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I know there are many threads on this and I've gone through most. My lease on my current Mustang is up in a 2 months and I was thinking of getting into a C43. I've had bimmers before (3 and 2) series before so am pretty familiar with them and was also lucky enough to test drive an S5 sport back early in the year before the pandemic started.
Have not been able to test drive a c43 yet, most of the dealerships are still closed in the NJ area. Came across this thread below, I know its on a BMW forum but is the ride quality really that bad ? Most of the threads seems to suggest to get rid of the RF and also try to go with 18", but even with the stock configuration and 19" rims I can't imagine MB shipping out cars that are this uncomfortable as a DD.
I haven't read that post (and I'm not going to), but I can tell you that the ride quality of the facelift C43s is significantly improved over the pre-facelift model and is on part with my previous car, which was a Lexus IS350 F-Sport. No ride quality concerns at all, even when I had the RF tires.
I know there are many threads on this and I've gone through most. My lease on my current Mustang is up in a 2 months and I was thinking of getting into a C43. I've had bimmers before (3 and 2) series before so am pretty familiar with them and was also lucky enough to test drive an S5 sport back early in the year before the pandemic started.
Have not been able to test drive a c43 yet, most of the dealerships are still closed in the NJ area. Came across this thread below, I know its on a BMW forum but is the ride quality really that bad ? Most of the threads seems to suggest to get rid of the RF and also try to go with 18", but even with the stock configuration and 19" rims I can't imagine MB shipping out cars that are this uncomfortable as a DD.
I've seen reviewers from major magazines report that the suspension was too firm, but never to the level of the OP in your link. The runflats do have a big impact on ride quality, and most that have switched to standard tires report that the ride is night and day. RF's and the 19 inch wheels are even worse. As was said above, the facelift cars have better sorted out suspension, but really should have normal tires vs. RFs.
I haven't read that post (and I'm not going to), but I can tell you that the ride quality of the facelift C43s is significantly improved over the pre-facelift model and is on part with my previous car, which was a Lexus IS350 F-Sport. No ride quality concerns at all, even when I had the RF tires.
Thank you very much for response and the comparison. Figured it couldn't have been that bad.
I've seen reviewers from major magazines report that the suspension was too firm, but never to the level of the OP in your link. The runflats do have a big impact on ride quality, and most that have switched to standard tires report that the ride is night and day. RF's and the 19 inch wheels are even worse. As was said above, the facelift cars have better sorted out suspension, but really should have normal tires vs. RFs.
I figured something was odd about that post. Sometimes things are too good to be true, that post was too bad to be true
One of the big factors in ride comfort is the tire pressure. That guy from bimmerpost having gotten the car loaned or something says nothing about whether it had the proper tire pressure. To be fair I have no real world experience with the C43 on public roads. I've only driven it on the track as part of the AMG Driving Academy. I daily a 2019 C63S Coupe, which to me has the perfect balance between daily ride comfort in Comfort mode and sporty/dynamic handling in Sport+. RF tires definitely add harshness to the ride. BMW seems to have managed over time to tune their suspensions properly for the RF tires, but I remember back when they first switched to RF tires, the complaints were loud and clear about the poor ride comfort. My last BMW was from before they switched to RF tires and I never had nor do I want RF tires ever.
Back to the tire pressure. It's one of my biggest beefs. In the USA the sticker on the driver's door jamb only lists what's known as the max load recommended tire pressure. It leads back to the Firestone debacle in the 90s, but this is not the proper tire pressure to use for a lightly loaded car (yourself and mostly empty trunk, or 1 or 2 passengers). For that there is what's called the normal load recommended tire pressure. It's lower, sometimes by quite a bit and for Mercedes is found on the sticker inside of the fuel door. I don't know what the ranges are for the C43, but my C63S has huge ranges between the pressure for normal light load driving with speeds of less than 155 mph and top speed runs or driving the car fully loaded. I can tell you that using any of the higher pressures with a practically empty car leads to a bone crushing ride, so it's important to use the proper tire pressure. Here's a picture of the sticker from my C63S. You can see that the ranges are quite wide, so it's understandably that if you use the wrong one, the ride quality will suffer.
I have a MY '19 C43 coupe and have no issues with the ride quality. In fact it is one of the nicest driving Benzes I've had and I have owned most of the model range. The only change I made at purchase was to have the dealer swap out the summer performance tires (19") for all season tires because we use the car as a daily driver year round. Yes, run flats are a PITA and ride like "rocks". Somehow the C 43 doesn't seem to be as negatively affected by the run flats. Maybe because they are fairly new. I traded an E 400 cab and the run flats on that car were jarring to say the least.
I have a 2019 IS350 with the f-sport seats and a 2019 c43 sedan with stock 19" wheels and RF tires, I would say the ride quality on Lexus is more comfortable by a long shot. Lowering the tire pressure does seem to help, but I am planning on switching out the run flats to see if that helps.
I have a 2019 IS350 with the f-sport seats and a 2019 c43 sedan with stock 19" wheels and RF tires, I would say the ride quality on Lexus is more comfortable by a long shot. Lowering the tire pressure does seem to help, but I am planning on switching out the run flats to see if that helps.
I think you will find that switching to non run flats will help considerably. I have Michelin Pilot Sport AS 3's on my old C 230 and it rides/handles like a dream. I highly recommend them. I think they make an AS 3+ now. Good luck with the change.
I drive a 2019 facelift C43 wagon and I have two friends who each have a 2017 C43 cabriolet and a 2017 C43 wagon, and I don’t feel much difference between them all in terms of ride quality. They all definitely ride much harder than my S5 Sportback V6T, there is no comparison the Audi is a more comfortable ride in all conditions. The springs on the C43 are overly firm in my opinion and could do with softer spring rates.
I think its great. Comfort mode you can feel the suspension rise and fall with the changes in the road. Sport and Sport+ stiffens it a bit more but nothing that I would call "harsh" I think its a great suspension all around.
I think its great. Comfort mode you can feel the suspension rise and fall with the changes in the road. Sport and Sport+ stiffens it a bit more but nothing that I would call "harsh" I think its a great suspension all around.
It’s the rise and fall in Comfort that I don’t really like, too floaty. The dampers are too soft for the spring rate in Comfort mode.
I checked on the part numbers for suspension and arms for 2017 to 2019, they are all the same so there doesn’t seem to be a change for 2019.
It’s the rise and fall in Comfort that I don’t really like, too floaty. The dampers are too soft for the spring rate in Comfort mode.
I checked on the part numbers for suspension and arms for 2017 to 2019, they are all the same so there doesn’t seem to be a change for 2019.
To be fair, that is what comfort is about, though. The more float, the more comfortable it rides, but I'm with you in that I very much dislike float. Some people even get car sick from it. It's very common in adaptive suspensions that are setup more on the comfort side. They are sprung softer from the beginning and then try to stiffen it up with the dampers in the sportier modes, but the comfort mode tends to be floaty. Adaptive suspensions setup more for performance, are firmer with stiffer springs and sway bars and then try to optimize the damping to avoid the suspension crashing and the car getting thrown about on bumpy roads. I don't know for the C43, but for the 2019 C63 AMG softened the springs by 8-10%. They were too stiff on the pre-FL, but most of the changes in the 2019 AMG Ride Control is software-related. They are doing a much better job at adapting the damping. They nailed it on the C63 at least, IMO. In comfort mode, impacts are absorbed by the slightly softer springs pretty well, but then the key is the damping settles the car quickly and smoothly so there is no float. It's comfort w/o float. Now you can still feel the bumps and on really bad roads it's not exactly comfortable, but then again, it's supposed to be a performance car, but the genius is how they improved the damping to settle the car quicker and that makes it at least to me, much more comfortable than previous cars I had, but at the same time dialed up to Sport+ the suspension becomes very dynamic with the added benefit of still being compliant. I'm actually surprised at how composed my C63S is in Sport+ while still compliant and can be driven around town even in that mode if I really want to. Again, though, I'm mainly speaking for the C63, but I assume the AMG Ride Control software in the C43 is based on the same core, just tweaked for more comfort, including some float I suppose in comfort mode.
Last edited by superswiss; 05-18-2020 at 10:43 PM.
To be fair, that is what comfort is about, though. The more float, the more comfortable it rides, but I'm with you in that I very much dislike float. Some people even get car sick from it. It's very common in adaptive suspensions that are setup more on the comfort side. They are sprung softer from the beginning and then try to stiffen it up with the dampers in the sportier modes, but the comfort mode tends to be floaty. Adaptive suspensions setup more for performance, are firmer with stiffer springs and sway bars and then try to optimize the damping to avoid the suspension crashing and the car getting thrown about on bumpy roads. I don't know for the C43, but for the 2019 C63 AMG softened the springs by 8-10%. They were too stiff on the pre-FL, but most of the changes in the 2019 AMG Ride Control is software-related. They are doing a much better job at adapting the damping. They nailed it on the C63 at least, IMO. In comfort mode, impacts are absorbed by the slightly softer springs pretty well, but then the key is the damping settles the car quickly and smoothly so there is no float. It's comfort w/o float. Now you can still feel the bumps and on really bad roads it's not exactly comfortable, but then again, it's supposed to be a performance car, but the genius is how they improved the damping to settle the car quicker and that makes it at least to me, much more comfortable than previous cars I had, but at the same time dialed up to Sport+ the suspension becomes very dynamic with the added benefit of still being compliant. I'm actually surprised at how composed my C63S is in Sport+ while still compliant and can be driven around town even in that mode if I really want to. Again, though, I'm mainly speaking for the C63, but I assume the AMG Ride Control software in the C43 is based on the same core, just tweaked for more comfort, including some float I suppose in comfort mode.
Yes, this is in line with what I have observed with the three 2017 to 2019 C43's that I have access to. The Springs, Dampers and Arms/Bushings have not changed for the facelift, and the spring rate remains too high for the damping in Comfort mode. The Audi S5 and the M340i are more surefooted in their suspension especially on bad roads and at high speeds. There are different reasons to buy the C43 over the other makes (models of the same level), but handling is not really one of them in my opinion - it's not its forte.
Like you said OP...there are MANY threads on this and it's been beaten to death.
Pretty much every review that is done on the C43 AMG is done on it completely stock, and the run flats that the car comes with are not the optimal choice for comfort. If you plan on keeping the car and definitely want to use run flat tires then you may want to consider a different car if comfort is something that is really important to you. Honestly you would be lucky if you got more than 15-20K out of those run flats before you had to replace them with something (and hopefully a regular tire).
However, like you probably saw in literally every thread, most people ditch the run flats and upgrade to a regular performance or all season tire.
The debate is pretty much over at this point; the C43 AMG isn't as comfortable as its Audi and BMW counterpart, but most of us bought it because we are MBZ homers and/or we thought it was more fun to drive. Its pretty simple..the AMG sounds better.
I replaced a 2012 C63 with a 2017 C43. I have to say my C63 drove smoother, especially on questionable roads, but what I have come to find is my real problem w/ the C43 is the 19" front wheels bend just by looking at them funny, where-as I never had any problem with bends on the C63 18" wheels (driving the same roads the same way).
I have a 2020 c43 w the 18” rims/tires and drive almost exclusively in sport+. Car feels fine to me. Never had a teeth rattling issue. I came from a CLS550 which is a comfy car and the c43 ride quality doesn’t concern me at all.
I have only had my 2020 C43 Coupe for a few days now however I really don't notice the ride quality being much different from my 2017 C300. In comfort mode the car handles bumps just fine as far as I am concerned and I am using the 19'' run flat summer tires that came with it. After reading and hearing so many complaints about the stiff suspension I don't see what all complaints were about.
I have had an '18 C43 sedan w/18" wheels for a week now, the ride is fine to me in Comfort mode. I live in a rural area where roads are less than perfect, the run flats give some annoying NVH on rough pavement but the ride is far from jarring. Then again I am used to pickup trucks. Previously had a Cadillac ATS on 17" run flats with base suspension and can't say this car rides much different. I guess if you're expecting a smooth luxurious ride you won't get it, but this is a sport sedan.
05-18-2020, 12:17 PM
