Lets talk Comfort - my experience - issue maybe

[Adil_3]

Hey guys hope yall are good.

So just a little bit of background information - e89 z4 23i, use the zed as a commuter really and enjoy it over the weekends I do roughly 100miles per day so i spend hours in my car and ive noticed a few things and I wanna know if its just me - by the way Love my car to bits !!! Anyways ive Just done a recent tyre change went from runflats to Non runflats and its been a beaut in terms of comfort, drive traction all the jazz love it I had the potenza rf and it was horrendous back breaking and just - yeah i dont know how i coped so gone to toyo proxies t1 sport on 18s and followed mr wilks tyre guide .

ive noticed a few things and I don't entirely know if I'm the only person that gets this ive messed around with psi 42 rears 37 fronts, 34 fronts 37 rears and i cant seem to understand why this is happening i genuinely dont get it. So on occasaions my car will be the smoothest thing ever goes over bumps and everything like a breeze and on other occasions itl be agony again. I take the same route so its definately not the road surface like il go over the same bumps on some days/different times and itl be fine and then the same bump and itl be backbreaking (i do avoid them all but on occasion it happens). I dont have m sport suspension ( I don't think ) and my shocks seem to be fine as far as I'm aware (will get them inspected on my next service due in a few). But surely i cant be the only one this is happening to.

Anyone experience something similar or is it just me ?

[john-e89]

Hey Adil,

Strange one indeed. Only thing I can think is are you using sport mode on and off? If you do have adaptive shocks then sport will stiffen things up, it’s quite noticeable.

[Adil_3]

Hey Adil,

Strange one indeed. Only thing I can think is are you using sport mode on and off? If you do have adaptive shocks then sport will stiffen things up, it’s quite noticeable.

see when i change to sport i notice the change, steering wheel gets tighter body stiffens up and for some strange reason it gets more comfortable. Now i know this is strange but i genuinely don't drive in sport mode, like 10% chance i stick it into sport mode normal is always on.

[Smartbear]

Hey Adil,

Strange one indeed. Only thing I can think is are you using sport mode on and off? If you do have adaptive shocks then sport will stiffen things up, it’s quite noticeable.

see when i change to sport i notice the change, steering wheel gets tighter body stiffens up and for some strange reason it gets more comfortable. Now i know this is strange but i genuinely don't drive in sport mode, like 10% chance i stick it into sport mode normal is always on.

Hi, I wasn’t even aware the 23i was offered with adaptive suspension?
Rob

[Bodben]

Hey Adil,

Strange one indeed. Only thing I can think is are you using sport mode on and off? If you do have adaptive shocks then sport will stiffen things up, it’s quite noticeable.

see when i change to sport i notice the change, steering wheel gets tighter body stiffens up and for some strange reason it gets more comfortable. Now i know this is strange but i genuinely don't drive in sport mode, like 10% chance i stick it into sport mode normal is always on.

Hi, I wasn’t even aware the 23i was offered with adaptive suspension?
Rob

Big Red (my 23i) certainly has it!

[Bodben]

Actually I have more I can add to this discussion, because sometimes I experience the same change in character with my cars. The thing is though I have come to accept over the years hat it is actually all me......

I'm a pretty relaxed guy overall but I do a decent amount of physical activity (8-10 hours a week outdoors usually) and when my body is tired I absolutely feel the bumps in the road more. Some days, if my back is hurting then it feels like I could be driving a different car. I think it's me though, when I'm stiff, or beat up from a long ride on the bicycle rather than my body being relaxed and compliant, and absorbing bumps in the road, they go through me like a hammer.

When I used to do a lot more down hill mountain biking one of the things you learn very quickly is that the best bits of suspension you have are your arms and legs. I reckon the same applies in cars... to a certain degree. When I'm chilled and relaxed my car floats, when I'm tense, tired, or stressed it crashes and bumps over every crack in the road.

I have also noticed that after particularly full on days at work, where the pace has been high and the pressure has been on, I am a lot more sensitive to sound and vibration in the car. Adrenalin heightens the senses etc etc.

Just my two cents

[Trav]

Regardless of mode, doesn't adaptive suspension 'adapt'. Dependant on driving style and road surface?

[JimsZ]

I to do a daily commute and do about 80 miles a day, 28i. I have changed to Goodyear Asymmetric 3 Nrf`s and the ride is now so much more "comfortable" (Relative to the RF ride) I do a good mix of A, B and M roads and vary the route I take from time to time. All in the ride experience is now a pleasure not a chore.

However I also now rotate, occasionally using the SUV (X3) and car share with my wife. Her view, X3 every day of the week as the ride is just too harsh. The X3 in comparison is like sitting in your living room, AMAZING, night and when day compared to the Z, in fact so much more pleasant I have contemplated getting another X3 in place of the Z ....

The thought has passed for now though...

In my view the harshness is a little bit subjective (a bit like what do you want from your driving experience) I really did think the Rf`s where too harsh but was prepared to live with it. If i had not changed to Nrf`s though I believe I would probably have sold it by now.

Back to the commute, I tend to run in non sport mode on certain stretches of the route, B roads and towns (Expecting the bumps) and sports mode in other parts M and A roads and where I know its smooth (er) my driving adjusts according to my mood, weather conditions and traffic volume.

Also agree with the fact that if you have had a bad day you are in a different place, tense wound up etc. so the ride "could" feel harsher at times. However I find the commute with a play list banging away really helps pass the time and lets me wind down/relax both to and from work.

One other factor I guess is the other road users can contribute to your "feeling" of stress and how you feel the ride at the time. I have now commuted for getting on to 6 months and have been really (Pleasantly surprised) with the general level of patience and road etiquette applied by the majority of commuters.


That is coming from some one who has barely had to commute more than 15 minutes and a few miles each way until June this year when I moved.

Long live the commute and roll on the better weather

[flybobbie]

Mine feels different everyday. This morning the tyres felt really hard due to the drop in temperature over night. Even to the point i stopped to see if i had a flat., felt like 50p pieces, Asym 2 on front and 3 on rears, 18 inch. 38 front and 40-42 rear psi. Now the temp. has dropped stopped driving in sport mode, just too heavy.

[Jollyjoiner]

Hey Adil,

Strange one indeed. Only thing I can think is are you using sport mode on and off? If you do have adaptive shocks then sport will stiffen things up, it’s quite noticeable.

see when i change to sport i notice the change, steering wheel gets tighter body stiffens up and for some strange reason it gets more comfortable. Now i know this is strange but i genuinely don't drive in sport mode, like 10% chance i stick it into sport mode normal is always on.

I see the problem here. you should be driving 50% sports plus 40% sport and 10% normal

[john-e89]

Regardless of mode, doesn't adaptive suspension 'adapt'. Dependant on driving style and road surface?

No the shocks don’t continuously adjust.

[Rathean]

However I also now rotate, occasionally using the SUV (X3) and car share with my wife. Her view, X3 every day of the week as the ride is just too harsh. The X3 in comparison is like sitting in your living room, AMAZING, night and when day compared to the Z, in fact so much more pleasant I have contemplated getting another X3 in place of the Z ....

Agreed, I liked the X3 so much I've now garaged my z4 35i for the winter and now trundling around in a luxurious living room

BUT... I'd argue that over long distances the more supportive z4 seat and driving position is easier to live with. The X3's ride and all round driving experience more than makes up for it...

What we need is something with the z4's (e89) dynamic styling and seating but with an X3 ride quality... a ZX7 (or Spectrum )

[JimsZ]

However I also now rotate, occasionally using the SUV (X3) and car share with my wife. Her view, X3 every day of the week as the ride is just too harsh. The X3 in comparison is like sitting in your living room, AMAZING, night and when day compared to the Z, in fact so much more pleasant I have contemplated getting another X3 in place of the Z ....

Agreed, I liked the X3 so much I've now garaged my z4 35i for the winter and now trundling around in a luxurious living room

BUT... I'd argue that over long distances the more supportive z4 seat and driving position is easier to live with. The X3's ride and all round driving experience more than makes up for it...

What we need is something with the z4's (e89) dynamic styling and seating but with an X3 ride quality... a ZX7 (or Spectrum )

Still love the “go kart” ride of the Z too much to let it go