lark

I tested the ML 350 yesterday on the highway, and found the ride and handling to be a little - I'm not sure of the right word - soft? Going over bumps there seemed to be an extra bounce or 2 before the car settled back down.

(I have searched this forum, and have not seen anything on this - except for one post which said the car was unstable at 35 mph. I don't believe that to be true.)

Has anyone also felt this while on the highway? I'm not driving a SUV now, but have in the past. Maybe I just forgot how it feels?

Benzo 003

I traded up from a 98 Dodge Durango. Everything else now feels like a tank. The ML feels as if it floating over the road, not on it.
I feel very confident that it is able to react to sudden movement without a problem on the highway. It is very "sure footed" at lower speeds.
I love the feel, wouldn't trade it for the world.

lark

Benzo:
You don't feel the 350 sort of bouncing back into position after going over a highway bump? I sort of felt it was going to change lanes on me.

sosh

Believe thats normal for a non Airmatic car if you wish you can order an Airmatic for maybe a couple of thousand total as I did. With this you can certainly set the ride where you like it and get a far better ride overall. Its a special order item.

Benzo 003

I do not....feels like it floats right over it. In Illinois, we have plenty of pot holes and street cracks too.....and traintracks ....smooth. No Airmatic either for me.
I love the feel.

lark

The Airmatic seems a little steep, and I d/n think I would use it all that often. Thanks for the response - it may have been the set up on the 350. It was soon after it arrived at the dealership, so I wonder what the pressure was in the tires.

I do really like the truck, and it has been 10+ years since I drove an SUV, so I may have forgotten the feel. I also drove the Audi Q5, which is a little lower and did not have the swaying feeling. Overall, I like the 350 better, however.

QuadBenz

You'd be using it every second of each drive. It's a different suspension setup than a non-Airmatic vehicle. The biggest benefit to it is the ability to choose from a smoother ride to a sporty, firmer ride at any given time.

I have an ML63 so I'm somewhat useless, but in comfort mode I do notice what you describe. In sport mode it alleviates the issue, but I find it way too jarring.

An Airmatic ML350 would likely solve your issues. In sport mode it would most likely get rid of the issue you described (however it won't be as jarring as the ML63).

lark

I'm sure you are correct re: the Airmatic, but I was just wondering about the basic set-up and the floaty-ness. My other issue is that I do not want to wait 3 months for a delivery! I have sport mode on the TT roadster, and find it a little rougher than is comfortable for my back. I hardly ever use it.

sosh

I use my Airmatic 95 percent of the time in Comfort mode. On rare occassions I use auto or sport. I fine that the comfort mode is perfect for most of my driving. With the self leveling it all but eliminates lean on turns and the ride you are describing. This is my 2nd W164 ML with Airmatic. Would not have it any other way. Thinking about it I am not even certain they will put it on a 350 as its a "special order" on the 550. I also find the steering very precise and of course that has nothing to do with Airmatic. The ML63 AMG is much stiffer as far as the ride goes than the 550 and always has been. Thats the primary reason I never ordered one.

QuadBenz

I recall reading at one time that the ML63's front suspension was 100% stiffer than non-AMG MLs and the rear was 80% stiffer.
Not anywhere near as bad as the G55 though. THAT is a stiff ride.

Benzo 003

Lark
"it may have been the set up on the 350. It was soon after it arrived at the dealership, so I wonder what the pressure was in the tires. "


Come to think of it, I do run my tires 2 lbs harder than the recommended...34 instead of 32. It did firm up the ride.

lark

Do you know if the basic set up on the ML 350 the equivalent of the "comfort" setting for the Airmatic? Or are there other changes to the suspension made if Airmatic is ordered?

roadrutz

Airmatic on the ML63 is the same system as on other Airmatic-equipped MLs, just tuned differently and with stiffer shocks. The Auto setting on the ML63 is roughly the same as the Sport setting on other MLs. Comfort on the ML63 is comparable to Auto on other systems. Sport on the ML63 is noticeably stiffer than Sport on other MLs. The ML63 also rides lower, except that if you set it to Auto it rises to the same level as other MLs in Sport. But other MLs automatically lower slightly at highway speed in Auto, down to the same level as the ML63 in Auto. (Did you get all that? )

I don't think there is an equivalent setting between Airmatic and non-Airmatic vehicles, because Airmatic is intelligent and adjusts itself as you drive. (It is actually possible that under sone circumstances a non-Airmatic vehicle may actually be smoother than an Airmatic one. Parking lot speed bumps are an example; Airmatic doesn't like them. But in 99% of cases, Airmatic wins hands-down.)

If you look around this and other ML forums, you'll see that almost without exception people who have Airmatic-equipped MLs wonder why everybody doesn't have it. It really is an incredible system. Some people steer clear of it because it had early teething troubles, but those seem to have been cleared up in the W164 line. But to some people it just isn't worth the extra cost. Fair enough.

C-rod

owned a vehicle with air-matic............so l really don't know what l'm missing.........But l find the ride and steering to be very "Mercedes -like"...no complaints at all, of course, this is easy for me to say..l owned 2 W163's ..with full frames..so this ride is "heavenly" !!!!!