JWS3

As I just got my E, I am still playing with the Airmatic suspension. I am curious as to what setting (comfort, sport 1 or sport2) longer term owners use and why. At most I detect a slight difference, but am leavinig it in sport 1 as I am a rather "spirited" driver to say the least.

DWP

Comfort, only. The ride on rough surfaces is too stiff and jarring for my taste even in Comfort, so I don't have much reason to use the Sport settings. I used to manually switch to a Sport setting when I wanted to play Boy Racer on a twisty road, but then I learned that the car does it on its own when it senses hard cornering.

You don't say what year of E500 you have, but YMMV if you have something other than an '03. M-B may have recalibrated the Airmatic settings on the later models, to judge by comments I've read here.

HELL ONA HARLEY

I live on the county backroads and drive the twisties everyday, so for the most part were in "sport 2" 90% of the time... I can really feel a difference in this mode when pushing the car around the corners... On the highway I'm in "comfort" mode for sure. A very smooth and solid ride...
Some time during the end of the 03 model year the suspension settings software was changed and the modes are now harder to detect a difference between them. I test drove an 03 before this software change and the suspension settings were worlds apart as well as the steering feel between the modes... I really liked it. I've read many complaints here about the rough ride in sport 2, so perhaps why the change by MB. My 04 car does not display what the 03 did, but is still very acceptable and funtional.

Barry45RPM

Always Sport 1

Brian_I.

I use comfort because I lowered it so it's probably close to the standard Sport II. I used to mostly use Sport I before lowering.

MB Fanatic

E350 - Sport II w/ Kids Comfort
E55 - Sport II

McGuireV10

Wow, I'll have to remember to always insist that they leave my suspension software alone. I was pretty impressed with the range between the three settings. I drive in Comfort, but I tend to drive pretty hard so I switch into each of the other modes fairly often. I'd say Sport II rides every bit as stiffly as my Viper. I'd be disappointed if I couldn't even detect the difference -- then it becomes just one more thing to break.

ATS

In the city I am in comfort although if I am coming up to a corner fast I switch to Sport II and then back to comfort.

On the highway, I am in Sport II until I get to a rough patch and then I am in comfort and then right back to Sport II.

I would guess that the car is more aerodynamic and gas mileage goes down when not using comfort on the highway.

alewifebp

I like Sport I, even in pothole ridden NJ/NY. But, if I have passengers in my car, I usually switch to comfort.

Brav

Sport 1 70%
Sport 2 25%
Weenie 5%

jangy

98% weenie
2% Sport II

larryssf

Always on comfort, except when I want to show off for my nephew. Hey, guys (and gals) let's not forget that these are sedans, not sports cars. Havng had a "real" sports car when they existed below $250,000, I can still tell the difference.

Sunny and Warm tomorrow in San Francisco.

e350

Usually comfort, unless I want to have some fun on windy roads, then Sport II. When I go to Sport II, I usually shift to Sport mode on the trans as well.

Barry45RPM

As I understand it Sport or "S" mode on the transmission is the position that should be used under most driving conditions. The "C" mode is used when you want to have the car start in 2nd, not 1st, so you are really making your 7 speed a 6 speed. (2nd gear is less "torquey" than 1st, and less prone to spin on slippery/wet roads)

DWP

"Comfort", meaning a 2nd-gear start, is unrelated to "Comfort" meaning a softer Airmatic setting, so it's not obvious why M-B changed the labels. The old labels for the choices, "W" for "Winter" and "S" meaing "Summer", were maybe a bit more self-explanatory, although not entirely accurate either. Maybe "S" for "Sport" and "E" for "Economy"? Nawww. Maybe "1" and "2"? Most accurate, for people who read the Owner's Manual, but not everyone reads the Owner's Manual.

rusnakmb

Sport II

Because I lower the E500 with 20"s, sport II feels better and more control. The comfort mode were too "soft" when you lower the car using sensor tricks. My friend lower the car via DAC with the same wheel I had felt much harder ride.... close to what a E55 feels like.

xraymd

Sport 1 in town, sport 2 on the freeways. Wife in car - comfort and slow down. Don't want anybody throwing up in there.

e350

Because my car was giving me rough shifts when down shifting, I used "C" mode. This prevented the quick and often times jolting shift to and from 1st gear. (I've since had the problem fixed.) The C mode also as I understand it, shifts at a lower RPM, therefore increasing economy in addition to starting in 2d gear. This might be the next big question. Do more people drive in "S" or "C"? How does fuel economy compare?

prprandall51

Some helpful and knowledgable person posted on another thread (a while back) that the Airmatic settings change two things:

the volume of air in the spring (sports settings halve the air volume and thus double the spring rate)

the damper settings (choice of 4, if I remember correctly)

The car will (apparently) automatically adjust the dampers in a fraction of a second in response to sensing "spirited driving" but it does not alter the air volume - so it is necessary to select S1 or S2 manually for the full effect.

However, I have a post-03 car so all settings are virtually indistinguishable so I just leave it alone.