“Every Honda . . . has the wrong spring balance.”
It may be wrong for the comfort level of @Mustangman . . . but the engineers who designed the car seem to have a different opinion
No offense intended to anybody
My point is this . . . just because somebody doesn’t like something, doesn’t automatically mean it’s wrong
Just because I don’t like the way my brother’s Mazda rides, doesn’t mean the car is somehow wrong
The car is not to my liking, but it’s not wrong
@db4690, with all due respect, I stand by my opinion. Its wrong. Honda’s American engineering was in the back yard of my former home in Ohio. I’ve worked on cars at the facility they use, TRC. I know current and former Honda engineers working on chassis. I know engineers that design shocks for Honda and Acura from 2 different companies. They agree with me. The cars are all tuned with 3 people on board. The spring rates are chosen to create a pitch-free ride with 3 people and a full tank. With just the driver or 1 passenger, the car pitches fore and aft causing more sensitive people discomfort. The shocks and struts they install have too much bump dampening and transmit more force into the tires and body of the car. As personal experience, I swapped Bilstein shocks with much higher rate springs into my Honda S2000. The result was much softer ride and the pitch balance was greatly improved. Ride is subjective, no argument there, but Honda’s tuning is wrong.
I vote for changing cars without spending money in a futile attempt to make the car into something it is not.
I suspect the real problem is that the owner like the car and his wife and daughter do not.
I don’t have any advice for that situation. Non, nope, nada
@mustangman
It should read
Honda’s tuning is wrong for me
It's difficult to see how a stiffer ride could lead to carsickness.
I use to get car sick in my uncles New Yorker with the patented Chrysler Float. I prefer a stiffer suspension.
When we test drove the TL back in 07 I LOVED the ride. But my wife wanted a softer ride so she bought the 07 Lexus. The Lexus isn’t too soft…but noticeably softer then the TL. The TL was a lot more fun to drive though - maybe that’s why family members are getting car sick.
Certain drivers make me sick more than the car. Maybe the car is more responsive to your inputs and that is following through.
I thought my mom’s Camry long term loaner from Toyota made me really sick till I realized it was my mom’s driving style. My dad drove it and it was fine.
No, no, no! Do NOT reduce the tire inflation from the manufacturer recommended pressures, as this could reduce safety.
You COULD try different tires. I’ve used Bridgestone Turanza Serenity’s on my 2006 TSX, they lasted 55,000 miles (5000 past the warranty, and that was with 14 hours of high performance track time). I’ve just put on new Serenity tires (75,000 warranty), again from Costco, and like them. In the past I’ve read people complaining about the Michelin Pilots that Acura/Honda puts on their cars. YMMV.
I’m surprised at all the advice to change the rims and coilovers after only 6000 miles on the odo. Something’s wrong, either with the car, or the calibrated keesters of the female passengers. I would hope everything’s bedded and broken in, but frankly, the TSX is a /sports sedan/ not a comfy cushy mobile (find their “jump” TV ad from 2004 or so on YouTube). It could just be that the girls aren’t attuned to a firm, aggressive sport sedan.
@oldtimer I agree that spending a lot of money modifying the car trying to please wife and daughter will result in nothing better. Sell the car and buy another one.
They should accompany you shopping for another car and let them make the final decision., An excellent soft riding car is a Toyota Avalon. It will also last forever, and will be less expensive to maintain than an Acura!!!
One comment: do NOT make any assumptions about a potential vehicle’s ride based on its aspect ratio (45 series, 50 series, 70 series, or whatever).
A given vehicle will ride more firmly with a lower aspect ration, but it cannot and should not be assumed that on two different cars, the one with the lower aspect ration will ride more firmly. There’s far more to ride quality than just the tires. My 2005 tC with 45 series tires rides far better than my 2005 Corolla LE with 65 series tires.
The only way to compare rides is by test driving.