I've just bought an '05 Roadster from auction that has had a front end collision and this weekend plan to pick up another '05 Roadster that needs an engine. Hopefully between the two I can put a decent car together. I've been playing with a wide variety of cars for a couple decades and have repaired a lot of collision damaged cars. This is my first Crossfire and I have a lot to learn.
I'll probably ask in a separate thread, but is there any chance that I can fit 17" wheels on a Crossfire? AI says I can, but AI is wrong about a lot of things. The car that I plan to pick up this weekend had wheels, but no tires. I have a set of 17" Audi wheels with the right bolt pattern, but I don't know of they will clear the brakes. I just plan to use the 17s to load the car onto my trailer.


The collision damaged car.

 

Mine had 17inc amg rims when i bought mine.

 

Welcome to the forum!
The 17's will fit, but you just have to be careful of the length of the wheel studs. Especially on the rear wheels. If they're to long, they will destroy the emergency brakes.
Hopefully Jim will chime in. He's great with wheel sizes.

 

Thanks for the replies! After reading that the 17" wheels will clear the brakes, I've looked a little more at the specific wheels I have. The center bore on my Audi wheels is too small. Crossfire wheels have a 66.5 bore and Audi have a 57.1. They may be able to mount well enough to roll the car from it's garage and winch it onto the trailer, but definitely not optimal. I'm picking up the car tomorrow and do not have the collision car available yet to borrow the original wheels. Worst case, I can complete the purchase and come back in a day or two with correct wheels. I'll start a new thread once I get a car home and start sorting things out.

 

Your comment about the wheel studs saved me from a lot of trouble. When I mounted the Audi wheels on back, the rear wheels only rolled a little before binding on the e-brake. We put the original *no tire* wheels back on the rear and got it loaded. Those wheels are already a bit rough, so not that big a worry. The collision car should arrive Monday or Tuesday. I'm looking forward to getting one of these car back on the road.


Black '05 loading on the trailer.

 

That roadster looks to be in pretty good shape.
by the way, cool avatar. The Gyro Captain was a great character.

 

This is an ambitious project! Since the Crossfire is built on the Mercedes-Benz SLK320 (R170) platform, your experience with collision repair will be a huge asset.

Welcome Aboard.

 

I see you have a base and a limited. You could experiment with the seats. Several members have commented the base seats are more comfortable for long trips.
Good luck with your project! These cars are blast to drive.

 

Thanks for welcoming me to the forum and the comments. I've started a new thread Here: My Crossfire Projects to document and help me keep track of my ownership and maintenance of these cars.