New alloy wheels for the 560SEC
My 560SEC came with a set of Simmons wheels. These wheels are not to my taste and were too wide for the car. The wheels had been mounted with spacers which I do not like. On Thursday, I secured a great set of 15×7 Mercedes wheels which I fitted to the 450SLC. This meant that the ASA Type 8 wheels I had on the SLC were available for the 560SEC. These wheels have come full circle as I originally purchased them for a 560SEC.
The ASA Type 8 wheels are a replica of the 8 hole alloy wheels found on cars such as the W140 and R129. They are easy to keep clean and look good on the W126. At least when I purchased them back in 2009, ASA Type 8 wheels could be bought with both low and high offsets.
These wheels are a huge improvement over the Simmons wheels. The 560SEC is an elegant car, but this one had been fitted with some gaudy accessories that I am slowly removing. After almost 10 years and 50,000km it was time to replace the Yokohama Avid V4S tyres on them. Given the mileage I now do on these cars, tread wear is not a primary concern. Tyres only last about 8-10 years even if they still have tread left on them. Based on the mileage I do, i went with a more budget performance tyre. It will be interesting to see how well they go. I purchased a set of Laufenn S FIT EQ. Apparently this is a subsidiary of Hankook and the tyres seem to get good reviews. At more than $50 per tyre less than Michelin it seemed worth a try.
While I was having the tyres fitted I noticed a very familiar car. Back when I used to commute every day to the eastern suburbs between 1998-2001 I used to see this same car. Even though I don’t know the owner, I recognized the number plate (starts with MSA). I remember it because I had a very similar W123 230E at the time. The fate of my 230E is unknown, so I am very happy to see this one still on the road.
I am going on a Mercedes Club drive this evening. I was planning to drive the 250SE, but since rain is forecast, I will take the 560 and see how the new tyres perform.
Did you need spacers for the 16″ 8-hole wheels to fit the SEC, since it originally came with 15″? Did you lower the car at all to compensate? And, are they replicas or originals? I’d like to do the same for mine eventually, as I think they fill up the wheel wells better.
Those wheels were Replicas – ASA Type 8, and had the right offset for the W126. You can’t take W124 or W140 wheels and put them on a W126. They will bolt up but the offset is all wrong. Where I live in NSW Australia, spacers make your car unroadworthy unless factory fitted or engineered. (i.e. a government certified engineer gives you a certificate which is quite costly).
While they were 16s, because I had lower profile tyres, the rolling radius of the tyre was within a few percent, so I was able to maintain the factory ride height and the speedo was as accurate as any W126.