Mercedes-benz S500 Tires

The early-00s Mercedes-Benz S500 was a later iteration of the S-class of full-size luxury sedans; a 429 hp inline 6-cyl powers the S500 and is available with Mercedes-Benz’s proprietary 4Matic AWD system. The S500 and all S-class cars ride on air suspension; despite its stunning performance, the 6-cyl S500 registers 21 mpg in the city and 30 mpg on the highway. As you’d expect, the S500 has upscale features like a heads-up navigation system that shows directions in augmented reality, a giant center touchscreen, a 12.5” digital display for gauges, a cutting-edge infotainment system, and advanced voice recognition for commands. The S500 is also full of creature comforts like heated seats, a Burmester 3D audio system, a full driver assistance suite, and limousine-like comfort for rear seat passengers, complete with 12” screens on the front seatbacks to keep passengers entertained.

Here at SimpleTire, our team has reviewed the catalog to pick out some of the best tire options for your Mercedes-Benz S500, including premium all-season, UHP all-season, UHP, and winter tires. We then ranked them in Best/Great/Good order. We used our SimpleScore system to assign a numerical value for the categories of traction, longevity, and handling for each tire so you can decide when to replace your tires. Ready? Let’s go in for a closer look:

1. Bridgestone Potenza Sport - Best UHP Tire

Next up, we pick a dedicated UHP tire, the Potenza Sport from Bridgestone. The Potenza Sport is designed to deliver on two fronts: dependable traction, quiet, refined ride quality, and a confident, spirited driving experience on wet or dry pavement. Bridgestone designed the Potenza Sport with a sticky and soft silica-rich tread formulation to offer excellent mechanical grip on the pavement. It’s molded into a performance-oriented tread pattern optimized to put the most rubber in contact with the pavement for improved steering response, cornering, and shorter braking distances. Four wide circumferential grooves evacuate water through and behind the contact patch, boosting wet–weather performance and avoiding hydroplaning. For cornering control and wet-weather traction, a network of 3D sipes helps with tread stiffness, and a tuned tread pattern keeps noise levels low on the highway by canceling certain resonances and frequencies. After our calculations, we came up with a SimpleScore of 9.9 for handling and 9.9 for traction. The Potenza Sport falls a bit behind in the rankings regarding longevity, with a SimpleScore of 7.3. The Potenza Sport does not come from Bridgestone with treadwear mileage coverage (most UHP tires don’t) and isn’t good for winter conditions. Tires like this aren’t designed for colder weather, as their softer, stickier tread formulation will stiffen up and lose traction. Like all UHP and summer tires, the Potenza Sport shouldn’t be used for temperatures below 40-45 degrees F.

2. Nokian Hakkapeliitta R5 - Best Winter Tire

If a tire manufacturer is based in Finland, you’d assume they have plenty of expertise designing tires for a tough Scandinavian winter, and you’d be correct. Nokian (yes, the same parent company as Nokia phones) has spent decades designing and perfecting next-generation winter tires, and the Hakkapeliitta R5 is packed with features and innovations that can help drivers get through the rigors of winter driving. Winter tires have come far from the heavy, noisy, clunky “snow tires” of 40 years ago. Nokian designed the Hakkapeliitta R5 with such low rolling resistance that it’s an excellent prospect for a winter tire for hybrids and EVs. Cornering, braking, and steering response are correct and precise with the Double Block Grip pattern (along with tenacious winter grip), with SimpleScores of 9.9 for traction and 8.6 for handling. One perfect example of Nokian’s innovation: the tread compound of the Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV is infused with Arctic Grip Crystals that help deliver the same kind of tenacious grip you’d expect with a studded winter tire. That is, except with no excess noise, pavement surface damage, and legal restrictions that always go along with studded tires. The tread formulation and construction of the Hakkapeliitta R5 are also designed for excellent wear properties for a SimpleScore of 9.2 for longevity. Like all winter tires, the Hakkapeliitta R5 isn’t a tire that should be used in warmer conditions. Their softer, more flexible tread formulation will wear prematurely in warmer weather, and tire manufacturers recommend that they should never be used if temps are above 40-45 degrees F. If you’re curious where that name originated, “Hakkapeliitta” is the Finnish word for that country’s 17th-century cavalry troops. As expected, the Hakkapeliitta R5 SUV has the tire industry’s Three Peak Mountain Snowflake certification for severe winter service.

This is an overview of some of the best tires for the Mercedes-Benz S500, but that’s far from all of them. Here are a couple more great candidates to consider for your Mercedes-Benz S500:

3. Yokohama Avid Ascend GT - Great All-Season Tire

The Yokohama Avid Ascend GT is another great choice if what you’re after in a tire includes great handling properties, a refined ride, and a year-round grip. Yokohama’s Tri-Blend Compound Technology combines low-tG polymers, carbon black, and high silica content for excellent wear characteristics and wet-weather traction. With its 65,000 mile tread life warranty, we arrived at a SimpleScore of 8.5 for longevity. With an asymmetric tread pattern with notched tread blocks, 3D sipes, and a stable contact patch, the Yokohama Avid Ascend GT gets a SimpleScore of 8.6 for traction. Steering response, road manners, and cornering are all direct and on-point, with a stiff shoulder and tread area that resists deformation and tread squirm, for a SimpleScore of 8.7 for handling. The Avid Ascend GT is also a member of Yokohama’s BluEarth family of tires, which means the tire is designed around manufacturing processes and principles that are environmentally sustainable.

4. Falken Ziex ZE960 A/S - Best UHP All-Season Tire

We’re rounding out this list with a tire we’ve always been pretty impressed with, the Ziex ZE960 A/S from Falken. Technically, the Ziex ZE960 A/S isn’t a UHP tire, but it does deliver the kind of performance you’d expect with UHP tires – except with the peace of mind that comes with all-season traction. The Ziex ZE960 A/S incorporates Falken's comprehensive system of circumferential, angled, lateral, and cross-hatch grooves with innovative Flask Siping that steps up hydroplaning resistance, registering a very solid SimpleScore of 8.6 for traction. Cornering, braking, and steering response exceed expectations at the top, with a tread face optimized for rigidity and robust internal construction. All in all, we gave this tire a SimpleScore of 8.6 for handling. The 60,000 mile manufacturer’s warranty from Falken makes this tire a great value, with a very respectable SimpleScore of 9.1 in the handling category.

Order Mercedes-Benz S500 Tires Online

Buying tires online can be stressful, but it doesn't need to be. SimpleTire offers a simple approach to finding the best tires for you and your Mercedes-Benz S500. Select your Mercedes-Benz S500 below, and then tell us more about the year and trim level to determine your tire size. From there, we'll show you tires that fit your vehicle and are the best match based on performance characteristics, but you can also look for the best value tires, tires that are on sale or part of a promo, have the most extended tread life, and much more