Riding Comfort comparison: SUVs, AUVs, XUVs, CUVs, and Pickups

**sid** · July 13th, 2009 03:47 PM

We currently have an Adventure (2003 model I think) and my parents always complain about the riding comfort specially on long travel. Masyado daw matagtag. I'm wondering if it's quite similar to other *UVs type of vehicles. If not, what type of *UVs that are comparable to a sedan? Is it because of the suspension, tires, and/or shocks? Can a stock Adventure be modified to have a riding comfort similar to sedan?

Inputs please.

Much appreciated!

**LeOxe** · July 13th, 2009 04:11 PM

in MPVs, the Grand Livina and the Carens has a car-like riding comfort while in SUVs, i think it's the CRV.

the "matagtag" feeling in AUVs i think is because of the leafsprings being used at the rear.

**coiter** · July 13th, 2009 04:11 PM

suspension setup yan. most AUVs have leaf springs at the rear kaya matagtag. kahit palitan mo shocks mo, it won't make much of a difference. I'm not familiar though pero alam ko may mga pwedeng gawin like get longer springs and/or magbawas ng "leaf". di ko talaga alam yung term so hintayin natin iba. hehe but this would compromise loading capacity.

as for UVs that ride like a car, the carens and livina are close if they're considered such.

**coiter** · July 13th, 2009 04:44 PM

suspension setup yan. most AUVs have leaf springs at the rear kaya matagtag. kahit palitan mo shocks mo, it won't make much of a difference. I'm not familiar though pero alam ko may mga pwedeng gawin like get longer springs and/or magbawas ng "leaf". di ko talaga alam yung term so hintayin natin iba. hehe but this would compromise loading capacity.

as for UVs that ride like a car, the carens and livina are close if they're considered such.

**granro01** · July 14th, 2009 11:17 AM

If you are after for the riding comfort, do not get an SUV,AUV etc. with a leaf spring suspension at the back. Look for a coil spring with multi-link suspension at the back and you will never go wrong. I'm sure parang kotse ang comfort nito.

Happy riding.......

**niky** · July 14th, 2009 01:25 PM

Actually, the Mitsubishi Montero and Strada have pretty good riding comfort, despite being leaf spring. It's all down to the tuning of the suspension itself. The Navara is the only other leaf-spring that comes close.

Under 2m, it's hard to beat the Santa Fe. The Montero comes close. The Sorento is way too soft and bouncy over rough roads at speed (much like the Starex).

Amongst coil-spring seven-seaters and SUVs... below 1.5m... the Grand Livina, the Carens, the Escape and the X-Trail are pretty good. The Tucson/Sportage twins are a bit stiff... the CR-V is very stiff...

The Outlander is on the firm side, but still comfortable, as opposed to the CR-V. Too bad it's not on everybody's radar, thanks to the Montero, but it's a good value and comes with a great V6.

**XTO** · July 14th, 2009 01:50 PM

but the MS has no rear leaf spring. it has a 3-link coil springs with stabilizer bar.

**woohoo** · July 14th, 2009 02:04 PM

Originally Posted by sid

We currently have an Adventure (2003 model I think) and my parents always complain about the riding comfort specially on long travel. Masyado daw matagtag. I'm wondering if it's quite similar to other *UVs type of vehicles. If not, what type of *UVs that are comparable to a sedan? Is it because of the suspension, tires, and/or shocks? Can a stock Adventure be modified to have a riding comfort similar to sedan?

Inputs please.

Much appreciated!

A cheap temporary (or permanent, if you like) solution to the long-drive riding discomfort problem is to add load to the vehicle before going on the trip -- 1 or 2 cavans of rice, or 1 or 2 sacks of heavy materials, like cement or sand.

Somewhere behind the rear wheels.

**niky** · July 14th, 2009 02:21 PM

Originally Posted by XTO

but the MS has no rear leaf spring. it has a 3-link coil springs with stabilizer bar.

Haha... my bad. Should have specified ladder-frame and not leaf-spring. The Strada has a leaf set-up, though.

**sid** · July 14th, 2009 10:49 PM

Thanks for the inputs guys and gals. Please keep it coming.

For sedans, different type of coil springs with different spring rates can be chosen for the suspension. Is this option also available for leafsprings type? I mean, can we replace the stock leafsprings with an aftermarket ones and with different springrate?

*woohoo: Sometimes, my parents take about two cavans of rice plus some stuff whenever they visit us here in Manila. The complain starts when they go back to the countryside.

And thanks for the suggestion.

Cheers!