Harsh Ride

[Aztech]

I'm loving my new Tiguan but I do find the ride to be quite harsh driving around the city, I have the 147TSI with 18" New Yorks.

Does anyone know if the 147 come out with harder suspension? Would changing down to 17 or even 16 inch wheels have a big effect? Any advice on how to improve the comfort of my vehicle would be awesome.

[team_v]

No change in suspension between the base and the premium petrol model.
Same with the R-Line.

Changing down wheel sizes would help and also lowering the air pressure in the tyres can help (at the expense of more wear)

[nat225]

I'm loving my new Tiguan but I do find the ride to be quite harsh driving around the city, I have the 147TSI with 18" New Yorks.

Does anyone know if the 147 come out with harder suspension? Would changing down to 17 or even 16 inch wheels have a big effect? Any advice on how to improve the comfort of my vehicle would be awesome.

My wife's 147TSI also came with the 18" New York but I bought a set of genuine 16" with Pirelli P6 tyres off eBay, fitted and set at 35 psi.

Since then the ride has been a dream! Comfy, quiet,... floaty.. handling is okayyy... (16" Tig wheels and tyres are not meant for handling), nothing compared to a GTI with heavily modified suspension system .

On the plus side, she has hit the kerbs a few times and the 16" chunky sidewall simply protects the rims.

And yeah, potholes, i tell her go for it!

[tigger73]

...or you could put in Eibach variable rate lowering springs

Seriously they do take out the smaller disturbances but things like speed bumps/spoon drains are definitely more noticeable and you have to slow down and take them easy.

[Aztech]

My wife's 147TSI also came with the 18" New York but I bought a set of genuine 16" with Pirelli P6 tyres off eBay, fitted and set at 35 psi.

Since then the ride has been a dream! Comfy, quiet,... floaty.. handling is okayyy... (16" Tig wheels and tyres are not meant for handling), nothing compared to a GTI with heavily modified suspension system .

On the plus side, she has hit the kerbs a few times and the 16" chunky sidewall simply protects the rims.

And yeah, potholes, i tell her go for it!

I was seriously considering that, theres a set of factory 16s on ebay with 80% tread on them but love the look of the bigger rim so I think I will just have to get use to it. I came from a 90TSI Golf with 15" rims so that was soft as a cloud for a small car. My partner who came from an Astra with a much bouncier ride thinks the tiguan is smooth as silk so probably just a matter of perspective.

At any rate I ended up getting a set of 18" XXR 530s that arrive tomorrow so will just have to get use to it

They might not provide a smoother ride but they look awesome and will cut a lot of weight.

[Aztech]

...or you could put in Eibach variable rate lowering springs

Seriously they do take out the smaller disturbances but things like speed bumps/spoon drains are definitely more noticeable and you have to slow down and take them easy.

hmmm might be worth looking into, I like to slow down for speed bumps anyway so if it smooths out the general ride and lowers it sounds pretty good

[tigger73]

hmmm might be worth looking into, I like to slow down for speed bumps anyway so if it smooths out the general ride and lowers it sounds pretty good

Yes the variable rate springs are soft to start and then firm up so the little bumps get soaked up better. I had these with 19's and was quite happy with the ride around town and on country roads. Though as I said as soon as you go over more than a small bump/manhole cover etc then it does transfer this more.

You also get lower looks and with larger rims I personally think this looks better. Also for me the side mirror went from clipping the meter box to clearing it in the car port which was an added bonus

[bluey]

Wondering if anyone has tried Koni FSD frequency selective dampers??? Designed to improve both ride and handling...
KONI: FSD front and rear dampers the latest damping technology

and seem to do a reasonable job of it on testing on a BMW...
KONI FSD Dampers Improve Handling Without the Traditional Sacrifice in Ride Quality

and a Golf GTI
VWVortex.com - Koni FSD's with 337 Springs, Finally Done!

[Aztech]

Wondering if anyone has tried Koni FSD frequency selective dampers??? Designed to improve both ride and handling...
KONI: FSD front and rear dampers the latest damping technology

and seem to do a reasonable job of it on testing on a BMW...
KONI FSD Dampers Improve Handling Without the Traditional Sacrifice in Ride Quality

and a Golf GTI
VWVortex.com - Koni FSD's with 337 Springs, Finally Done!

I've looked at these too, definitely look interesting, you should get some and let me know how they perform