Ride Quality

[Hozz]

I have to say I have been disappointed with the ride quality of my Superb III.

Every manhole that is not completely level vibrates through the car and I have to go really slowly over sleeping policemen.

My old Superb II was not great but it did not judder like this car.

Slightly wishing I had gone for the DCC option.

[rytmask]

Sorry to dissapoinf you, but dcc would not help here. Electronic shocks only regulate the "leaning" (amount, speed). More premium cars also have so called predicted corner compensation techniques.

Air ride mercs are what you want.

[Legacy]

I take it that you're on 18" wheels?  The roads around here are quite poor but my Superb is very comfortable on 16" wheels even with the pressures raised a bit.  The sidewalls are quite high on the 16" tyres so there's plenty of in-built suspension.  16" wheels don't fill the arches properly though so its function over form. The only issue that I have is that the Superb 3 suspension seems quite bouncy in comparison to my previous Superb 2 Greenline. 

[Hozz]

Yes I am on 18" wheels with Pirelli Cinturato tyres. I agree with you about it being a bit bouncy.

[Rebelred]

I've 18" wheels & I find the ride very comfortable, my other half has 17" on her Octavia & they are HARSH! I was very surprised by the ride on the 18's, i was fearing the worst but as I said above, i've no issue whatsoever.

[Gizmo]

Mine is on 19’s (and 17” winters) and I still have the DCC set to sport, comfort setting is like being on P&O and normal too soft for me... and I have a bad back!

[Stinker]

My SE Business has 215/55/17 continental premium contact 5s and the ride is excellent, definitely on the comfort side.

Deep side walls look rubbish but are so comfy, way less crashy than my S2 SE.

I notice most of the latest Mondeos are running what looks like 17s with deep walled tyres, a sign of our roads?

[TONYDO]

I had a L&K with 18's and had the DCC set to normal all the time. Comfort mode was to bouncy, sport wasn't actually that harsh but normal was perfect.

I'm now getting a SEL Exec without the DCC. Normal and Sport are fine. I drove a 65 BMW 520d SE and found that to be a stiff ride. I also drove a Mazda 6 on 19's which wasn't as soft as the Superb.

Personally I find the suspension generally copes well with pot holes etc.

[JimK8]

I have 19s on my current mazda 6, they look great but when combined with the general stiffness of the suspension they are real bone shakers and really not worth the aesthetic plus points. I suspect that things would be better on S3 19s, but have to say I'm looking forward to the comfort of having 17s when mine arrives!

[TONYDO]

I have 19s on my current mazda 6, they look great but when combined with the general stiffness of the suspension they are real bone shakers and really not worth the aesthetic plus points. I suspect that things would be better on S3 19s, but have to say I'm looking forward to the comfort of having 17s when mine arrives!

You think the Mazda is bad? I had a Peugeot 508SW with 18's and I would actually close my eyes at every pot hole. It was horrid!

The 2015 facelift Mazda isn't actually that bad

[JimK8]

Mine's an 08, haven't tried any of the newer models. I do like the handling of the mazda under the right conditions, it's just unfortunate the right conditions only occur 10% of the time!

[TONYDO]

The new Mazda 6 handles like a sports car. It's like driving a MX5 but bigger. Mazdas generally drive well but the suspension has always been hard.

There isn't much difference in the 3V Superb on 19s and 2015+ Mazda 6 Sport on 19s.

[BillyJim]

With Surrey County Council fighting a losing battle with potholes and Hampshire County Council seemingly unable to build roads, drains and inspection covers at the same level the majority of my local journeys are veritable obstacle courses.

Whilst I do my best to avoid these pitfalls like the plague, sometimes circumstances leave me no option to take avoiding action. Each time I grit my teeth in anticipation but I have to say I hear it more than feel it.

I certainly have none of the issues the OP is complaining about.

That's with DCC set to normal on 18" wheels which amazingly are still circular and not turned all thrupenny bit.

It certainly handles these knocks much better than my 18" shod Superb II did and I didn't have any real complaints about the ride quality in that car. In fact it was sheer luxury after the various 'sporty performance = hard suspension' cars I'd owned before it.

[MartiniB]

@Hozz

maybe you got this amazing feature

NOISE IN REAR SUSPENSION

 

17" wheels + DCC all modes

Edited 21 March, 2016 by MartiniB

[dstev2000]

I have the optional 19" alloys with DCC. I usually set the car to normal mode for most journeys. Comfort mode works on long motorway schleps and sport mode when I want a little fun, which is very rare as it's no hot hatch! 

 

I am on a road that I know has a crap surface, I switch to comfort mode and it makes a significant difference when hitting potholes. 

 

I agree that Comfort mode can be a bit wallowy at times, the car takes forever to settle down if you hit a big undulation. Normal mode feels....well....pretty normal. Sport mode isn't far off the ride of my previous Superb that was fitted with Bilstein B6 dampers and Eibach -20mm springs which kept the car pretty well behaved. I wouls say the sport mode is about 75% of the firmness of the old setup. 

 

I have noticed the back end of the car does feel 'skittish' and unsettled over certain things like smaller potholes or expansion joints. My last car suffered with this on its stock setup but was cured with the B6 dampers. The back end also seems prone to following certain patterns in the road, namely the tracks and patterns you get on the concrete sections of the M25. Maybe that is down to the Pirelli P7 tyres? who knows.....

 

The only problem with the firmer suspension was how it became pretty tiring over longer distances. This is where I'm glad I have the comfort setting for a break from the bone shaking. 

 

On the subject of body roll, I find the Mk3 suffers much less roll than the Mk2, even when it was on its modified suspension setup. This seems to - weirdly - contradict what some others have said. 

[Coops]

I have 19" alloys but NOT DCC, and have been pleasantly surprised by the ride quality.

 

OK, it's a bit "ship" like round bends at speed but on the whole I didn't have it to win point to point races, but to cruise along in comfort. 

[Hozz]

Just to clarify, I do find the suspension fine on motorways and roads which are well surfaced.

It's just that when I hit a small pothole, of which there are many in my area, or poor manhole covers it vibrates through the car. This is with the car lightly loaded and I suspect it may be better with a heavier load.

I do like how quiet the car is at high speeds, much better than the old Superb 2. In fact I find myself having to watch my speed because of it.

[Shhhkoda]

Mine is the SE Business on 17's and on crap roads it's a good ride. I can't speak for previous Superbs but against other friends cars on a particular bad road I know I can say it's a joy compared to theirs.

[Stinker]

Just to clarify, I do find the suspension fine on motorways and roads which are well surfaced.

It's just that when I hit a small pothole, of which there are many in my area, or poor manhole covers it vibrates through the car. This is with the car lightly loaded and I suspect it may be better with a heavier load.

I do like how quiet the car is at high speeds, much better than the old Superb 2. In fact I find myself having to watch my speed because of it.

I've found if my tyres are even a couple of psi too high it can have a massive effect on ride quality.

Definitely worth checking.

[Hozz]

Well interestingly sometimes the car seems to ride better than on other occasions. Furthermore when I have plugged in my cheap and cheerful OBD adapter it throws up a fault code which when I have looked it up suggests "Software incompatibility in ride level control module".

I slightly assumed this was showing up because I do not have DCC fitted, and I am not aware of any system which controls the ride level but if anyone can throw any light on this it would be helpful.

[Hozz]

As a postscript I took the car back to my dealer and it transpires a sensor had stuck. Problem now seems to be resolved.

[s4lty]

Hozz, can you tell me what the sensor fault was?  I am having problems with my 220TSI on 18" Pirellis, it seems quite hard and harsh over bumps and potholes to me, like a sports setting, when others say it's smooth.  I don't have DCC either and wonder if I have your fault?

[NX01]

Hozz, can you tell me what the sensor fault was?  I am having problems with my 220TSI on 18" Pirellis, it seems quite hard and harsh over bumps and potholes to me, like a sports setting, when others say it's smooth.  I don't have DCC either and wonder if I have your fault?

 

Have the same engine and tyre setup.

 

Since the dealer fixed the DCC issue for me the car has floated over the road, bumps and potholes are softer than they were.  Before the change it was still a comfortable and soft ride generally and bumps and potholes were ok and I would not describe has hard or harsh.  Coming from an 11 year old car I could be slightly biased as that was "getting on in years and miles".

[Hozz]

Hozz, can you tell me what the sensor fault was?  I am having problems with my 220TSI on 18" Pirellis, it seems quite hard and harsh over bumps and potholes to me, like a sports setting, when others say it's smooth.  I don't have DCC either and wonder if I have your fault?

There was a problem with a sensor associated with some flaps not opening but the real problem was their failure to remove the delivery suspension blocks

see http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/399847-suspension-delivery-blocks-not-removed/

[Njones59]

Excellent ride quality in mine with 18" wheels.