Tire recommendation

[cjbg]

I have a set of AMG wheels off of an S500 that I'm going to put on my 99 C230K.

Front: 8.5Jx18 ET44
Rear: 9.5Jx18 ET46

I know i'm going to have to run wheel spacers front (5mm?) and rear (8mm-10mm?) and I'm hoping not to run into any rubbing issues.

I will be relocating to Seattle from the SF Bay Area soon and I'm in the market for some new tires. I'm thinking of 225/40-18s in front and 255/35-18s in back. I've been looking on TireRack.com and DiscountTire.com and have found a set of Kumho Ecsta ASX ultra high performance all weather tires. The Pirelli PZero Nero M+S also fall into my budget.

What else can you recommend for wet-weather tires?

Also, is there a wheel shop in the SF Bay Area that has H&R wheel spacers for test fittings? And also is there a wheel shop here that uses a fender lip rolling tool like the one pictured here:

http://www.tirerack.com/images/accessories/product_images/medium/fenderlip.jpg

I saw a post regarding a June 2nd meet near here. I may be able to make it and would like to pick a few brains. :D

[allirroz]

http://www.tires-easy.com/start.html

[cjbg]

ooohh.. thank you for the link! toyo proxes available for the fronts! but none for the rears =(

anyone else have any real-world experience with some tires in these sizes?

[JRE320]

Why don't you try AutoPlus in Daly City. ;)
Yes we are meeting on June 2 at 1:00pm. Fudrocker - Union City
you are welcome to join. ;)

[cjbg]

woah.. is this the same AutoPlus that used to be in SSF off of Grand Ave?

[digital2620]

I don't know the price of the tires but I just got the Goodyear F1 GS-D3 which are awesome.

Hasn't rained yet (which is unusual for Vancouver) but they say Monday.

Tires grip like crazy. Saving wear on the brakes :D

[JRE320]

Originally posted by cjbg
woah.. is this the same AutoPlus that used to be in SSF off of Grand Ave?

Yes! its' the same one. ;)

[97C28O]

I have Kumho Ecsta SPT 225/40/18 tires on my rims. I think they work good. Price isn't bad at all too! 400$ for all 4.

I think their pretty good. They are summer tires but they also work great in the rainy weather. I think that the other Ecsta tires that are all weather have a decent tread design which makes them usable in the snow. These SPT tires are not meant for the snow so I think they're good.

Since your moving to the Bay, theres no snow. Plus the SPT has a better tread design than the other Ecsta tires IMO.

[cjbg]

I have a set of Kumho's on my VW GTI (89 16v) and I think they're great tires for the price.

You might have mis-read.. i'm moving "from" the bay area "to" seattle :)

San Francisco born and raised!

[97C28O]

Oh, yea i misread, late night posting..:o

[Logic]

i have those exact sizes on my 1999 c230 k and the tires that i have used in the past, yokohamas were too loud and rubbed in the rear in side but switched to falken ze512 not only were the tires more quiet they actually didnt rub plus the side wall has wheel or edge protector and are a little more rounded on the edges...i m on my third set and been very happy with them. they also have a aqua tread in the center for like your raining day and are m/s rated even tho the are a Z rated tire DES

[cjbg]

Thanks for everyone's input.. I really appreciate it!

Question for you Logic (and for anyone else running 255/35-18 tires on 9.5Jx18 wheels) , I was doing more research on the rear wheel width and tire width and I've got a couple questions..

1) Is the rear tire wide enough? I've read/heard 255 may not be wide enough, and to go with 265/35-18.

2) If your car is lowered, do you have problems with uneven tire wear front and rear?

3) Damn.. I forgot what my 3rd question was..