Winter Wheels and Tyres

[Epigram]

The tyre size calculator in Webbah’s post above ( on tiresize.com) is a very useful reference tool for anyone wanting to investigate different rim/tyre combinations. There are still clearance and load hurdles to cross!

The diameter difference between 225/45/18 OEM on an MP Sport and 245/45/19 OEM on an AMG in Wheel Size Category 2 is about 3.5%. Therefore it is reasonable to assume a change in diameter within this percentage for an alternative wheel/tyre combination won’t upset the electronic control units.

I would expect anything more than this would not be considered acceptable by MB.

It would be interesting to know what diameter MB has set for accurate speedometer /odometer readings in each tyre/wheelsize category .

 

[Webbah]

So I finally made a decision. The A/T tires will be a tough fit in any size. I decided to buy the 17 inch Twin Monotube Projekt Concave Granit color rims with the following tires:

Cooper WeatherMaster WSC 4x4 in size 235/55R17 with a load rating of 103T XL. Perfect fit, and most aggressive winter tire I could find to match the rims.

WeatherMaster WSC (4x4) - Cooper Tires™ Official Website

The Weather-Master WSC™ is a winter tire specifically designed for CUVs, SUVs and light duty pickup trucks. Improved snow acceleration.

www.coopertire.eu

 

[Epigram]

A good choice.
It‘s been a long journey but at least this thread now has the data for others making similar choices.
Pictures please when fitted

 

[Webbah]

A good choice.
It‘s been a long journey but at least this thread now has the data for others making similar choices.
Pictures please when fitted

Will post photos. Unfortunately it looks like 10 days or so delivery time for the wheels.

 

[Webbah]

A good choice.
It‘s been a long journey but at least this thread now has the data for others making similar choices.
Pictures please when fitted

Here's a photo from a website that led me to discover the Twin-Monotube Projekt rims. My MP is the same color and these are black in the photo. With a beige interior and the AMG package I thought black was too dark and the Granite would look much better. Fingers crossed!

 

[Epigram]

Expensive rims but probably worth it for the detachable protection ring.
Looks like that MP has had its suspenion lifted.

 

[Samebutdifferent]

Expensive rims but probably worth it for the detachable protection ring.
Looks like that MP has had its suspenion lifted.

Eibach Pro Lift?

 

[Webbah]

Expensive rims but probably worth it for the detachable protection ring.
Looks like that MP has had its suspenion lifted.

Yes, that one has a lift. This is from terranger.de

I have AirMatic on my 300d and can lift as well, but the issue with AirMatic is above 30 Km/h it drops back to standard ride height. There is no way to keep it lifted. The other thing is my mechanic claims that there is also no way for me to change to VB or Goldschmidt Air suspension as I already have AirMatic. So I don't have many options anymore for modifying the suspension. I've contacted several after market companies that already sell recoding mods for other models of MB's with AirMatic to lower ride height to see if they can come up with something. Those kits have been around for years but AirMatic on a V Class is very new and only an option from May 2021 from what I can tell.

 

[Webbah]

Expensive rims but probably worth it for the detachable protection ring.
Looks like that MP has had its suspenion lifted.

The price is actually ok for forged wheels that only weigh 13 kg's per corner. I'll be saving about 40-50 kg's of unsprung weight total vs the stock 19 inch AMG's. The only options I've found for off road style wheels that are homologated and legal are:

- Black Rhino Sandstorm in 17 or 18 inch
- Steel wheels in 17 inch
- Hess H53's in 18 inch
- Twin Monotube Projekt in 17 or 18 inch

After a lot of research it's better to get the 17 inch to have more tire options that will fit.

 

[Webbah]

If it helps anyone here are the sources I've been using to research off road setups. Only in German though, but I don't speak German myself and use Google Translate. Most of the good info for this is found on the German sites anyway!

Hess Automobile - Vito/Viano/V-Klasse

shop.automobile-hess.ch

TA-V2, für Mercedes-Benz Vito / V-Klasse (BM 447, Bj. ab 10/2014)

www.terranger.de

V-Klasse / Vito 447 | Tuning Teile online kaufen

Hochwertige Tuningteile und Styling-Zubehör für Ihren Vito 447 SUV Geländewagen oder Ihre Mercedes V-Klasse in erstklassiger Qualität. Verleihen Sie Ihrem Fahrzeug ein individuelles Design mit hochwertigen Tuningteilen.

shop.hartmann-tuning.com

MB Vito / V-Klasse / Iglhaut Allrad

iglhaut-allrad.de

 

[Webbah]

I know this thread is primarily about Winter Tyres and I posted the Cooper Weather Master WSC's in 235/55R17 for that. I wanted to follow up on what I've found to be the best choice for Summer All Terrain'ish tyres that will fit the MP. I've researched this at length and the tyres I will get for next Summer with the Twin-Monotube Projekt AT 17 inch wheels is the Continental CrossContact ATR in 235/55R17. This seem to be a great choice as they are designed for 70% onroad and 30% offroad use 4x4 and SUV with a good XL load rating. Hope it helps!

 

[Steve B]

The wheels remind me a bit of the Blindo alloys that were fitted to the army land rover defender 110 gun platforms, they look smart.

 

[Webbah]

The wheels remind me a bit of the Blindo alloys that were fitted to the army land rover defender 110 gun platforms, they look smart.

This video highlights the wheels on both a V Class and VW T 6.1. The Benz looks so much better imo. ;-) Can't wait to attack the Alps with a set of these on in winter.

 

[Steve B]

Just having a look at my tyres and the back ones only have a couple of thousand miles left in them. I think i'll just stay with ordinary tyres but with good wet weather performance (our changing climate seems to be more wet and mild). On the few days of snow we get a year I just use my defender.

 

[Webbah]

Just having a look at my tyres and the back ones only have a couple of thousand miles left in them. I think i'll just stay with ordinary tyres but with good wet weather performance (our changing climate seems to be more wet and mild). On the few days of snow we get a year I just use my defender.

I'd seriously take a look at Vredestein Quatrac Pro's for your use case. These are perfect tyres for wet weather and all season use. I have them on my 19 inch AMG wheels and they are quiet and have excellent grip in all conditions. Not the same level as a dedicated winter tyre, but more than acceptable and superb in the wet and summer too.

 

[Steve B]

Vredestein Quatrac Pro's

Just had a look online and they do get good reviews from purchasers, I'll add them to the list when I get there.

 

[Webbah]

Just had a look online and they do get good reviews from purchasers, I'll add them to the list when I get there.

My pleasure to help. I've tried many different winter tyres. Blizzaks, Alpin 5's, etc and almost all of them now have a V Tread pattern. I've found these to create a very annoying road noise at highway speed which made me a bit nutty. The Vredesteins have an asymmetric tread pattern and are super quiet. My only reason to change to pure winter tyres and new rims was for both looks and I may find myself in some precarious wintery conditions with ice this winter high up in the Alps.

 

[tomasi]

I there
I confirm Webbah’s impression on these vredestein Quatrac tyres
I have these mounted on mine also. 19 inch AMG rims and have had them for the past year (over 20 000km ) and am very satisfied with them. I live in Grenoble and use my MP as a daily so have been confronted to snow often and the grip is very good combined with the 4Matic. I am done with switching tyres or rims every 6 months

 

[Webbah]

Sorry for the delay but here are some photos of my new rims and tyres as promised! Super happy with the end result. As a refresh, I bought the Twin-Monotube Projekt AT Konkave in Granit with Cooper WeatherMaster WSC Tyres. The rims I chose were the 17 inch as this offered more options for tyres. After mounting the wheels I wasn't completely pleased with the colour of the rims on my dark blue metallic MP. So I went to my body shop and had them paint the rims in a matte metallic silver collar with black bolts. The rims are not offered in silver at all from the manufacturer, but with the AMG grill I think this works very well! Also the tyres are incredible. I've driven through some intense snow storms in the Alps and they handled perfectly both ice and snow. Finally with an offset of ET40 instead of the stock ET52 the rims sit flush with the fenders. Very happy now!

 

[Crispin]

Hi Webbah
Interesting as im in the process of doing this to my 2018 MP ( No Air)... Ive tried everything, currently on 18'' with 235 x 55 x 17 which look great but... just too close..
So in easy terms what do I require - Twin-Monotube Projekt AT Konkave in Granit fitted with (my choice) General grabber AT2 235 x 55 x17. (My standard ones nt enough offset)
Where can I order and whats the precise wheel sizing - Im trying to get details to the UK distibuter.
Any info great if you had time, Thanks Crispin