Sport Mode or...Sport Mode?

[Inhoc]

My GT1 drives fairly harshly. As a touring vehicle, it should be fun, but I shouldnt be bouncing all over the place. Changing the drive mode to “Sport” changes the way the car shifts and the aggressiveness, but it doesn’t seem to change the suspension. “Comfort mode” is far from comfortable. Its more like a roller coaster for me on local suburban roads. Has anyone else experienced this? Is it possible for suspension to be stuck in Sport mode?

My dealership escalated this to Kia consumer affairs.

 

[scharn]

My GT1 drives fairly harshly. As a touring vehicle, it should be fun, but I shouldnt be bouncing all over the place. Changing the drive mode to “Sport” changes the way the car shifts and the aggressiveness, but it doesn’t seem to change the suspension. “Comfort mode” is far from comfortable. Its more like a roller coaster for me on local suburban roads. Has anyone else experienced this? Is it possible for suspension to be stuck in Sport mode?

My dealership escalated this to Kia consumer affairs.

The difference between comfort and sport in this car is pretty subtle when it comes to the suspension. I'd say it is around a 10% difference, which isn't a whole lot.

Also most people use the term "harsh" when describing suspension to mean that when you hit bumps you feel it inside really hard. For it to bump hard and at the same time bounce around is odd. Comfort mode is meant to be a bit more floaty.

What car did you previous have? From my experience and most people i've read and talked to the stinger has a pretty soft suspension.

 

[Inhoc]

My last car was a BMW 335 Grand Turismo which wasn’t a particularly cushy ride. I had no issues with it though.

 

[scharn]

My last car was a BMW 335 Grand Turismo which wasn’t a particularly cushy ride. I had no issues with it though.

Hmm that is odd then. If someone was coming from a luxury car, maybe i can understand calling the stinger's ride "harsh" but otherwise the stinger's suspension is by and large very soft. Kia worked hard to tell people it was a gran touring car for that reason, not a sports car.

With my previous car, dealers had a nasty tendency not to remove the bump stops that came on the suspension from the factory. Though I've yet to hear about that being a problem with the stinger, i know that it if it isn't removed it would make for a very harsh ride. I guess if your dealer felt it was really an issue with the car they wouldn't have escalated it. When they drove it they must've felt a difference.

 

[Ivansito]

My GT1 drives fairly harshly. As a touring vehicle, it should be fun, but I shouldnt be bouncing all over the place. Changing the drive mode to “Sport” changes the way the car shifts and the aggressiveness, but it doesn’t seem to change the suspension. “Comfort mode” is far from comfortable. Its more like a roller coaster for me on local suburban roads. Has anyone else experienced this? Is it possible for suspension to be stuck in Sport mode?

My dealership escalated this to Kia consumer affairs.

Did you not test drive before you sign? You bought a sport car buddy. A very sporty GT.

 

[CoconutRob]

Does the gt feel more like comfort or sport mode on gt1 and gt2

 

[Waynerm002]

What's the tire pressure on the car? it might be set above OEM spec. I would check that as it is more likely that the tire pressure is too high leading to the bouncy ride more than an issue with the suspension.

 

[Ucinn]

If I drive the Stinger after driving the Mustang, it feels like a luxury automobile. If I drive it after the Sorento it feels like a rigid sports car, it's all perspective I guess. I would check the tire pressure and make sure it's not still set at 50PSI like Wayne said.

 

[Inhoc]

I would check that as it is more likely that the tire pressure is too high leading to the bouncy ride more than an issue with the suspension.

It was actually at like 51 PSI. They dropped it down to 36 or so, which seems to help a bit.

 

[Inhoc]

Did you not test drive before you sign? You bought a sport car buddy. A very sporty GT.

I test drove 3 different stingers, but the one I liked most was on the showroom floor and I couldn't drive it. On the day I signed, I finally drove it and it felt different. I've been to the dealership 3 times about it. They noticed something, but weren't able to resolve it. They opened a ticket with National Kia consumer affairs.

 

[StungBlueGT2]

My GT1 drives fairly harshly. As a touring vehicle, it should be fun, but I shouldnt be bouncing all over the place. Changing the drive mode to “Sport” changes the way the car shifts and the aggressiveness, but it doesn’t seem to change the suspension. “Comfort mode” is far from comfortable. Its more like a roller coaster for me on local suburban roads. Has anyone else experienced this? Is it possible for suspension to be stuck in Sport mode?

My dealership escalated this to Kia consumer affairs.

I was going to say the same, first check your tire pressure. This resolved the problem for many others that complained about a rough ride. Glad you realized the tires were extremely over inflated and should make a significant difference.

Otherwise I’m surprised by anyone with the adjustable suspension to say the ride is “harsh” or "bouncing". My GT2 set to "Comfort" is smooth as glass(even over RR tracts). I've gotten many compliments on how soft the ride is and my friend said it rides just like his BMW 740i. It does have a little body roll on harder turns, but it easily dampens rough roads and is far from bouncy. Then when I switch to Sport it noticeably firms up the ride and plants the car to the ground. Body roll is almost eliminated and feedback from the road is improved. You can now feel small road imperfections, but again far from "harsh".

For me the difference in dampening between modes is significant so yes you may have a suspension issue as your experience doesn't sound right for a GT1 or GT2.

I wish you the best of luck and hope they can resolve it so you too can enjoy the feeling of a true GT ride.

 

[Inhoc]

I was going to say the same, first check your tire pressure. This resolved the problem for many others that complained about a rough ride. Glad you realized the tires were extremely over inflated and should make a significant difference.

Otherwise I’m surprised by anyone with the adjustable suspension to say the ride is “harsh” or "bouncing". My GT2 set to "Comfort" is smooth as glass(even over RR tracts). I've gotten many compliments on how soft the ride is and my friend said it rides just like his BMW 740i. It does have a little body roll on harder turns, but it easily dampens rough roads and is far from bouncy. Then when I switch to Sport it noticeably firms up the ride and plants the car to the ground. Body roll is almost eliminated and feedback from the road is improved. You can now feel small road imperfections, but again far from "harsh".

For me the difference in dampening between modes is significant so yes you may have a suspension issue as your experience doesn't sound right for a GT2.

I wish you the best of luck and hope they can resolve it so you too can enjoy the feeling of a true GT ride.

Many thanks for the input. Which tires are on your GT2? My GT1 has the Bridgestone All Season which have been somewhat debated on this forum.

 

[Waynerm002]

KIA needs to get another brand of tires for the 18" wheels, those things are crappy.

 

[StingerGTT]

Compared to my STi my GT rides like I'm on a magic carpet on a cloud lol its a performance car its supposed to be stiff the ride reminds me of my 89 IROC I think it rides like its supposed to honestly but everyone is entitled to there opinion.

 

[StungBlueGT2]

Many thanks for the input. Which tires are on your GT2? My GT1 has the Bridgestone All Season which have been somewhat debated on this forum.

Snow isnt a factor for me in FL so I made sure to get the 19" Micheline Pilot Sport Summer tires. I was actually surprised how good the ride was for using low profile 35 height tires. My Saab Aero had 35s too but that ride was uncomfortably harsh. Its truly amazing how Kia was able to achieve such smoothness from similar tires on the Stinger.

 

[upsidedown]

My GT1 drives fairly harshly. As a touring vehicle, it should be fun, but I shouldnt be bouncing all over the place. Changing the drive mode to “Sport” changes the way the car shifts and the aggressiveness, but it doesn’t seem to change the suspension. “Comfort mode” is far from comfortable. Its more like a roller coaster for me on local suburban roads. Has anyone else experienced this? Is it possible for suspension to be stuck in Sport mode?

My dealership escalated this to Kia consumer affairs.

I've found that smart mode seems to be a good compromise between the roller coaster suburban ride and the somewhat firmer sport mode. Sort of like fairly forgiving on the potholed roads but without the bounciness

 

[Waynerm002]

I have to admit I haven't driven a GT1 or 2 with the adjustable suspension but the suspension on the GT was quite well done in my opinion. I would think there is room to make things a bit firmer with some type of change to the adjustable system but as the car is new, no one has information on how to do that yet. Granted it was designed to be a GT car and does quite well in that respect, I would hate for it to be too harsh to give it a sportier driving feel.

 

[SonomaGT]

Had the same issue with my GT1. Tire pressure should solve it. Also may want to try the custom mode with sport for all except ride feel at comfort. Enjoy!

 

[JCranford83]

My tires were all at 51 psi...once dropped back things improved...why on earth would the dealer send a car out with overinflation? Don't they go over the car in the shop before we take delivery? I thought i was a fluke...but I see others had same issue.

 

[Waynerm002]

I make it a habit to check my tire pressure regularly, at least once a month. With the system in the Optima, I can do a quick check when driving. If the car feels weird on the road, I flip over for a quick check and then on the weekend I will do a cold tire check with a handheld meter and adjust to the correct pressure then. Some times I notice the pressure differs between the hand held device and the car's system. Since I have new sportier riding tires and springs, I have adjusted it to give me a good balance of ride comfort and handling feel. I notice the economy hasn't taken much of a toll with doing it that way.