Premium vs GT for motion sickness

[Mach-Lee]

For some people that should be called “smoothness sickness.” Their brains aren’t anticipating acceleration since there’s no noise or feeling of shifting gears. If your brain thinks you should be still but you’re moving, you’ll get sick.

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[ctenidae]

Are you using propulsion sounds? One of, if not the main, purpose of the sound is it’s an audio cue for passengers to anticipate acceleration and deceleration.

That, my friend, makes so much sense I'm embarrassed I hadn't thought of it. My wife got carsick in the Tesla, less o in the GT. I get a little woozy in her Taycan. Maybe that weird sound (reminds me of a two year old with a kazoo) can serve a purpose. Will test and report back.

 

[Skip Towne]

I have a Premium AWD EX and experience the motion sickness sometimes myself. Here's a bit about why some folks feel it and what I've done to mitigate it.

The cause of motion sickness is not as simple as whether the car is bouncy or not. Doctor types will tell you motion sickness is caused by dissonance between the several sensory systems you have that sense motion - your eyes, your inner ear (balance/motion detection) hearing etc. When some of these systems detect you in motion and others don't - your brain gets confused and creates a variety of symptoms that we call motion sickness. The MME is fast, smooth, silent and vibration free that has a very firm suspension that perfectly transmits road undulations to the passengers - it's the perfect sensory dissonance in motion study.

Often, just being the driver will reduce symptoms, simply because in the act of driving you are doing things that will cause and control motion, so your brain better accepts that motion as expected.

I found reducing the tire air pressure down to the recommended 39 psi helped a lot. I found the propulsion sound seems to help., as does opening the windows. I stay out of Unbridled mode, (except for special occasions ;-))

And yes, the MME is the only car/truck I've ever driven that caused an issue for me as a driver. From sport sedan to dump truck, I've driven many dozens of vehicles. So, the MME really is unique. But I knew that before I got the first headache.

 

[moparguy]

I have a GT with One Pedal enabled and sometimes I feel like I am getting motion sickness in driver seat, never had a premium so can't tell the difference but can't imagine it's worst than my car!

 

[JeffGo]

My Premium in Unbridled mode is very harsh, especially on the 2 lane roads near me. It's much better in Engaged but still quite bouncy (coming from an Audi A4). I only use 1PD, it's hard to give it up. I actually like the 1PD in Unbridled better but can't deal with the harsh ride that much.

 

[PilotMark]

My wife cannot ride in my AWD Premium Mach E without getting motion sickness. She is prone to this anyway but even my daughter feels a little funky after being in the back seat awhile. I have a friend who traded in his Premium for a GT and says the ride and handling is better, but his family never had a problem with motion sickness so I am not sure his feedback is meaningful for my problem. Has anyone driven both cars and found the GT does not cause the same car sick issues for their passengers? Trying to figure out a long term fix so we can stop using her ICE car every time we go somewhere together!

First - let her drive. If she is in control it should help alot.
Second - the least performance mode
Third add the sound so she can sense the noise and speed.

Not the same, but I can pilot an aerobatic plane and do rolls, and loops all day, but I get queasy as a passenger. Being in control and having something to do should keep her focused on what she's doing and not on how she's feeling.

Good luck. Forth is a new wife.

 

[vortix]

What drive mode do you have selected? I found that Unbridled causes the car to decelerate faster when taking your foot off the gas pedal. Engaged or Whisper mode make for a better experience for passengers...as does disabling one pedal drive.

 

[JDrazMME]

First - let her drive. If she is in control it should help alot.
Second - the least performance mode
Third add the sound so she can sense the noise and speed.

Not the same, but I can pilot an aerobatic plane and do rolls, and loops all day, but I get queasy as a passenger. Being in control and having something to do should keep her focused on what she's doing and not on how she's feeling.

Good luck. Forth is a new wife.

Thanks all for the good suggestions. I have driven with her in Whisper and 2 pedal driving/breaking. That was the easy first step. Didn't help. I offered to let her drive but she knows about shortages and delays for replacement parts and is worried I will be mad if something happens so she's scared to drive it. She also thinks it was much more expensive than it was when in reality, I paid more for her loaded Explorer than I did for Sparky.

In reality, she is just very stubborn. Once she doesn't like something, hard to change her mind about it. She would rather complain than drive it and see if that improves her issue - I am sure you husbands out there have no idea what I'm talking about LOL. I guess I need to find one to test drive with her and see how it goes. Anyone in Cleveland have a GT they want to lend me???

 

[jeffdawgfan]

I have a Premium AWD EX and experience the motion sickness sometimes myself. Here's a bit about why some folks feel it and what I've done to mitigate it.

The cause of motion sickness is not as simple as whether the car is bouncy or not. Doctor types will tell you motion sickness is caused by dissonance between the several sensory systems you have that sense motion - your eyes, your inner ear (balance/motion detection) hearing etc. When some of these systems detect you in motion and others don't - your brain gets confused and creates a variety of symptoms that we call motion sickness. The MME is fast, smooth, silent and vibration free that has a very firm suspension that perfectly transmits road undulations to the passengers - it's the perfect sensory dissonance in motion study.

Often, just being the driver will reduce symptoms, simply because in the act of driving you are doing things that will cause and control motion, so your brain better accepts that motion as expected.

I found reducing the tire air pressure down to the recommended 39 psi helped a lot. I found the propulsion sound seems to help., as does opening the windows. I stay out of Unbridled mode, (except for special occasions ;-))

And yes, the MME is the only car/truck I've ever driven that caused an issue for me as a driver. From sport sedan to dump truck, I've driven many dozens of vehicles. So, the MME really is unique. But I knew that before I got the first headache.

Of all the speculation on this subject you have hit the closest to the mark my friend. Motion sickness/vertigo etc is in fact caused by a disconnect or confusion between what the inner ear is telling the brain and what your eyes are saying that does not agree with it. Your inner ear has fluid in it. As you move/bend over/ jump/ etc that fluid moves around and causes the little hairs (cilia) in your inner ear to to sway or move around. As they move they send and electrical signal to your brain. If your eyes are saying you are going one way and your inner ear another then the confusion is what causes the motion sickness or vertigo. This is why if you are seasick the best thing to do is lie flat and close your eyes. This eliminates one of the conflicting sensory inputs to your brain. The oscillation of acceleration and deacceleration of the one pedal driving is the main culprit here, not bouncing. Turn off 1pd and you will see that the motion sickness will not be any worse than a regular ICE.....although that defeats the best part of a EV. There should be no difference between a Premium/GT/Standard at all in this respect. Wow....I retired three years ago and still remember some of my medical training......not an old fart after all...maybe.

 

[rmillis]

My Premium in Unbridled mode is very harsh, especially on the 2 lane roads near me. It's much better in Engaged but still quite bouncy (coming from an Audi A4). I only use 1PD, it's hard to give it up. I actually like the 1PD in Unbridled better but can't deal with the harsh ride that much.

Same here, came from an Audi A4. Miss how far the seat goes back and how smooth the A4 drove compared to my Premium Extended Range AWD. It’s just so bumpy, and my 18 month old son was puking all the way home from our last road trip. I think it was motion sickness and I felt so bad the whole ride home.

 

[ripperAZ]

The bounce is different, and less. @markboris installed GT springs in his Premium and noticed a significant difference/improvement. He then put the GT shocks on his Premium and didn't notice much difference (Mark, correct me if my memory is off).

The "bounce" effect is generally reported to be worse in the Premium when compared to the GT, but even the GTPE has been reported to have a bounce issue. But the GTPE is better than the GT, and GTPE bounce varies with drive mode.

Tru Dat. My wife’s premium was significantly bobblier ( her word) than my GTPE. My brothers model Y is kind of bouncy too especially in the backseat it’s the battery weight…. Wondering if any lightning owners are experiencing bounciness because of the added weight in that vehicle as well. I will scan the Truckers lounge and see….

Jes sayin …..

 

[eStang]

We have both an AWD First Edition (essentially a Premium) and a GT. My wife had a very tough time as a passenger in the GT for the first several months and given the choice, would still prefer to be a passenger in the FE. She even got a little queasy as the driver of the GT. I drive both cars in 1PD, she drives both in 2PD. Our consensus feeling is that as was mentioned earlier in this discussion, that at times the GT feels as if the front and rear motors a tiny bit out of sync. I feel that it's most noticeable if the road is very uneven front to rear so the wheel speeds are affected by the road variations.

I will add that over time, speaking for myself, I am less affected by the GT - I've gotten accustomed to whatever is going on to cause the motion sickness.

 

[TGIF]

For some people that should be called “smoothness sickness.” Their brains aren’t anticipating acceleration since there’s no noise or feeling of shifting gears. If your brain thinks you should be still but you’re moving, you’ll get sick.

Yep. I grew up with a VW bus as the family car. No problem. Put me in my grandparents’ Mercury and it was all over.

 

[H.Bergeron]

My wife cannot ride in my AWD Premium Mach E without getting motion sickness. She is prone to this anyway but even my daughter feels a little funky after being in the back seat awhile. I have a friend who traded in his Premium for a GT and says the ride and handling is better, but his family never had a problem with motion sickness so I am not sure his feedback is meaningful for my problem. Has anyone driven both cars and found the GT does not cause the same car sick issues for their passengers? Trying to figure out a long term fix so we can stop using her ICE car every time we go somewhere together!

Does she get it in the front seat?
Does she look ahead at the road or at something else like a phone?
Does she get it when she drives the Mach e?

 

[markboris]

The bounce is different, and less. @markboris installed GT springs in his Premium and noticed a significant difference/improvement. He then put the GT shocks on his Premium and didn't notice much difference (Mark, correct me if my memory is off).

The "bounce" effect is generally reported to be worse in the Premium when compared to the GT, but even the GTPE has been reported to have a bounce issue. But the GTPE is better than the GT, and GTPE bounce varies with drive mode.

Agree with all Mike said above about the bounce is less in the GT than the Premium and even less in the GTPE which still has some.

In my Premium after changing out the springs and shocks to the GT versions, there was less bounce but not by a lot. At first I thought it was a bigger difference than it actually was but I don't have concrete highways with expansion joints in my area. I was basing it on uneven roads and bumps. The only reason I changed shocks and springs on my Premium was to lower the car 1/2" and get a little better handling like the GT.

Now with the GTPE there is the least amount of bounce of any trim but it is certainly still there. I have been driving a friends 2021 Ranger the last couple of days and it is smoother over the uneven roads we have around here and my ICE Mustang also is. It has no bounce whatsoever. There is just something wrong with the way the have the suspension set up. I also have the Steeda rear sway bar which I have had on the car for at least three months and haven't noticed any change (except less body roll).

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