I just bought a Euro-spec 350SE and am in the process of swapping out the rather undignified 16 inch wheels for 16 inch 8-hole M-B wheels. One of the 16's-with-tire will become the spare.

The car came with the ORIGINAL spare tire mounted on the normal steel wheels. Tire has never been on the ground. For obvious reasons I am disinclined to trust a 37-year old tire as my spare. Mechanic thinks it is fine due to no UV exposure. If anyone wants/needs it for restoration, show car purposes, you are welcome to it. Just pay shipping from Texas.

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Charles Cleaver
1975 350SE + 1992 300CE-24 SportLine 5-speed + 2002 SLK320 6-speed + 1974 W114 280
1986 190E 2.3-16 (Decomm rear self-leveling suspension; Euro-code headlamps) sold
2004 Audi S4 6-spd - sold
1969 (2) and 1980 Porsche 911T, S, and SC - alas gone
1987 300SDL - Graf Spee; Euro-code headlamps; 16-inch 8-hole wheels - sold
1994 E420+(E500 suspension/E-code headlamps/PAD chip) sold
1968 250SE 4-speed (NICE car) - long gone
1962 220S 4-speed/column mount - long gone

For what's worth....

I had a 1979 240D with original spare. In 2004 I had a flat, so I put on the 'new' 25 year old spare. As far as I could tell it had never been out of the car.

I did have to put in some air, but not much.

It blew out after 70 miles of highway driving. I lived way out in the country, so when I made a run into town I had the flat fixed. At least I had a spare to put on after my original spare failed and left me on the side of the Cimarron Turnpike.

How a tire can go bad by just sitting there is beyond my ability to explain, but they will.

Rubber releases its own kind of lubricant when it is moved. All that happens at a molecular level. When they do not move for X amount of years, the rubber dries, and becomes brittle. ( Dry rot)

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Eugene

10 E63 AMG
93 300te 4matic
07 BMW X3
14 Ford F-150 Fx2

Marc at Garage VanDe Velde in Belgium buys unused spare wheels for his collection . He has quite a few odd mercedes wheels with new unused ancient spare wheels .