Asymmetric

[Ancedes]

Having now a 6 cyl. in my 200 Fintail 1967, (W110) I decided to increase the tire size to take advantage of the additional torque and reduce the RPM and gas consumption. I bought 15" rims 6 1/2" wide and installed 205/70 R15 on them. The only wheel rubbing to the body is the driver rear wheel. Taking measurements, I noticed that the rear left drum is 15 mm recessed more than the right one. This car never had an accident, I cannot believe that Mercedes build some models with an asymmetrical rear drive. Is there somebody to check their rear tire faces relatively to the fender if they see a difference.

[mbzse]

.../... The only wheel rubbing to the body is the driver rear wheel. Taking measurements, I noticed that the rear left drum is 15 mm recessed more than the right one

The rear end of 60s Mercedes cars are fitted with a so called Panhard rod for the rear axle side position, and this is mounted with rubber bushings. These bushings are most likely worn on your car and thus cause the axle to no longer be centered.  The panhard rod (locating strut) is adjustable.
Read some more here: http://www.sl113.org/wiki/DriveShaft/RearAxle
/Hans in Sweden

[GGR]

Your rubber bushings on the Panhard rod are worn or the rod is misadjusted. I would be curious to know what wheels you used, out of what car?

[Ancedes]

My 15" rims are coming from a Mercedes 190 of the 90's. The offset (ET) is 37 mm.
I will make measurements of the rear axle tomorrow and will order new bushings. Thanks for the solution.

[GGR]

Are you using wheel spacers? What kind of hubcaps are you using? I'm asking because I may go a similar route on a fintail soon.

[Ancedes]

No wheel spacers. The rims are aftermarket steel painted black. We use them to mount winter tires here in Canada, to conserve mags in top condition. I use the same hub caps and will buy beauty chrome rings (ABS) 15" in diameter. To retain the hub caps, I use spherical nuts you find in your lighting store department with 8/32 screws.

[Ancedes]

Checking the distances between front and rear wheels, they are identical. The Panhard bar bushings seems to be new. Probably a faulty installation by a former owner. Will readjust!

[GGR]

Nice job on the wheels! I did the same thing on my Coupe, but I used 15x7 wheels with ET25. The coupe is wider and I'm not sure they would clear the fenders on a Fintail, though it would be quite easy to try.

When I do the adjustment, I check the distance between the tire and the chassis rail behind the wheel, at 9 o'clock when facing the left rear wheel and 3 o'clock for the right rear wheel. You need to make the measurement when the car is sitting on its wheels in the normal position, not when it is jacked up.

If you end up with problems with the tires rubbing when you corner hard, let me know, there are ways to stiffen the system.

Could you post pictures of that fintail with the wheels and a hubcap (or at least one of them) so that I have an idea on the way it looks? I would also be interested in knowing the clearance from inner and outer fenders. A good test is to put one rear wheel on a high spot and turn the steering to check if the top of the front wheels clear the top of the wheel arch. I had surprises on my Pagoda and I had to review my set-up.

[Ancedes]

The look is not great not having trim rings bought yet.  Also I tried to buy white side  band tires, but they are rare today, except if you go with Cocker tires with $$$. The clearance between the tire and the inner fender where the shock housing is protruding is 3/8". Not a lot but if you want more, better to buy 6" wide rims instead of 6 1/2". The front wheel are not rubbing but near to. After installing a 6 cyl. engine which is heavier than the 4 cyl. I have to put a spacer under each front spring to level the car and get more tire clearance. A spacer in the middle of the springs will do the same.

[GGR]

Nice! With the 15" beauty ring it will look great! What's the clearance between the tire and the fender lip? Looks to be quite close on the picture. When you're done take a few corners aggressively. If it rubs you can further compress the donuts on the Panhard rod. For that you need to enlarge the inner diameter of the outer cup, or fit an inner one in place of the outer one if you have a spare.

If you take your front springs out to fit thicker shims, you will be better with replacing the front springs with stiffer ones instead, out of a w108 for example. Handling will be much better. The ones you have are too soft and with the heavier engine you will end up with a lot of brake diving end leaning in the corners.

[Ancedes]

I have 1 1/4" clearance between the tire and the fender lip, very sufficient. On my 190sl, I installed spacer between coil spring spires and I am happy with the higher level and more rigidity. This will be my first move on the now 230. If I have the opportunity to buy W108 front springs on ebay at a reasonable price, I will buy them.
I am a bit disappointed about the RPM reduction. The original tires are 24" in diameter and the new ones 26.3" I expected near 10% slower RPM but in fact I got only 6.4% reduction, measured with a GPS.

[GGR]

You can still try 205/75-15 tires. But the 230 is a revvy engine. I have a 4:08:1 rear end on mine and 205/70-14 tires. I think the rear end is just fine. Going with a different ratio would really bring a gap in between gears. The 230 is not very torquey. Your other option is to fit a 280 motor and a 3:27 in the back. On mine, I'm planning to fit a euro 5.0L v8 and a 2.85:1 ratio in the back.

[Ancedes]

You know that FINTAILS do not bring a lot of money when selling them, that is why I do not want to invest a lot of money in. Is somebody ever used twist metal spacer to place between spring coils to lift the car by 1"?