S211 wheels

[bpsorrel]

My E320cdi Avantgarde came with 16" Rucha alloys (which I unsuccessfuly tried to sell recently!). I was (still am) thinking of upgrading them to 17" Ruchas with 245/45 tyres.

Am I likely to notice a significant drop in ride comfort due to the lower profile tyres and more noticable tram-lining? Although IMO the 16" look "under-wheeled" for this car, the ride on the 55 series tyres is very supple and I don't want to transform the car into an uncomfortable beast!

Also, MB want around £1200 for wheels, tyres, centres and fitting. Does this sound good to you guys or do you know of any cheaper places to get genuine alloys (but not the very shiny "highsheen/burnished" ones such as alloywheelsdirect.net sell - as I like the silver finish of the originals).

 

[Mactech]

I put 18" CLS wheels on my 211 estate and the ride was slightly firmer but nothing like the very firm ride of the Sport version. I don't think the 17" wheels will be a problem for ride quality. You will give away a bit in fuel consumption due to the wider wheels and you may also hear a smidge more road noise.
Best way to buy wheels is to keep an eye out on places like ebay for people selling wheels which have been upgraded at delivery mileage. I bought the CLS wheels that way for about £700 and sold them a year later for almost no loss. The dealer prices look expensive against that!

 

[jeremytaylor]

I agree 16" is too small on the 211.

You will notice a slight deterioration in ride and noise and more tramlining with 17" rims, but it's not soo bad. A lot of 211s came with 17" as standard (mine included) but it's only when I put my winter tyres on (which are 16" rims) that I notice the difference, and that will be partly down to the softer compound.

There should be plenty of 17" Ruchas out there, and you can of course get them refurbed to bring them back to new. I bought my winter rims (4x16" Ruchas) for £220.