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

[Neil4Real]

It's the only road to and from town that does not add an extra 30-40 minutes.

Was able to get a brief recording of a behind view of a different Mach-E being driver on the same road that gave me problems. The bounce is visible from behind as well. This is exactly what I'm feeling. The back just cannot settle. Driving my '09 Camry on the same road is night and day compared to the Mach-E.

Was only able to capture very short videos.
Part 1:

Part 2:


This tells me that this is not a one-off problem. But a problem will all Mach-Es besides the GT PE and maybe the GT.
My plan. 1. Get it checked out by the dealer and hope that I can give them a test drive on this road. 2. If no improvement after 2,000 miles, try the GT springs.
3. Look out for aftermarket solutions.
4. Try to test drive a Mach-E GT on the same road, if Magneride fixes it, then trade in.

This is a 51 page thread, there is no need to start from scratch. The GT springs make it slightly better, but it is still there. The GT PE fixes it completely. There is even @markboris that had a premium and got a GT PE who compares the 2 and covers this a bit.

I worked with Ford Engineers on my IPC buzzing and the bounciness, they said the bounciness is normal.

I have a Premium AWD and can get almost sticker for it (plus keep the tax money), I've already put a deposit on a cancelled order of a GT PE with no markup and am contemplating doing it.

I rented a GT PE from Turo for 2 days and am torn. The bounciness definitely goes away but even in Whisper, it is a bit more sporty than the Premium. I wish Whisper drove just like the Premium as when it doesn't bounce, I like it a lot. I also am not the biggest fan of the seats, they hug way better than the Premium's seats, which I always find myself not sitting properly in the middle, but I rest my arm on the center console arm rest thing, and because of the shoulder bolsters, I just get stabbed in the back and after about 20 minutes of driving, I feel the pain!

I didn't understand what people said when they would say the Premium still feels more luxurious. Now I understand. For some reason, the suede everywhere just, uh, I don't know, cheapens it. I like the leather instead. Plus the material doesn't feel that resilient, I think it'll pile and be hard to clean as any cleaning will surely cause it to get all weird and possibly rough. Not to mention how its that material where you swipe it one way and it is lighter, the other way darker, so it never looks primo.

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[Anton]

This is a 51 page thread, there is no need to start from scratch. The GT springs make it slightly better, but it is still there. The GT PE fixes it completely. There is even @markboris that had a premium and got a GT PE who compares the 2 and covers this a bit.
...

"GT Springs make it slightly better" - Slightly as in it would be worth the cost? What would be the expected cost here? $500 w/ labor?

"Bounciness is normal" - what a shame...

 

[markboris]

My plan. 1. Get it checked out by the dealer and hope that I can give them a test drive on this road. 2. If no improvement after 2,000 miles, try the GT springs.
3. Look out for aftermarket solutions.
4. Try to test drive a Mach-E GT on the same road, if Magneride fixes it, then trade in.

eidbanger, I wish I still had my Premium that I changed out the springs and shocks with the GT version on so we could take it on the road you are testing your car on. Sold it to a friend in Arizona so it's out of state now. The type of road really makes all the difference and we don't have anything like that around here. For me it really did get rid of quite a bit of the bounce but that was over rough roads, not what you are experiencing. If you want to drive my GT/PE on your stretch of road, I have no problem coming down there to do this.

 

[chrisGT]

"GT Springs make it slightly better" - Slightly as in it would be worth the cost? What would be the expected cost here? $500 w/ labor?

"Bounciness is normal" - what a shame...

I don't know how bad the non-GT bounceness is, but the GT is pretty bad. I would not pay a single $ for the GT's suspension. It is by far the most bouncy suspension I ever had and I have owned many cars of various brands (including 2 other Fords). Even my toddler child comments on how bouncy (in a bad way) it is.

 

[mkhuffman]

I don't know how bad the non-GT bounceness is, but the GT is pretty bad. I would not pay a single $ for the GT's suspension. It is by far the most bouncy suspension I ever had and I have owned many cars of various brands (including 2 other Fords). Even my toddler child comments on how bouncy (in a bad way) it is.

I lowered my tire pressure to 33 psi. Of course that does nothing to change the root of the problem, but the ride is smoother and a lot of the harshness is gone. I cannot say how much the range is impacted, by I suspect 5-10% at that low pressure.

I am going to keep it there for a while because it really does drive a lot better with lower pressure. I will probably put the tires back to 41 psi if I am going on a long trip, but none are in the immediate future. Even my drive to DC is only 150 miles, which I can do even with a 5-10% tire pressure penalty.

 

[Anton]

I don't know how bad the non-GT bounceness is, but the GT is pretty bad. I would not pay a single $ for the GT's suspension. It is by far the most bouncy suspension I ever had and I have owned many cars of various brands (including 2 other Fords). Even my toddler child comments on how bouncy (in a bad way) it is.

Ugh...Sounds like the GT springs and shocks might not be the solution on this type of highway...Do you drive on roads similar to the one I have in my video (more on my channel)? And does your GT bounce relatively the same?

 

[Anton]

eidbanger, I wish I still had my Premium that I changed out the springs and shocks with the GT version on so we could take it on the road you are testing your car on. Sold it to a friend in Arizona so it's out of state now. The type of road really makes all the difference and we don't have anything like that around here. For me it really did get rid of quite a bit of the bounce but that was over rough roads, not what you are experiencing. If you want to drive my GT/PE on your stretch of road, I have no problem coming down there to do this.

I'm probably not going to go with the GT/PE because of the seats. Will have kids in the back and would sometimes need to reach back. I go for comfort and ride quality. I appreciate the offer. Will likely wait for an aftermarket solution to this. I'm curious on what type of road it reduced the bounce on? Can you drop a pin? Also, If your friend ever makes a trip out west would love to have him drive on the 41 for a bit and report back. Does he complain about bounce at all? Or no such roads exist in Arizona, and only Cali...?

 

[macchiaz-o]

I'm probably not going to go with the GT/PE because of the seats. Will have kids in the back and would sometimes need to reach back. I go for comfort and ride quality. I appreciate the offer. Will likely wait for an aftermarket solution to this. I'm curious on what type of road it reduced the bounce on? Can you drop a pin? Also, If your friend ever makes a trip out west would love to have him drive on the 41 for a bit and report back. Does he complain about bounce at all? Or no such roads exist in Arizona, and only Cali...?

We have loads of poured concrete roads in Phoenix. And something may have changed in the last few years because I'm finding several newly redone asphalt covered roads that aren't nearly as flat and even as they once were.

 

[markboris]

I'm probably not going to go with the GT/PE because of the seats. Will have kids in the back and would sometimes need to reach back. I go for comfort and ride quality. I appreciate the offer. Will likely wait for an aftermarket solution to this. I'm curious on what type of road it reduced the bounce on? Can you drop a pin? Also, If your friend ever makes a trip out west would love to have him drive on the 41 for a bit and report back. Does he complain about bounce at all? Or no such roads exist in Arizona, and only Cali...?

Just so you know, the GT and GT/PE springs are the same. I personally think the ride comfort in the GT/PE is better than the Premium but that's me. I rarely come into this thread because there are so many variables with roads, people, etc, and don't want to get dragged into long debates.

I understand about the seats and having to reach in the back, that can't happen. The roads around here can be uneven from tree roots, rail road tracks and lots of filled pot holes. No concrete roads around here.

I highly doubt my friend will be coming up here with the car. Him and his wife do not complain at all about the car being bouncy. They live in Surprise so not too far from Phoenix and I have been there several times. The roads around him are all very smooth from what I can tell. Too bad you didn't get your car earlier in the year. I was in Fresno many times with my Premium. I have friends there and also fly out of Fresno sometimes. If you change your mind, let me know and I'll come down.

 

[markboris]

We have loads of poured concrete roads in Phoenix. And something may have changed in the last few years because I'm finding several newly redone asphalt covered roads that aren't nearly as flat and even as they once were.

Jonathan, if you know of some roads that are particularly bad in your area that cause the bounce, I don't think it would be too much out of the way for me and my friend that bought my Premium to come meet you. I am actually going to be there this Saturday - Tuesday. I've been going once a month to help them out around their new home they just purchased. Not sure I can do it this trip since we will be quite busy but we can plan something for next month.

 

[Anton]

Just so you know, the GT and GT/PE springs are the same. I personally think the ride comfort in the GT/PE is better than the Premium but that's me.

Sure, the springs are the same, but only the PE has the magneride (variable?) suspension. That can probably help the ride being less bouncy.

I think it would help to get a data point of your GT/PE on this section of the 41. I'll DM you my contact info.

HWY303 and HWY10 by Waddell are very smooth. Don't see any bounciness getting activated there.

 

[Mach1E]

Sure, the springs are the same, but only the PE has the magneride (variable?) suspension. That can probably help the ride being less bouncy.

I think it would help to get a data point of your GT/PE on this section of the 41. I'll DM you my contact info.

HWY303 and HWY10 by Waddell are very smooth. Don't see any bounciness getting activated there.

It’s all about the shocks.

Not sure why people keep focusing on the springs.

Hopefully someone will make some aftermarket shocks for it.

 

[Anton]

It’s all about the shocks.

Not sure why people keep focusing on the springs.

Hopefully someone will make some aftermarket shocks for it.

Springs because some people said it helped... Hence.. springs..

Just to preface this, I did read every single comment in this thread (took about 4-5 hours). Took a bunch of screenshots of the important things. Without me going through my notes (planning to compile them soon), can somebody answer if the GT shocks helped the bounce on sectioned concrete roads?

 

[Mach1E]

Springs because some people said it helped... Hence.. springs..

Just to preface this, I did read every single comment in this thread (took about 4-5 hours). Took a bunch of screenshots of the important things. Without me going through my notes (planning to compile them soon), can somebody answer if the GT shocks helped the bounce on sectioned concrete roads?

I think it just made it stiffer. And the people that did the swap only said something like “I think it helped some but it still bounces.”

So let’s focus on what we do know from many many sources.

1. GT is bouncy
2. GTPE isnt
3. GT and GTPE have the same springs
4. Only difference between the two is shocks

It’s the shocks.

 

[Anton]

I think it just made it stiffer. And the people that did the swap only said something like “I think it helped some but it still bounces.”

So let’s focus on what we do know from many many sources.

1. GT is bouncy
2. GTPE isnt
3. GT and GTPE have the same springs
4. Only difference between the two is shocks

It’s the shocks.

And the GTPE shocks are the magneride part? Meaning I can't swap to that part on my premium?

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