Alright..I love my 05' TL and the tight ride. Can't say the same for my pregnant wife who hates how the ride checks everything on the road. Then again we live in Cleveland that has &%$#* roads. Any suggestions on tires or suspensions that will help smooth out the ride...
Peace
PC

 

Well, I've had the Buddy club N+ coilover suspension that was meant for a 3G accord on my tl before, and it rode way too soft, which is why I switched over to tein basics. But since you are looking for a softer ride, this might be it. Or you can try going with Tein SS, and having it adjusted to a softer level since they are damper adjustable.

 

The most cost effective thing to do is to buy Koni shocks with your stock springs and put it in the softest setting, you can even drop your car nearly an inch by lowering the spring perch.

http://www.koni-na.com/index.?

 

Check your tire pressures
If book says 32 and you are at 36- the ride will be stiffer

In the meantime add a long piece of foam rubber- like a bed cushion to her seat
Things will get better after the baby arrives
That extra weight is causing havoc in her back and makes it super sensative to bumps

 

Buy the new Lexus LS60

 

If you want to have smoother ride, do not do anything that lowers the car. It will worsen the ride quality.

IMO, if you really have to make the ride smoother, replace the shocks/springs assembly with the 07 base TL.

Also change to touring tires. Most touring tires will ride softer due to the softer sidewall. Also make sure your tire pressure is not higher than what's posted on the door jamb.

These should help softening the ride.

 

I think Koni with Eibach Spring should be ok...NO? I might be wrong.

 

I dunno, my ass is probably getting old. But if you seek ride comfort, it equals ample suspension travel. If you lower your whip, guess what, you're decreasing the precious travel. So it's strike one for the purpose. That's why I said, if you want comfy or comfier-than-stock ride, never lower the car. Unless you want to spend big bucks and get Tein CS or something similar.

Comfy ride is also determined by the spring rates. The lower the spring rate, the comfier (softer) the ride will be. Aftermarket springs almost always have higher spring rate because they will have to work as well as possible without bottoming out while utilizing less upward suspension travel, so it's strike two towards comfy ride.

Damping and rebound also plays a role in the ride comfort. The higher they are, the more "uncomfortable" the car becomes. Sure, the car take turns like they're glued, but it can also rearrange your internals if it hits a bump, so to speak.

Compared to other non-stock, lowered suspensions, Koni paired with Prokit or H&R Sport can be very comfortable. But they will never be able to soak those high-speed bumps or dips the way stock suspension can.

Remember, suspension tuning is to achieve 2 contradicting goals: as stiff as possible so the car handles well and also as soft as possible so your car is comfortable. Lowering springs, performance shocks, coilovers, their main purpose is to increase the sportiness of the car, therefore they will slide the scalte towards stiffening the suspension. This also tells you that if you want comfortable ride quality, these sport suspension won't help you but instead will pull you further from your goal.

Keep in mind that I'm talking about comfortable ride for a pregnant woman, which almost always equals soft.

 

Look into a memory foam seat cushion for the wife. You get to keep your firm ride, she gets the comfort.

 

buy some fluffy pillows for your wife's seat and save a bundle, keep your car's sportiness!

 

I asked my wife and mother of 3 what she thinks

Memory Foam Pad- twin size cut down to fit, from local department store-Mervyns etc $50
The extra weight is killing her back (you try carrying a 40lb bag of sand all day taped to your waist and without your arms!) so drive extra careful, as if she is something fragile that you treasure- like a guitar or whatever, be as smooth as possible- no jerking or bumps

Give her back rubs every day and before and after driving

Tell her you love her and you're trying to avoid the bumps as best you can

And remember this WILL go away and turn into a
small bundle of joy (according to my wife) in your back seat soon enough
The memory foam will later help you sit and rest while waiting in the labor room

Oh- congratulations!

 

I agree. Koni works wonders. Lowered my old Legend 2.5" w/ H&R springs and Koni adjustable shocks and it still felt like stock.

 

Yes, tell your wife you treasure her sortof like you would a guitar

 

No NO
SHE is a treasure
AND you love her almost as much as your guitar!

 

[QUOTE=260 HP]

Compared to other non-stock, lowered suspensions, Koni paired with Prokit or H&R Sport can be very comfortable. But they will never be able to soak those high-speed bumps or dips the way stock suspension can.

Sorry, but when you say "comfortable"...what exactly do you mean? I've been in the market for a lowering kit, and after looking at all the different springs, the Eibach Prokit has the least amount of drop, so I figured this was the pair for me, but I still want the better handling, performance, etc. Yeahhh...confused
OH BTW, you're the pro: have you ever heard of anyone using the Eibach coilovers? Should I go with the whole Eibach setup (they have damper kits, coilovers kits...and some other stuff), or am I making the right move w/ the Koni Sport Struts and the Eibach Prokit? Don't wanna deal w/ the whole strut bar mod and the edfc stuff like w/ the Tein SS. I heard you can still adjusted the Koni' though, with the turn of a knob? (Sorry for all the questions...seriously) THANKS!!!

Eric

 

Good stuff guys....especially you sensitive ones out there. You guys scored some cool points with the wife..not to mention making me look bad in the process.... thanks for nothing.....its all good. we got a good chuckle out of it..

She is 7 weeks away so I think checking the tire pressure and the memory foam should do the trick for now...at least until the little one starts complaining. Any suggestions on how to enforce the no-eating policy in the car with kids?....or am I looking at the same consequences of the guitar comparison?

To think I was about to my way to the Lexus dealership or possibly picking up an RL.

 

yeah...that will buy me some serious couch time!!!!

 

check those tires. UHP summer tires vs an all season m+s touring tire will make a huge difference

 

I am selling koni shocks and s tech springs...pm me