upst8clay

I'm curious as to others experiences and/or recommendations on how to improve my ride quality.


2007 Tech 87k miles, lightly used by one original owner before me, he mostly used it for golfing/weekend trips (which seems true as the previous 4500 miles averaged over 23mpg per the trip computer and had golfing and out of town locations in the Navi). It is in immaculate condition, I only drive it to work and errands, mostly short trips around town. Not really too hard on it most of the time.


It is all stock except 19" TSW wheels and Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3 tires, which are less than a year old. Both are pretty good quality and well rated products.


The issue... I prefer sporty driving and do not want a bouncy/floaty ride by no means, but the drive seems really bad. Every bump jars, bigger bumps have a little roll/bounce and steering feels a little loose. I have read some other posts and been thinking about upgrading to maybe eibach springs, new struts, tie rod ends...


My friend said he wonders if I will be satisfied after replacing parts of the suspension, as it will never drive like some newer vehicles that I drive/have driven with active dampers, electronic controlled suspension, etc. It made me second guess spending over a grand on this and then feeling that it really did not help much.


I'm just curious about what you think? How much improvement will new struts, end links, bushings, etc make? Any suggestions on what will make the biggest difference, any steering components? What brand, etc. Thanks

upst8clay

I'd really like to keep the RDX for a while. I'm just wondering mostly, what parts will make the biggest difference for ride and steering quality. And how much improvement should I expect.


I want a controlled driving dynamic more like an X3 or Q5, firm yet not jarring, jerking, roll and bounce at every bump.

Kaputnik

The 19" wheels certainly wont help with ride comfort, but something does not sound right to me. Maybe a good inspection of your suspension system might reveal some problems that need to be corrected. I'm sure others will chime in. With 49k mi, my RDX seems to deliver a nice ride.

mrgold35

I have 18" wheels, brand new KYB struts/shocks, eibach springs, Progress RSB, Conti DWS tires and replace front/rear endlinks. I have over 120,000 miles on my 08 and the ride was getting very harsh over time with original OEM shocks/struts. The ride pretty much feels the same as before with less jarring/crashing over bumps. Suspension is several levels harsher still compared to my TSX (120,000 miles on A-spec suspension, Conti DWS tires, progress RSB, fastline endlinks, front/rear camber kit, oem wheel size) or MDX adv in sport mode+20" wheels and Conti DWS tires.

It could be the stiff sidewall of the tires? Maybe double-checking the PSI and adjusting between 31-33 to see if it makes a difference? You might also need to flush the power steering fluid. That is suppose to be lifetime; but, it does deteriorate over time. I usually flush at 100,000 or 5 years (very low humidity in the southwest). You might get a softer ride by switching to 18" tires, I don't think anything will change the RDX suspension feel by much from OEM? My Conti DWS have a softer sidewall and that might be helping with the suspension a little bit.

Jdrum1

Something doesn't sound right; For it to be jarring and to have roll?

My '09 has around 145k (original suspension), and feels solid. Sure, the ride is a little rough, but that's just the nature of the RDX (to me, it's as smooth a glass compared to my sports car).

I also think something has to be wrong with your steering if it feels loose.

Any chance your car was in a wreck?