Bought an FR. hate the ride.

[stephenSF]

I finally bought my fr on friday and love everything about it except... the firmness is breaking my back.
I test drove the car and didn't notice the hard ride then, I suppose it was just that I was on smoother roads. I got the car home and been driving it around and, my god. My girlfriend is decidedly unimpressed. She said wait and see, which I will do but I seriously can't handle this. What can I do?
Any advice appreciated.

 

[Luco Supercopa]

You can buy softer shocks and springs?
But is this serieus?

 

[pacm0n]

Hi,

Is it brand new? The suspension does loosen up a bit once youve drove it for a while. To be honest I dont think its that bad a ride.

You can change the suspension which improves the ride, im sure someone will be along with further details on that as im not 100% sure which ones get the thumbs up

 

[SteveTDCi]

i had the same with an s line A3, most people seem to rate the Koni FSD + eibach dampers to improve the ride, you could just try changing the springs.

 

[rosco07]

Hi sorry to hear that. Personally, I don't think it is that bad. My FR TDI is running 18" wheels and I think it's ok. I suppose it depends what you've been used to. I can hand on heart say the ride is better than my wife's mini cooper and previous modified cars I've driven before, and I drive on rural roads.

What can you do? Persevere, sell it or shell out on new suspension. The latter comes with no guarantees and is not cheap.

Indecently what did you drive before?

 

[jcp]

Very common complaint about the Fr and they are too stiff. The flyer for the 09 model mentions that they have listened to their customers and changed the new one!
Eibach springs- at least the pro-kit improves things even with standard dampers. The Koni Fsd dampers improve things further. Start with the springs and it will bring a smile to your face.

 

[KzJF]

Went over a sleeping policeman the other day [for the first time in my mk2 Leon] and I can say my back split in 3

I'm used to going over speedbumps at 25 km/h in the Peugeot 406, which apparently has softer suspensions.

What did you drive before the FR?

 

[matt.]

Got my 56 plate FR, I love the ride to be honest. That's on the 18's too. What tyre pressures are you running?

 

[morleymackam]

You soon realise the stiff suspension is great for chucking it around corners and that you didn't need your vertabrae anyway.

 

[stephenSF]

Well I was driving a mark 2 Skoda Fabia 1.6. It's a bit of a leap I know but to be honest I don't know if I did make the right decision.
I don't mind shelling out for new suspension I just want to know its going to make enough of a difference.
I didn't realise how bad some of the roads are here in Brighton up until now! It's a real shame because I do love the rest of the car. That is what is making me lean toward a modification. It would be nice if I could feel the difference before shelling out. Will the damper/spring combo really help that much?

 

[rllmuk]

Koni FSD on their own will improve things, will be around £550 inc fitting. With the Pro springs it'll be around £750.

 

[Leigh15]

The ride is firm (I have the 18's too), but it handles the bumps well - I've previously had an Ibiza FR and Sport and they both crashed horrendously over bumps - you seriously thought something on the car had broken if you hit a ridge or pothole in the road - the Leon handles these same bumps so much better

 

[RickyD1975]

Seriously it's not the car, it the roads. Sometimes when I'm driving my Cupra over rough surfaces I think "Oh God" the ride is terrible and then I remember how much I love the car.

Think on a more positive note and you'll soon get used to it.

Cheers

RickyD

 

[Knight_Rider]

End of the day it's a sports model as are the audi s lines which are notoriously bad for bone shaking. Comfort is going to reduced when going for sporty handling, even in £100k cars.

I got the eibach sportlines which are lower but give a better ride and improved feel.

One suggestion is to do the reverse and fit suspension coils from another less sporty model like the reference or something?

 

[N Jardine]

Hi all i have a ref sport with 18s thought the ride was harsh, changed the springs to Eibach sportlines problem solved. its still bounchy but soft . also looks dam good

 

[daveclayton]

i had a mk 2 fabia before my leon. i have never driven a car that floppy and bouncy before in my life!! i changed the springs which eased the sea sickness lol. but going from the fabia to the leon, i agree the ride is rough. but only because your used to such a bad ride in the fabia

 

[bizzaboy]

Answer is a decent set of Coilovers. Should feature adjustable height and damping (ie: you will be able to make the ride softer or more firm, adjusting it to your preference). The difference really will make you happy.

Although, those that have simply gone for the cheaper Eibach Springs option, have been very happy by the "improvement" they make over the original FR ride.

I enjoy the hard ride, it doesnt seem THAT back breaking, it also reminds me I'm in a (semi) performance inspired car! However the seats are very comfortable and hold you in nicely.

 

[bizzaboy]

Hi all i have a ref sport with 18s thought the ride was harsh, changed the springs to Eibach sportlines problem solved. its still bounchy but soft . also looks dam good

Can I ask how much you paid for your Sportlines?

I'm looking at this option however with most garages, the FITTING price is just as much (if not more!) than the cost of the Springs in the first place!

 

[Chuy]

I understand that on a FR, changing the OEM Springs for the Eibach Sportlines will improve the ride quality, but also lower the car, right? Is this apropiate if most of the streets in mi city are in bad state? I also do about 3 km of rural road daily (stony path).

Besides that, we have a lot of speed reducers, some of them seems like mini walls (no kidding) and lower cars may hit them easily, so that would be a concern about lowering the car....

Would changing the springs void the warranty?

 

[rllmuk]

I also don't quite understand how lowering the car can improve the ride quality - seems at odds to normal logic. Feel free to correct me, but surely just FSDs on their own will be better than FSDs + any lowering spring?