SunsetZ

I have experienced the bounce before on certain roads, the difference is that I blame the road, not the car. Having just spent three hours on the BeaveRun Motorsports complex over the weekend I can tell you the suspenion is great where it counts, on the track. Having Race instructors that own 911's telling you how great your car handles says it all to me. No complaints.

MannishBoy

iTrader: (1)

What we are saying, though, is that if you drive that road that causes the porpoising in, say, a Vette, it will be much more controlled. Yes, it will be rough, and we accept that, but this uncontrolled rebound cyclical thing is improper tuning of the suspension. Tighter shocks are what I'm waiting on, but I may go S-Tune, depending on pricing next month.

9000RPMZ

Buy a Porsche or BMW then......


I'm glad someone quoted my "OPINION" so everyone can read this unscensored discusson. Sorry 'bout the name calling Mr. Moderator. "Pansies" is more like an adjective.....On another note, I can relate to this delemma because the same thing happend to the S2K >>>> NON enthusiasts buying the S2k solely because it was new and the trading it 1000 miles later beccause they realized that Its LOUD, SMALL. STIFF, BOUNCY over rough road, and takes SKILL to drive correctly.....MY DEFINITION OF A SPORTS CAR!!!!

geezer902

For some of us, the Eibachs or the suspension change, aren't a good choice.

If you autoX in SCCA the change of spring, etc., will move you out of BS and into BSP -- with people who are putting an additional $10k-$15k into their cars for performance-specific use. Quite an overmatch just to get a good ride on the street.

Hey, BS is enough of a problem with those S2000s flying around with so much less weight!

So I'm hoping the Koni adjustables are available and will do the trick -- and I don't want to take delivery on my Track until I figure out if it works. But I love the car so much I probably will get it no matter, but it seems like such a simple fix .....

350z4steve

iTrader: (1)

Thats a good way of putting it "out of round" nice visual

I couldnt agree more..hey nissan will fix it eventually ..sucks for the first yr purchasers huh..

GaryK

After driving my z on all types of roads, I have to agree with the idea that the suspension is under-damped for the spring rates that come on the car. The car works fairly well on smooth roads, but when cornering at the limit on even a slightly bumpy surface the lack of adequate rebound damping causes the car to "bounce" up off of the bumps and unload the tires slightly...not a good feeling. Even when I'm just cruising down the road, small bumps cause the "porpoising" that many others have experienced.

I don't expect Nissan will do anything about this, but I do think they seriously mismatched the shock damping and spring rates. I plan to fix it with either a set of Konis or a coilover setup.

azjimbo

For the people who did NOT pre-order the Z,did you not test drive the car?If you did then there should be no complaining.I pre-ordered and think the Z rides and handles like a world class sports car for less than a world class sports car price.

350z4steve

iTrader: (1)

you serious? Why not just ask the dealer to let you have the car for a day and let you drive it over every conceivable road you "might encounter" and then decide you dont want to purchase it! get real dude!!

Jason

You know, after 3 months I've only found one stretch of highway (that I don't travel often anyways I-5 South by Federal Way) that causes the bouncing effect. I'd like to note that this part of freeway is utter crap and has felt like such in every other car I've ever taken on it.

On every other road that I drive the car feels like a dream.

As for the complaints of significant understeer... WTF, you must be driving a different car than me. My Z displays only slight understeer once being pushed near the limit. Exactly what I'd expect for a car designed for daily street use.

Regardless of if there is a problem with the suspension, I think a lot of people purcahsed a Z thinking it would be a luxury car. I saw a lot of this happen with the MR2 Spyder, then when people realized that it was actually a raw and rowdy convertible they traded in for their SUVs.

TheLex

Let me add that I had no preconceptions that the Z is not a luxury cruiser. I already have one of those. I bought the Z because it is a sports car. As I have posted before this Z is very German in feel. The brakes are fairly firm, the shift action is firm, and the clutch lo and behold, is very firm, unlike typical Japanese cars. It rides a bit rough, it's raucous, and very visceral. I LOVE that. It's a sports car after all. But that being said, having a suspension that bounces/jounces over even ostensibly fairly smooth surfaces is NOT something that we should have to put up with just because it is a sports car. That's why I brought up the Porsche. The P car is a sports car through and through, especially the earlier cars. But it does not have this bouncing/jouncing problem. And no, I mention this not because I wanted the P car, for I would have got one with no prob had I wanted it. It's just that I think Nissan blew it when they designed the stock suspension.

Luckily there are relatively inexpensive fixes. But one shouldn't have to fix something that is a clean sheet design. THAT'S the point.

BTW, it is very evident that some have much more bounce/jounce than others. Some of that may be personal perception.

D'oh

One thing I've heard from every "fix" so far is, "The ride is stiffer, but the porpoising is gone."

This may imply a fix to some, but to others, a stiffer ride may be just as bad as the porpoising, especially if they do not drive roads that cause the porpoising very often. My point is again that there are tradeoffs to suspension design, and I'm guessing that Nissan did not simply decide to put bad shocks on the car. Instead, I'm sure they weighed the design and tradeoffs and tried to pick a combination that most people would like. A ride that was not too stiff over most bumps and still allowed excellent handling. Now, if an adjustable shock "fixes" one problem by making the ride stiffer, and you don't mind, then spend the $1000 and fix the "problem". It's still much less expensive than almost every other sports car out there.

Also, I can't speak with respect to Porsche, since I haven't driven one, but the Z handles significantly better than any BMW save the M3's and possibly the Z4. It therefore does not surprise me that the ride of the Z is not as smooth.

Anyhow, I still plan on getting the S-Tune, but this problem seems like one of opinion, which means that it is not something that Nissan can be faulted for, other than choosing their tradeoffs poorly, or perhaps misjudging the opinion of most of the owners over here. Or maybe some engineer misplaced the decimal.

-D'oh!

MannishBoy

iTrader: (1)

The reason the ride is stiffer is that people are going more agressive on the suspension. The opposite direction would most likely work as well, but it is less likely vendors are going to make softer springs or softer coilovers for a sports car.

WashUJon

I don't understand how some people can say the Z's suspension is "stiff". I always felt the suspension was on the SOFT side, for a sports car. I'd prefer an even stiffer setup. That's why I'm looking into the S-tune. I don't want drop and the S-tune's drop is very minimal, from what people have said. However, it IS stiffer and DOES seem to resolve any bouncing or dampening issues. I'm just waiting for it to come to the US. I don't want to spend more than I have to. Granted, I haven't felt any horrible vibration/bounce/jounce/whatever. I DO think the suspension is a bit soft for my tastes, though. I bought the car to REALLY be a great handling sports car...

offlogic

No offense but some of us didn't buy the Z to race. Ride quality is ride quality and the Z offers airsick suspension as standard. And no I don't think a 911 off track has this special feature; and I don't think you have to spend 90K to fix the problem. All you need is Nissan to agree there is a problem and offer all the faithful early buyers some hope for resolution.

offlogic

Absolutely right on. The Z is one car that needed a several hours of driving to determine whether it was the right fit or not (literally and figuratively!). Most of my complaints had to be determined after driving in various road and speed conditions. So that leaves us either fools or romantics (same difference)!

azjimbo

I have a question to all those who do not like the ride of the Z.Why are you still driving the car?Why not sell and move on.

ChadO

I ordered my Z after a few test drives, and I didn't notice any significant bounce. Granted, I was on a decent road, and I didn't take it on any bad roads.

My Z is going to be delivered this weekend, and now I'm a bit hesitant....

offlogic

You know its like marriage. I guess if you are from a certain generation, you simply don't bail out at the first sign of crisis. I don't know about you, but it takes a good bit of your liver out, to make the mental leap to buy a new car (at least for some of us) and then find out after the honeymoon that all ain't what you thought it was. Okay, we are adults, so we can adjust and allow for rough spots. I guess that is what we are trying to get out with our "concerns" about ride quality etc. Don't forget we were asked by Nissan Inc. to take a "leap of faith" and put up money to buy something we never had an opportunity to test drive or to get really in-depth review of (forget the advance B.S. from the press). Suffice to say, we have legitimate concerns and like the vehicle well enough to say to Nissan, "Make it right!

happypants

I like the car enough that I want to fix it. For me this happens on many of the concrete roads around where I live, so I need to do something.

There's also the depreciation hit.

Like many have said here, dealers aren't allowing extensive test drives.

happypants

Have you driven on I-294, I-88, or I-355 yet? Drive going anywhere from 55-80 mph and keep the speed consistent. If you go over 85 it seems to get rid of the porpoising, but brings your chances up of getting an expensive ticket

I think what has helped recently is the ambient air temperature. I have 18" wheels and the ride seems a little softer.