Mercedes-Benz Forum banner

tire recommendations?

963 views 8 replies 8 participants last post by  Djenka018 
#1 ·
When I picked up my 84 380SL a couple of months ago, the tires were in very hood shape with most of the tread. Age was not known on these Dunlop, but they looked very good. Picked up a screw in one of them, so that one is shot. Seems the knuckleheads who put in my new garage door last week left a bunch of very sharp screws all over the garage floor.

Oh well. I put the spare on, looks like its never been out of the trunk with what appears to be original Michelin. These OEM size 205-70-14's seem a bit hard to find these days. Tirerack has nothing in this size anymore.

Looking for recommendations on replacement tires and where to buy them. Discount tire has Kumo k21's very reasonable, anyone running on these? I have had pretty good experience with Kumo on another car.

Thanks
 
#3 ·
Turns out TireRack does have a couple of options, the guy spoke to was wrong. They have the Kumho KR21 and Michelin Defenders. These are both standard all season touring tires, nothing special really. But, they are available and not expensive with the Michelins a at $100 ea but with a $70 rebate for 4 similar priced.
 
#5 · (Edited)
In looking myself, I have found that there is no trouble getting 205-70-14s, but they all have lower speed rating that our cars are supposed to have. As a result, most vendor fitting guides come up with nothing.

Best I have found is T rated. I think we are supposed to have H (or is it V?). But for speeds we drive, T may very well be OK.
 
#4 ·
Picked up a screw in one of them, so that one is shot. Seems the knuckleheads who put in my new garage door last week left a bunch of very sharp screws all over the garage floor.
Just curious...in the tread or sidewall? In the tread can be repaired...sidewall no. Over the years I have picked up everything from nails and screws to barbed wire (in Chicago no less...go figure).
 
#6 ·
H rated is the gold standard for our tires now. Not at all easy to find. Well, you can find some, but you pay lots for the luxury. Defenders are T rated and will suffice as long as you do not drive aggressively. The need for V rating (or H) is that the car is exceedingly heavy and produces great stress on the sidewalls which heats them up and leads to failure in turns and cornering. IF you can get a T 98 or higher, you will be fine. I Altimax tires had the needed spec. to perform well.

Vredstein and Coker do make V rated classic tires for the car. NOT CHEAP, but look GREAT! I could not see dropping $350-550 per tire, so went with the Altimax, but would have been fine with Defenders. Not sure about Kuhmo.
 
#8 ·
I just upgraded my tires from cheap chinese tires to Continental Conti Premium contacts. I have the 15'' rims. German tires on german car. I had a "swimming" feeling in the car and changed first the chocks and steering damper to Bilstein. Then new sway bar links. Now with new tires I must say I have another car handling wise. Definitely worth the money. The few trips in rainy weather (unavoidable where I live) shows even more the difference between budget and premium rubber.

Don't go cheap on tires and change them every 4-5 years - it's the age, not the remaining thread that should be considered in my opinion. Budget tires are weaker in the side walls and makes the car perform poorly.

I live in Europe so it's a different marked, but both 205/70 14 and 15 are widely available. A good tire shop should be able to make a catalog order.
 
#9 · (Edited)
I do have excellent experience with Kumho tyres and terrible with Pirelli and Falken but I think it is not correct to recommend a brand without the tyre model.

Each manufacturer has bad and good tyres. My excellent experience with Kumho KU31 and KU39 does not mean that the KU17 are any good. Much the same as with Pirelli P6 that are a suicide attempt in progress or Falken Ziex 712 that are good for the first 50% of the thread and then become like a bob-sled.

I got now 17" in period correct rims and that gives a lot of options that are, amazingly, cheaper then 205/70-14 and are space technology in comparison. If I was to look for a 14" tyre, I'd be guided with the Treadwear indicator: the shorter the better. soft tyres are IMO grippier and provide better traction.

edit:
here's a quick search:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires...TARWL2V2&vehicleSearch=false&fromCompare1=yes
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top