W124 15" tyres

[grober]

what is the longest recommended period of time a tyre should remain on a car when the tread is still within legal limits?

Industry recommendation is 5/6 years max depending on which manufacturer you listen to. Depends obviously on the environment the tyre has been kept in. Chemical degradation is a thermodynamic process so I would expect tyres would go off more rapidly in a higher temperature environment . UV light [ sunlight] would also catalyse surface degradation--- most often seen as cracking on the side walls. 10 years is far too long IMHO

 

[The Boss]

GENTS..LADIES

SO THE 124 CABRIO PASSED ITS MOT TODAY.. HAPPY DAYS..
GOT ROAD TAX TODAY AND INSURANCE SORTED..

TYRES WERE CHECKED OVER AND ALL WERE FINE WITH NO ISSUES..

BUT I STILL WANT TO CONSIDER CHANGING THEM AS THEY HAVE BEEN ON THE CAR FOR EVER.

I AM SOME WHAT CONFUSED...STILL

WHEN I ENTER MY REG INTO VARIOUS WEBSITE CONFIGURATORS, IT COMES OUT WITH

205/65/R15

BUT THE CAR WAS I BELIEVE ALWAYS FITTED WITH 205/60/R15 AS WAS THE SPARE

WHO IS RIGHT.. WHO IS WRONG?

WHAT WOULD I NOTICE DIFFERENTLY BETWEEN A 60 AND 65?
AND WHAT DOES ONE NOTICE BETWEEN A "V" and A "W"

Thanks

 

[wemorgan]

Wasn't the answer given earlier? You have 7J wheels therefore need 60 profile tyres, as per your spare.

IIRC the MoT checks for tyre tread and major anomalies, like tears. It doesn't check the age of the tyre. What's the age stamp on the tyre sidewalls?

IMHO spend the modest amount of money and fit new tyres

 

[The Boss]

Wasn't the answer given earlier? You have 7J wheels therefore need 60 profile tyres, as per your spare.

IIRC the MoT checks for tyre tread and major anomalies, like tears. It doesn't check the age of the tyre. What's the age stamp on the tyre sidewalls?

IMHO spend the modest amount of money and fit new tyres

cheers.

havent a clue of the age.. but I have never changed them in my ownership.. but then again i have hardly used her either.. so the thread was always fine.. just the tyres were beginning to look less confident to my eyes

Barry and I had an interesting chat about my use over the years i have had her.. as the new MOTS show the past MOT dates and mileages.. and its disgraceful how little i have used her... might have a good year with her this yeah though !

tyres were all fine before, just one tyre was looking low when i looked at her last week before bringing her off sorn, got it pumped up with the charger pump that came with the slk.. and all is fine.


I havent collected her yet. will pick her up this evening

 

[///AMG55]

When I bought the 15" 8-holes wheels directly from Mercedes in 1996, they came with Pirelli tires.

 

[wemorgan]

havent a clue of the age..

the tyre age should be printed on the sidewall - worth checking and it's free!

 

[The Boss]

the tyre age should be printed on the sidewall - worth checking and it's free!

cheers.. i will do.

 

[The Boss]

Tire Tech Information - Determining the Age of a Tire

bedtime reading sorted!

 

[The Boss]

so i got her washed today.. no more dust..

Tyre dates are 2501 and 1201 from what i could see on two of the tyres..

 

[grober]

That's the 25th and 12th week of 2001 they were manufactured- way past their sell by date- sorry!

 

[The Boss]

That's the 25th and 12th week of 2001 they were manufactured- way past their sell by date- sorry!

thanks, thats fine.. i want to change them anyway, as one was low when i got her off sorn..

maybe i am going round in circles now, but i am still lost on tyre change choice.

reading into the michelin energy saver, the dry grip is not good, and the wet grip is excellent.

however, 1. i do not plan to use her much, and when i do use her its very unlikely to be when it is wet..

so please please can you all help me with your experiences of tyres / brands that you have enjoyed on your 124.

and even perhaps which tyres to AVOID..

its a big decision, and i want to do it right, i do not believe that my use of the car requires the most expensive tyres to be on her..

ARGHH! i have clearly got way too much time on my hands to be debating on tyres! lol

 

[grober]

If you are not looking for the most expensive Kumho Solus KH17 205/60 R15 91V is a quiet comfortable tyre on the road- I liked the ones I had on my Coupe. £267 for a set of 5! from Mytyres
people also speak well of FALKENS --Falken ZE914 205/60 R15 91V £290 for 5 same source

 

[scillyisles1]

Further update.
Over the weekend, I had my still legal but old Michelin Pilot HX 205/60R15 91W tyres replaced for new 205/60R15 91W Continental Premium Contact 2 all round.
The new Continental tyres do produce a firmer ride than the older Michelin ones but the ride is still very Mercedes W124 smooth so the Continental tyres do seem to be a good match for the chassis.

 

[WDB124066]

I had a set of Comfortcontacts on the Cab, was initially concerned that they wouldn’t be able to handle the weight of the car and wouldn’t perform well. Well; I found them to be very comfortable, especially around 32 psi or less, they lasted well, had very very good grip, never squeaked or lost traction at speed in the wet or dry except for a little understeer.

Happy to have another set as I think tyres are especially important for ride the quality on the Cabbies - could very much notice when they were at 33 psi with the roof down for example.

A high quality modern tyre that is very compliant yet grippy, hard combination to find now days AFAIK, but if you really want the proper magic carpet ride in the (Sportline) Cabriolet......

 

[bolide]

I've been doing a few test-drives recently. The Michelin Energy suits the W124 well but is noisier and ore surface-sensitive than the Continental PC 2. The new Conti PC 5 is a little noisier than the PC 2 but is my #1 choice

The list of tyres that work really badly on the W124 is long: Goodyear Eagle NCT, Pirelli, Firestone, Dunlop.

The only tyres I've liked on them have ben the Continental Premium Contacts, Michelins and Avon ZZRs

Nick Froome

 

[WDB124066]

PC 5's might be too stiff for a Cab do you think...?

 

[scillyisles1]

Continental Premium Contact 5 are only available in 15" with the size 195/65R15 91H which is not suitable for E320 normal or Sportline.
I run Continental PC5 on another of my cars albeit in a different size - the ride is very firm and I would be very surprised if they suit the W124.

 

[WDB124066]

What is a good, soft, grippy tyre suitable for the Sportline Cabs IYHO...?

 

[bolide]

What is a good, soft, grippy tyre suitable for the Sportline Cabs IYHO...?

Conti PC 2 or PC 5. Blackcircles has both listed

Nick Froome

 

[scillyisles1]

What is a good, soft, grippy tyre suitable for the Sportline Cabs IYHO...?

Conti PC 2 or PC 5. Blackcircles has both listed

Nick Froome

A Sportline E320 Cab comes with the Sportline wheels with 205/60 R15 tyres in most commonly a 91W rating for later cars (W124nut seems to have an early car which was fitted with V rated 205/60R15 according to his data card)
If you want to stay with the factory rated tyres at 91W then there is not much choice in 205/60R15. The Conti PC2 being the obvious candidate which is what I went for. The other one I looked at was the Uniroyal Rain Expert but this is a symmetrical directional tyre so would limit your use of the spare in the event of a puncture.
If you are happy to go for 91V rated tyres in 205/60R15 then the choice opens up a bit more and other options become available. These cars most probably left the factory with Michelin tyres fitted and as such I would have thought Michelin would suit the car. Whilst I have not experienced a change from Continental PC2 to Michelin on my W124, I have done a similar change from PC2 to Michelin Energy Saver + on another car and the results were that the ride was quieter, the steering slightly less precise, the ride was smoother. Dry roadholding seemed the same as did wet roadholding.
The other option which I have looked at is to change the wheels from the Sportline wheels to AMG II which was available as a factory option. This then opens up tyre size in 225/45R17 where the choice is huge - in this size I would strongly recommend the Michelin Pilot Sport 3 (I am running a set of these on another car and they are excellent tyres)