Glad I found this thread so I know I am not the only one. I have the S 75d, 19 tires, coil, 4k miles, and took delivery the last week in December. Totally different suspension coming from a Lexus. This last week I took it to the SC and they said the very tight suspension is a characteristic of the car. They pull the wheels and checked everything out. I have noticed as the weather has gotten nicer it is not as rough. The things that hit home for me on this thread was there a bad batch of suspension parts during the December/January timeframe and the occasional harmonic effect. I am in the process of adjusting the frunk/truck and lowering the tire pressure a little to see what improvement that provides.
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Rough ride
- Thread starter Union Pacifik
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- Driving Dynamics Model S
ahurst
Member
I have a 2014 P85D built 12/2004.
It has the plus suspension.
It is the best riding car I've driven.
It is firm, but not overly firm.
Temperature and tire pressure do make a difference.
It has the plus suspension.
It is the best riding car I've driven.
It is firm, but not overly firm.
Temperature and tire pressure do make a difference.
I, too, came from a Lexus (RX) to Tesla.
I've also found the ride to be temperature dependent
Below 20 F it's like a jackhammer
Above 40 it's 100% better. Still stiff and sporty, but drivable.
Between, it's between
I actually avoid the stretch of I94 in downtown St Paul because it's so bad. I always drive around that now if it's cold
One thing though, the ride at 20F now is far better than at 20F when I got the car in December. It used to make me sick and hurt my back.
I was heartbroken thinking I'd have to sell it. Now it's just annoying and fixed by rerouting
Mine seemed great when the weather got up to 80 degrees last week - seemed like a normal car. I was at around 2000 miles so I thought it was softening up, like someone earlier mentioned at 2000 miles. But it got back to the 40s yesterday and it felt rough and bouncy again on bad pavement. Will report back when it warms back up.
So far this car has been overall frustrating (AP2 and stiff ride). The instant torque is addicting and it is probably the best mountain driver on the planet due to regen braking, instant torque, and low CG. But for day-to-day driving around town (which is a high percent of my driving), I wish I had just stuck with my A7 for a few more years with an eye to the 2020 A9 e-tron.
Hopefully AP2 will make a giant leap forward soon, but I'm not holding my breath.
So far this car has been overall frustrating (AP2 and stiff ride). The instant torque is addicting and it is probably the best mountain driver on the planet due to regen braking, instant torque, and low CG. But for day-to-day driving around town (which is a high percent of my driving), I wish I had just stuck with my A7 for a few more years with an eye to the 2020 A9 e-tron.
Hopefully AP2 will make a giant leap forward soon, but I'm not holding my breath.
I have an update on my rough ride with air suspension. I was on a road trip to CA last week and got a nail in a tire. Brought it to the SC in San Rafael to get a new tire. While there I mentioned the rough ride and took the tech for a ride. Luckily the roads in CA are so much worse than OR that the tech could feel that it wasn't riding normal. When he got out he looked at the ride height and felt that the car was riding too high and not level. I always felt my car looked a little jacked up compared to other Teslas. He performed an air suspension height calibration and it seemed to have a big impact on the ride quality. I'll give it a few more days but maybe my issue is finally solved!
Ok, after seeing several reports that folks had their harsh suspension problem solved by having Tesla do a ride height calibration that resulted in the car being lower at the same setting before vs after, I measured the height in "standard" from the ground to the lift pads on the sides of the battery pack.
It's exactly 6 inches. I read that "standard" is supposed to be 5" but I'm sure I'm not measure at the right point. If I measure from the bottom of the battery it's about 5.5".
Does anyone know the reference point to measure the height?
It's exactly 6 inches. I read that "standard" is supposed to be 5" but I'm sure I'm not measure at the right point. If I measure from the bottom of the battery it's about 5.5".
Does anyone know the reference point to measure the height?
Can you measure your height on standard up to the lift pads? My wheels on standard don't look centered in the wheel well. Even if I select lowest they're not quite centered but really close at that point. I'm starting to suspect my car is too high.
About 5.625" from ground to lift pad on standard. Looks nearly perfectly centered in the wheel well. Prior to the calibration it was very obviously not centered.
I have a 2017 S90D with SAS Delivered in Feb so built in Jan I'm assuming. Same rough ride we are bouncing out of our seats, and it feels like its rocking forward and backward rather than having independent wheel suspension.
I may take it in to get it addressed. It also seems to cause some rattling in the rear of the car. I'll try adjusting the frunk and trunk some more...
I may take it in to get it addressed. It also seems to cause some rattling in the rear of the car. I'll try adjusting the frunk and trunk some more...
OilSucks
Member
S 75D with coil suspension here, and at first I definitely agreed that the ride was rough in the few weeks after delivery. The suspension seems to either have softened out or I have just gotten used to it.
Also raise your seat up off the ground, it helps with shock absorption.
Also raise your seat up off the ground, it helps with shock absorption.
So I've just picked up my 85D from the service center, and again (as I've been doing this now for almost three years) they say the suspension is fine and no problems found.
It's terrible. We bounce around like bobbleheads and get nauseous driving around even on SMOOTH ROADS for @#$ sake.
Has ANYONE found any solution for a coil Model S that helps improve this situation?
It's terrible. We bounce around like bobbleheads and get nauseous driving around even on SMOOTH ROADS for @#$ sake.
Has ANYONE found any solution for a coil Model S that helps improve this situation?
I no longer own my Tesla for this and other reasons. In the end, I was frustrated with a $100K car that wasn't perfect and decided it wasn't worth it. But, the suspension issue was pretty frustrating. All the loaners I got all handled differently. The smoothest car I drove ironically was a P85+ with 21" rims and air suspension. I think there are some manufacturing tolerances in the suspension system that contribute to the vastly different behavior people are seeing. I hope they figure out how to fix this for the M3, which I have a 1st day reservation for.
So now I'm in a used 2012 Audi A6 that cost 1/4 of my Tesla. Suspension is nice and smooth, and I can rest my head on the headrest while driving home after a long day at work and not feel like I'm getting repeatedly punched in the head.
Joe F
Disruption is hard.
Sorry to hear that. I remember you from the early days in this thread. My MS hasn’t changed over the year, and it’s not like any other car I’ve owned, but it’s not like any other car I’ve owned too in so many other ways that I tolerate the occasional rough road lack of finesse.
Hope the M3 works out!
I LOL at this one, you should talk to the $250K AMG S65 owner down the street about perfect. He has had the car in the shop one week per month since new in Feb.
Mercedes-Benz S65 AMG Problems and Complaints - 18 Issues
The only "perfect" car from the factory I have ever owned was a base model Honda Civic.
So what I've noticed, and I'm not sure if this has covered, my new 100D(3k miles) drives rough on asphalt. I feel all of the bumps and such, some might say that it drives firm, I'd call it rough but it's not bouncy.
However, here's the interesting part, on a concrete interstate it's bouncy as heck and also not as rough. That behavior is not exhibited on asphalt.
Again, not sure if this has been noticed before but that's what I've noticed and have been able to reproduce on a stretch of road that has both. I'm going to report this to the Service Center and take them on a test drive to see if they have additional insight.
However, here's the interesting part, on a concrete interstate it's bouncy as heck and also not as rough. That behavior is not exhibited on asphalt.
Again, not sure if this has been noticed before but that's what I've noticed and have been able to reproduce on a stretch of road that has both. I'm going to report this to the Service Center and take them on a test drive to see if they have additional insight.
I am on air.
The stock wheels/discs are heavy. One place Tesla cut pricing is rear discs, they have a casting for a small drum brake. The rear discs also fit a Camaro, I think, so that casting adds pounds we don't need. Tesla rims are mid range, light compared to steel, heavy compared to forged aluminum. I am excluding carbon replacements as the pricing is prohibitive.
The ride change is not dramatic, but it is noticable. I never could get meaningful mileage gain figures, probably 1% - 2% which is beyond my accuracy.
The stock wheels/discs are heavy. One place Tesla cut pricing is rear discs, they have a casting for a small drum brake. The rear discs also fit a Camaro, I think, so that casting adds pounds we don't need. Tesla rims are mid range, light compared to steel, heavy compared to forged aluminum. I am excluding carbon replacements as the pricing is prohibitive.
The ride change is not dramatic, but it is noticable. I never could get meaningful mileage gain figures, probably 1% - 2% which is beyond my accuracy.
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