might expect from too much toe out?

One question - do you tend to straddle speed bumps? I've found that doing so can buckle wheel rims, especially noticeable is that the unsupported inside rim ends up no longer circular this can cause odd tyre wear (as the tyre people somehow managed to balance it out).

 

[mattkh]

....... the unsupported inside rim ends up no longer circular

Please explain how the inside rim is unsupported.

 

[brandwooddixon]

Please explain how the inside rim is unsupported.

Perhaps I should have used "inside edge" ?
A wheel is C shaped in cross section - the outside edge/rim is closer to the main body of the wheel where the metal is thickest, whereas the inside rim/edge of the wheel has less support relying on the thickness of the metal to act as a cantilever to support the tyre.
Typically the thickness of the metal decreases as you move further away from the hub side of the wheel. The outside edge is closer and therefore the metal is thicker than the inside edge which is further away.

When hitting a bump the outside edge has more vertical support from the main body of the wheel, whereas the inside edge does not.

 

[Blobcat]

Please explain how the inside rim is unsupported.

No spokes on the inside edge so the full weight of the car is held on the inside edge of the wheel. This can bend the inner rim leading to cracks.
Go and talk to a tyre dealer, they’ll regale you with many a tale of woe

 

[EmilysDad]

.... This can bend the inner rim leading to cracks.
...

like this ....

 

[alexanderfoti]

I would highly advise planning a visit to Wheels In Motion for a geo and suspension check. They will be able to track down the root cause of the issues.

 

[ThinkPad]

I would highly advise planning a visit to Wheels In Motion for a geo and suspension check. They will be able to track down the root cause of the issues.

I always took every car there on purchase. Issue or not!

But is this still the best course of action since changing ownership to protyre? Or have WIM opened elsewhere?

 

[alexanderfoti]

Oh no! I have just seen the message in their site, that's a shame. I cannot say if any of the staff etc see the same.

Edit: reading into this further, Tony the founder and person who helped me many times in the past, unfortunately passed away earlier this year. Very sad.

I cannot vouch for the replacement business that is there now

 

[Benz17]

Tony has sadly passed away, but his assistant is still there, and he also knows his stuff, and a very good guy to boot, his name escapes me.

 

[Benz17]

Just remembered his name is joe