I almost didn't buy my '02 RL because of what I call a bumpy ride but I thought I would get used to it - I haven't. As long as the road is perfectly smooth, the ride is great. Turning is great, braking, transmission - all great. But, if there is the least imperfection in the road
(which is essentially all roads) I spend nearly the entire trip bouncing up and down in my seat!) It's very annoying. It seems the shock absorbers aren't absorbing the shocks! Every bump gets transmitted to the driver seat which bounces up and down. I took it to acura and they told me there's nothing wrong (for $100.00). Struts are fine - no leaks, etc. I can't believe this is how the ride was designed to be. I also noticed that the driver's seat cushion seems to rock from side to side (more than the front passanger seat) as well as up and down which adds to the overall driver motion.

I wish i could fix this, because i like everthing else about the car - except the ride! Which is the main reason i bought it in the first place.

 

Thats definitely not normal. A normal RL soaks up the bumps like a sponge. I'd go to a different dealer.

 

I might have been aggressive in my description of the "bouncing". It's not violent, but it is definitely noticeable and irritating. I rode in a friend's '02 TL and it was significantly smoother over the same stretch of road.

In my RL, I can feel the car rocking forward and backward as I drive over the seams in a concrete roadway. I would say that the shocks should absorb these kinds of variation and allow the car to remain steady. A confusing element is that when I run over a good size pothole, for instance, the suspension absorbs that very well, with only minor movement felt in the driver seat. It seems that the suspension can't reject relative minor bumps very well (at all). I'm not sure what that indicates.

 

Strange.. Are the tires stock or did you get new ones?

If not, I'm at a loss. Sounds like the damping characteristics are completely off.

 

The dealer put all new ones on. I'm not sure what is stock as well as I'm not sure what they put on. I'll check. I know they replaced the tires with what was on previously.

Is there a way to alter the damping characteristics - an adjustment that could be made?

But, I agree that the damping seems off - as if the suspension goes into "oscillation" when confronted with particular road surfaces (it also seems speed dependent as well, 30 to 50mph being particularly bouncy) - bouncing the car up and down 3 or four times in response to a single bump in the road.

 

Maybe your suspension is not stock. Definitely a suspension issue.

 

The characteristics you describe are out of sync. I have '02 RL with 107,000 miles,,,runs smoothly and quietly. I have experienced no floating and certainly no bounce as I rumble on smooth or other types of pavement.

I know in 2002 model, the suspension was 'stiffened' in an effort to subdue the 'soft' ride.

Are you the origional owner?

I have had no problems with this car.

Hope you get yours resolved soon!

RLT