Stick with 19" wheels or bump to 20"?

[KennyN]

Went from 18" to 19" on my CLS , within 5 mins of driving i wished i hadn`t bothered.

Looked great but the crashy ride was woeful on our roads.

20170323_164827_zpsldptijjw by Kenny Niven, on Flickr

Just got myself a small SUV as a daily and aesthetically the 16" wheels are too small for the body but it has really high (65) profile tyres and they suit our roads perfectly , i was contemplating replacing them with 18`s but ,as above, lesson learned.

K

 

[JBell]

Go for it, still runs a 265/45 R20" tyre so loads of sidewall

 

[LostKiwi]

without going out to look I can't think of what the profile of my 20" tyres are, but they're hardly rubber bands

They are compared to these....

 

[Blobcat]

They are compared to these.... View attachment 50799

I see you local roads are up to normal council repair standards

 

[LostKiwi]

I see you local roads are up to normal council repair standards

That was after it had been repaired

(Seriously - it had!)

 

[EmilysDad]

They are compared to these.... View attachment 50799

 

[keefysher]

They are compared to these.... View attachment 50799

Is that what the M1 has been turned into after all those years of 50mph roadworks speed limits.


Back to the OP, I have 20" wheels with 265/45 tyres as standard factory fit on my W166. I have airmatic suspension too. My previous W221 had 19" wheels with airmatic too. Both heavy cars. In your case stick with the 19" would be my advice. As wheel sizes go up, tyre prices go up, and choice of make reduce. Winter tyres also become v expensive and limited in choice to add to the wider debate.

The bling argument about filling the arches goes to the wall once you raise the suspension, too

Also 1" wheel diameter increase with corresponding tyres gives an overall diameter of wot compared to the 19" you currently have? I would venture 9 parts of diddly squat.

For example my current set up gives an outside diameter of 29.38" (tread width of 265mm x 45% = 119.25 / 25.4 = 4.695 x 2 = 9.39 + 20 = 29.39"). If I had the other available 21" wheels with 265/40 (265 x 40% = 106 / 25.4 = 4.17 x 2 = 8.35 + 21 = 29.35") tyres that gives an OD of 29.35" so in reality they are 'smaller'. By changing the wheel style to a 'fuller' amount of metal as opposed to say 5 spoke, you would give the illusion of bigger wheels if that is the reason for changing a perfectly good set up

 

[peternutkins]

I don't much like the ride on my C220 with 16" tyres and am actively looking for some 15" wheels. I am used to driving hydropnumatic Citroens.

Peter

 

[Blobcat]

I don't much like the ride on my C220 with 16" tyres and am actively looking for some 15" wheels. I am used to driving hydropnumatic Citroens.

Peter

Drop the tyre pressure to the bottom of the recommended (if you haven't done so already)

 

[LostKiwi]

I don't much like the ride on my C220 with 16" tyres and am actively looking for some 15" wheels. I am used to driving hydropnumatic Citroens.

Peter

You need an ABC equipped car...
ABC is based on the Citroen system....

 

[EmilysDad]

..... As wheel sizes go up, tyre prices go up, ...

Not always. The 17" tyres for my Omega were cheaper than the original 16" as they became a more common tyre size.

 

[Abb]

We have 21" on our W166 and it's fine. Came with 21" from the factory albeit a different style. Ran 22" at one point but then changed back to 21" for no other reason than another set I was after came up for sale. It does have airmatic though.

On a separate note, the CLS has a conventional spring set up and came with OEM 19"s, which are soon to be replaced with 20"s as was my previous CLS which also had airmatic.

More than happy with the ride

Be a dull place if we all liked the same thing.