Adaptive Suspension Damping… Real or Ruse? Which one do you have? Find out fast!

[n2mb_racing]

I haven't noticed any difference between sport and comfort, but track mode is definitely much much firmer. It's rattle your teeth out levels of hard... So, I'd say it is doing something, but unclear if it does much during normal driving.

 

[patgilm]

Would you please tell us the model, delivery date, and suspension data numbers for your car? (Read how in one of my posts above). I’m especially interested in knowing the numbers of a car that works. Thanks!

Sure I will try and take pics tonight. My car is a ‘22 Plaid built in November/December 2021 right at the change in model years. What I do know is when I checked the suspension between comfort and sport the percentages were O% and in the 20’s, respectively.

 

[sorka]

I'm surprised there isn't a single post of someone driving the same section of rough road twice on both settings recording on a 3-axis accelerometer. There are a million apps that use the accelerometers in smartphones.

 

[sorka]

If one of the sensor pins is pushed in such that there is no ride height for that corner, that would show up on the real time suspension line graphs, right? i.e. Tesla isn't doing some sort of estimation and substitution of the real time graphs if one of them isn't working?

I'm trying to track down why my car (disclaimer...it's an MXP) is pulling the left under hard acceleration but doesn't always do it. I think I've nearly convinced myself, but need a few more checks, that the corner weights of the front left and rear right are a few hundred lbs more than the front right and rear left. It varies and isn't consistent. Sometimes they are all nearly the same and sometimes the the first diagonal mentioned is hundreds of lbs more. This would cause the thrust angle to change under acceleration. Still need to do a few more weighings.

 

[SteveSchweer]

I'm surprised there isn't a single post of someone driving the same section of rough road twice on both settings recording on a 3-axis accelerometer. There are a million apps that use the accelerometers in smartphones.

Read the thread

Plaid Suspension Accelerometer Test Readings in Comfort and Sport Modes.​

You’ll find it nearby. Notice that “sport“ is softer than “comfort“.

 

[callllvin]

Read the thread

Plaid Suspension Accelerometer Test Readings in Comfort and Sport Modes.​

You’ll find it nearby. Notice that “sport“ is softer than “comfort“.

Have you tried to call a service center and confirm that the higher the percentage the softer the ride?

 

[patgilm]

Here are my suspension numbers while I was driving.

 

[Maaz]

Are you near Palos Verdes?

Hey Doug, I’m in Torrance with a working suspension if you wanted to check it out.

 

[pvdoug]

Hey Doug, I’m in Torrance with a working suspension if you wanted to check it out.

You have a working suspension and I do not. I think it would be very illuminating to compare rides. I am retired and normally have an open schedule, but I do have a very busy weekend planned. Let's plan for something next week this coming Monday. I live near the Torrance border at Crenshaw and Rolling Hills Road, so we are neighbors.

 

[Maaz]

You have a working suspension and I do not. I think it would be very illuminating to compare rides. I am retired and normally have an open schedule, but I do have a very busy weekend planned. Let's plan for something next week this coming Monday. I live near the Torrance border at Crenshaw and Rolling Hills Road, so we are neighbors.

Sounds good, ill message you my number and we can connect sometime next week.

 

[callllvin]

Sounds good, ill message you my number and we can connect sometime next week.

Very curious of the results of this..

 

[MobileClimate]

Here is so more info on damping operation that I did not know

 

[Email]

Dec 2021 build...

My butt-o-meter tells me that comfort is softer (less rebound and compression damping) than sport, which is definitely softer than Track.

The lower the the "%" on the display, the less damping in either direction (Reb or Comp) that I'm feeling.

Just something I've noticed...On the highway, Comfort does increase its % of damping at higher speeds.

"track" mode does make the suspension very stiff.

If those who have the issue with the suspension would compare "track" mode with comfort (via their butt-o-meter) and note the % of comp/reb, we may get some idea of what people are perceiving.

 

[Email]

I will also add that I notice very little difference between Comfort and Sport at freeway speeds (UNLESS I hit I larger pavement height variance, at which the sport is somewhat jarring). The delta between damping % of each setting is less at highway speeds, per the display.

In the city, the difference between sport and comfort is much more noticeable at lower speeds...and the delta between the damping % of each setting is greater.

I'm not saying others don't have a problem, but apparently mine seems to work as I believe it should.

 

[rpo]

My S has a massive difference between sport and comfort, and it is an instant change. Just flipping it back and forth on rough pavement is noticeable in less than a second.

 

[ninefiveone]

Having watched the video, there's a key assumption that is likely invalid, and some misunderstanding of some other things.

First and foremost, if his car isn't riding/handling as desire or expected, I believe that is 100% true. There have been more than enough reports of people having issues.

But the entire theory is based on assumption on how the dampers work complicated but the signal reading he's taking. He would need to take signal readings off a known working car before building out the rest of the theory.

For one thing, the shocks can and do have different damping levels for compression and rebound. So 1) there isn't a single input going into the shock that determines shock damping. and 2) tesla is already using multicast signals in other areas of the car, we don't know what kind of signal is being used with the shocks. At a minimum there would need to be 2 signals (1 for rebound and 1 for compression) and/or tesla is using some other communication protocol.

TLDR there's no way it's just a pulse width modulation signal.

Also, there's a misunderstanding about compression and rebound graphs/lines in the dash. Those are meant to be compression and rebounding damping levels, not body/shock movement levels.

 

[SteveSchweer]

Dec 2021 build...

My butt-o-meter tells me that comfort is softer (less rebound and compression damping) than sport, which is definitely softer than Track.

The lower the the "%" on the display, the less damping in either direction (Reb or Comp) that I'm feeling.

Just something I've noticed...On the highway, Comfort does increase its % of damping at higher speeds.

"track" mode does make the suspension very stiff.

If those who have the issue with the suspension would compare "track" mode with comfort (via their butt-o-meter) and note the % of comp/reb, we may get some idea of what people are perceiving.

So… if lower % means less damping, (ie. Softer) why does the % INCREASE when you encounter rough pavement?

 

[callllvin]

So… if lower % means less damping, (ie. Softer) why does the % INCREASE when you encounter rough pavement?

The system is initially soft to absorb the bump and then dampens that suspension travel (number initially low and then a spike up). In the course of 1 bump there is a change (over distance) made to the suspension travel. I don't believe the display changes it's numbers as fast as the suspension is changing it's damping but that's why the numbers go up. Once on a smooth road the numbers reset to a low value (when in comfort mode).

 

[SteveSchweer]

You have a working suspension and I do not. I think it would be very illuminating to compare rides. I am retired and normally have an open schedule, but I do have a very busy weekend planned. Let's plan for something next week this coming Monday. I live near the Torrance border at Crenshaw and Rolling Hills Road, so we are neighbors.

When you get together, please try the old “shade tree mechanic’s” shock test: one of you sit in the car and activate the suspension, while the other simply bounces the fender up and down. This should give you a good “feel” for the damping rate. A low damping % will be noticeably easier to push and will allow the springs to oscillate longer after you stop. In this way you can compare different settings in the same car and make car to car comparisons for each setting.

 

[Unclepaul]

On another, more positive note, I noticed that my Refreshed X raised up by itself when I drive over a rough patch of road. Right afterwards it lowered itself again to it's more efficient setting. This feature was just introduced with the latest software update...remarkable