Can't deal with the bouncy ride anymore after two weeks with the Mach-E. What do I do?

[markboris]

This GT spring and strut business is really making me wonder if I should give it a shot. I did not really want to lower my Mach-E FE at all, but if it makes the ride more comfortable, I might be open to it. Is this something I would ask the Ford dealer service department to help with? I have never swapped out shocks/struts before, so have no idea where I would start with that. (I have to admit, I'm not much of a car guy. ?)

I personally would just swap out the rear springs, just so you can make sure it takes care of the problem you have on your roads. It will be the cheapest option and it will also be the most effective out of doing anything else. If you ever want to change out the rear shocks too, no need to mess with the springs. The shock is completely separate.

Don't think I would take it to Ford. Not sure if they would even do such a think citing it might be an issue with your warranty blah, blah, blah. Once there are installed, no one would know the difference looking at them. I would take it to an auto tire place that also does work like this. I know here if I did not do it myself, I would have had Big O Tire or Les Schwab Tire put them in.

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[TTT]

Apologies if this was pointed out earlier - I read the first few and last few pages only.

It takes time for the suspension to settle in on a new car - or a car with new suspension. The first time I drive my Bolt on the freeway the car was almost undrivable over some sections of road. Hated every second of it. Within a month (1500 miles?) the car was only "annoying" over those same patches. By the time I had perhaps 5000 miles on the car it behaved much better - rather comparable to many German cars. It was never like a luxury car, but eventually it drive just fine.

That was a brand new car. We had a similar experience with my son's 2006 Audi. He insisted on spending his own money on an upgraded suspension including new springs and struts. He was initially horrified with the results, it felt like he had egg shaped wheels. Again, over a few months things settled in and got better. At this point it drives about like his old suspension did. At least the shocks and bushings are new, and he got a valuable lesson that upgrades aren't always improvements.

I will be helpful to have the dealer check over the suspension, but sometimes it takes time for things to settle into place and break in a bit.

I would not run with a lower tire pressure, don't think that's going to help you.

Tom

 

[physib]

This GT spring and strut business is really making me wonder if I should give it a shot. I did not really want to lower my MME FE at all, but if it makes the ride more comfortable, I might be open to it. Is this something I would ask the Ford dealer service department to help with? I have never swapped out shocks/struts before, so have no idea where I woukd start with that. (I have to admit, I'm not much of a car guy. ?)

Certainly keep us updated. You're like the authority on bouncy rides now

 

[Guy]

First step is to change tires. It made a world of difference on mine. THEN, if not satisfied start swapping suspension parts.

 

[TxTom]

First step is to change tires. It made a world of difference on mine. THEN, if not satisfied start swapping suspension parts.

Can you let us know what tires you changed to? Did you change wheels, or tire size? I have the factory Michelin 19" tires/wheels and also an ER AWD. Thanks in advance, Tom

 

[Guy]

Continental Extreme Contact 245/50ZR19 on aftermarket 8 inch wide rims. The tires will also fit on the stock rims.

https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tire...DWS06PXL&vehicleSearch=false&fromCompare1=yes

 

[markboris]

Apologies if this was pointed out earlier - I read the first few and last few pages only.

It takes time for the suspension to settle in on a new car - or a car with new suspension. The first time I drive my Bolt on the freeway the car was almost undrivable over some sections of road. Hated every second of it. Within a month (1500 miles?) the car was only "annoying" over those same patches. By the time I had perhaps 5000 miles on the car it behaved much better - rather comparable to many German cars. It was never like a luxury car, but eventually it drive just fine.

I will be helpful to have the dealer check over the suspension, but sometimes it takes time for things to settle into place and break in a bit.
Tom

Hey Tom, you have all good points but yes we have gone through them on our cars. My car has 6600 miles on it as well as others here have even more and the car still has a bouncy ride in the rear (except the GT models). Also, the OP not only had his car at the dealership but had Ford engineers come out to look at it. They all said the car was perfectly normal. I am sure his car, my car and others with the same suspension is how Ford intended it to be but it is not to our liking. Not everyone has the same types of roads that cause it to bounce plus some owners don't have any issue with the bouncy ride.

I had one of the first Focus RS's and it had a very harsh ride. The shocks had three electronic settings and even on Normal (softest) it was a very harsh ride. All publications that reviewed the car noted this issue it had. If you switched the setting to Track (stiffest), it was unbearable and the car was so firm it would start to slide in hard turns. One year later, Ford came out with updated shocks for the RS. They did not announce it or offer to replace or upgrade any of the first year cars. I purchased all four for a price of over $1000 (they are electronic struts/shocks) and installed them myself. The car was completely different. It drove, rode and handled the way it should have from the beginning.

The Mach-E (non GT Models) seem to have a bouncy ride in the rear. Some might have more than others. Depending on the road or the tolerance of the driver, it will be more or less of an issue. I have a 2014 Escape and it is a similar sized car, however not nearly as heavy, and it rides like a small SUV should and there is no bounce. You do get the usual bounce in the rear over certain road conditions but it is not doing it all the time with any little bump in the road. Changing the springs on the Mach-E to GT springs has made the car ride much more like my Escape. It is not super smooth or ride like a Lincoln or anything. It's still a sporty ride but no longer bounces over the smallest imperfection in the road.

 

[markboris]

I have changed tires and wheels on my car also. My Premium ER AWD came with 19"x7" wheels wrapped with Michelin 225/55/R19 Primacy A/S tires. I changed the wheels to Signature wheels 20"x8.5" front, 20"x10" rear (wheels are 8# lighter each) and at first ran Michelin 255/45/R20 front, 295/40/R20 rear Latitude Sport 3 tires (same as many OEM Tesla's run) and there was no change at all in the bouncy ride. What did change was the handling of the car. While it was much better, I didn't like the vague steering or the harshness of the tire. I switched to Michelin Pilot Sport 4 SUV tires (the same sizes as the Latitude's) and now the steering is sharper and ride isn't harsh plus the tire is quieter. None of this effected the bounce in the rear, at least for me.

 

[MorsRedigo]

I truly love almost everything about my Mach-E First Edition AWD ER, but my wife, son and I literally get car sick when we take it out for anything more than a ride through the neighborhood because it is so incredibly bouncy. As we drive along the expressway, you can actually see the light from our headlights bouncing up and down constantly because it is such a bouncy ride. I don't know what to do about this? Heck, I am happy to buy new shocks that are designed for touring, as opposed to performance, if that will help. I don't really want to have to consider this, but is returning a car an option? Is there something wrong with my Mach-E? I know others have reported a bouncy drive, but others don't seem to notice this at all from what I can tell? I have lowered the PSI in my tires to 37 hoping to address the comfort of the ride, but that has not helped.

Help! I don't know what to do to fix this. Admittedly, I am not a "car guy," so figuring this out is a mystery to me. I truly want to love this car and had such high hopes for it and would love to find a way to address the bounciness of the ride because I love everything else about it and have not really faced any of the other issues that people have reported. I am honestly happy to buy new shocks or something to smooth the ride out, but what other options do I have here? Would new shocks even help smooth things out?

I have a AWD with the extended range, and there is a little bounce but its nothing major. The roads in Winnipeg a crap, old, potholy with bumps and everything that comes with living in a place that goes from -45c to +40c.

Sounds like something might be wrong with your vehicle or its suspension. Now dont get me wrong, its not going to ever be smooth like a landrover or a high end luxury car as well it does weigh ~4500+ lb which is the weight of a truck.

Hope that helps

 

[theo1000]

Finally able to grab a video at night. This is the bouncing up and down on smooth (to my eye) roads that’s especially tough at night with the added visual element of seeing the lights rock up and down constantly. ?

Wow. That looks weird. Mine does not do that at all. Will try to grab a video. I do tend to drive fast though, well over the speed limit if there is low traffic. Just drove it last night for 2 hours on all types of road and it was very smooth for me. Brakes do grab occasionally just because they are not used much. But definitely none of that rocking business at stop lights. It does have a 'firm' suspension but not a bouncy one. Have you checked your tire inflation. Is there a flat spot on a tire or some other imperfection?

 

[mkhuffman]

Wow. That looks weird. Mine does not do that at all. Will try to grab a video. I do tend to drive fast though, well over the speed limit if there is low traffic. Just drove it last night for 2 hours on all types of road and it was very smooth for me. Brakes do grab occasionally just because they are not used much. But definitely none of that rocking business at stop lights. It does have a 'firm' suspension but not a bouncy one. Have you checked your tire inflation. Is there a flat spot on a tire or some other imperfection?

The bouncy ride is undeniable in some MMEs. I have seen posts like yours from people who do not have the same experience. I am still waiting for mine to be delivered, but I drove the dealer mannequin and I noticed the bounce in that car even though it was a short drive. Maybe Ford made a change as production was ramping up. How long have you had your MME? Is it a Premium AWD, or another model? I think most of the complaints seem to be coming from the Premium AWD owners. The one I drove was a Premium AWD.

 

[mkhuffman]

I have changed tires and wheels on my car also. My Premium ER AWD came with 19"x7" wheels wrapped with Michelin 225/55/R19 Primacy A/S tires. I changed the wheels to Signature wheels 20"x8.5" front, 20"x10" rear (wheels are 8# lighter each) and at first ran Michelin 255/45/R20 front, 295/40/R20 rear Latitude Sport 3 tires (same as many OEM Tesla's run) and there was no change at all in the bouncy ride. What did change was the handling of the car. While it was much better, I didn't like the vague steering or the harshness of the tire. I switched to Michelin Pilot Sport 4 SUV tires (the same sizes as the Latitude's) and now the steering is sharper and ride isn't harsh plus the tire is quieter. None of this effected the bounce in the rear, at least for me.

I am so glad you participate in this forum. You have provided so many useful posts. I will test my MME when I finally get it, and if there is any bounce, I am going to do exactly what you did. Thank you! Keep contributing please!!! (I might do your subwoofer mod and rear hatch mod also. ;-))

 

[Cnote]

I have a AWD with the extended range, and there is a little bounce but its nothing major. The roads in Winnipeg a crap, old, potholy with bumps and everything that comes with living in a place that goes from -45c to +40c.

Sounds like something might be wrong with your vehicle or its suspension. Now dont get me wrong, its not going to ever be smooth like a landrover or a high end luxury car as well it does weigh ~4500+ lb which is the weight of a truck.

Hope that helps

He's gotten it checked by dealers and Ford engineers who claim there is nothing wrong with his vehicle (I have also gotten it checked by dealers and connected with Ford on this forum). We don't expect it to be smooth like a Lincoln as we have mentioned throughout this thread, but the ride is punishing and makes my Corvette feel almost luxurious. I have had a non-luxury SUV that weighs just as much that managed to not ride like an unsprung truck or slammed car, granted it wasn't trying to be sporty.

If you don't have the issue or don't mind it, that is really great. But while I did buy a mustang, I didn't expect it to gallop over every little imperfection (see what I did there heh). I have some dashcam video but haven't had luck uploading it here but there is already a good video in this thread that helps demonstrate the issue. Even some car reviewers have brought up the issue.

 

[markboris]

I am so glad you participate in this forum. You have provided so many useful posts. I will test my Mach-E when I finally get it, and if there is any bounce, I am going to do exactly what you did. Thank you! Keep contributing please!!! (I might do your subwoofer mod and rear hatch mod also. ;-))

Thanks M for the kind words. I really do enjoy tinkering with my cars and trucks. This morning I was thinking, why doesn't the pony puddle lamp on the Mach-E not come on every time I open the door like the one on my GT500 does (it's a cobra)? Stay tuned, that project is almost done. ?

 

[markboris]

Thought I would update everyone on replacing the OEM struts/shocks with the GT versions. I originally said I was not going to do this since I am selling the car when my GT/PE comes in but curiosity got the better of me and I wanted to see exactly what this would do to the ride. As you most likely have read a few posts back, I replaced my OEM premium 4x springs with GT springs to lower the car a bit which it did but it also greatly reduced the rear bounce which I was not expecting.

The GT struts/shocks came in this afternoon and I checked them out against the OEM ones. There was no difference in the weight and the thickness of the rod is the same. Basically they were physically identical except having different part numbers on them. I know this is not a great way to check out the stiffness of a strut/shock but I did perform a push down test on them and the GT struts/shocks were definitely a little stiffer going down but the same speed coming back up.

I installed them and went for about a 15 mile drive. Unlike when I changed the rear springs, it did not seem to change the bounce at all but if anything might be a bit less however, the ride is a bit firmer. I can feel a little more of the imperfections in the road. This is all minor though but I like this as it made the car handle a little better just like when I replaced the springs. Overall, the ride is much better than when I had my OEM springs and struts/shocks.

I can see why GT owners have no complaints about the way it rides and really like the way it handles. This is how my Mach-E should have come from the factory because it definitely "feels" more like a Mustang now.

Below are the part numbers for the GT springs and struts/shocks:
Front struts: Left LK9Z-18124-A, Right LK9Z-18124-B
Rear shocks: LK9Z-18125-A
Front springs: LK9Z-5310-B
Rear springs: LK9Z-5560-B

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