Which ML has more comfortable suspension: W166 or W164? If both cars have airmatic and 18 inch rims, then which car would be more comfortable on potholed roads?

 

Don't think there are many W166 Airmatics out there yet. I have the W164 which is quite comfortable. The W166 should be better due to:

• Improved Adaptive Damping System (ADS)
• Stiffer chassis
• Active Curve System, when so equipped

The last, which is part of the US Dynamic Handling Package, decouples the two halves of the antiroll bars in straight ahead and off-road driving, allowing freer suspension travel. Of course, that package has 20" rims, though larger cross-section tires than the W164, so there would be a very slight compromise in that regard.

Further chassis/suspension information here: http://media.daimler.com/dcmedia/0-9...=1327862172411



PS...If you add your location to your profile it will help people tailor their responses to your posts.

 

My 164 has the Airmatic suspension. When I test drove a 166BT, it (and all I could find on the net within a 500 mile radius) had the regular suspension.
My opinion, the regular suspension on the 166 rides very comparable to my Airmatic. Not sure if its the Agility Control feature or new engineering but I was impressed.
Would love to try the Airmatic and Lighting on the 166 if I could find one.

 

Lots of AIRMATIC equipped W166 MLs up here in Canada (about 25% sold with the sport package). All are on 20s so not exactly comparable to your request with respect to 18s, however, the ride is very similar to the W164 with AIRMATIC though the chassis is much tighter and more responsive on the W166.

If comfort is your only concern (not handling), the two generations are essentially on par I'd argue. The 18" wheel is going to kill any handling you might have enjoyed.

 

Given equally grippy tires, 18" wheels will usually result in better handling than 20" wheels. Lower overall unsprung weight is why. You'll also get better acceleration with an 18" wheel (smaller flywheel effect), and a better ride.

20" wheels are just for show (and yeah, I agree, they do look good). Most of the time manufacturers package the bigger wheels with high performance summer only tires, which certainly have a lot more grip.

 

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How is a narrower 18" wheel/tire combo plus a taller sidewall going to lead to better handling versus a 20"? The 18" will definitely give you a plusher ride, but spongy in the corners due to the sidewalls.

 

I should probably have been more specific. Beefier, wider tires will give you more grip on perfect roads. Given equal quality of materials, though, a 17" wheel/tire combo will be lighter and that decrease in unsprung weight will mean better handling on less than perfect roads (which = real roads, at least in my area).

Anyway, stiff sidewalls in higher profile tires can compensate pretty well for lower profile tires. Check out the best handling cars in the world, F1 cars. They use 13" wheels and probably higher profile tires than many street cars. Of course, the sidewalls are incredibly stiff.

On some of the Porsche/track forums I frequent, the consensus is pretty clear that bigger is not always better when it comes to wheel sizes.

 

Wider tires kill steering feel

 

Outstanding zombie bump.

 

At least you learned something...I guess.

 

Yes, I learned your opinion on wider tires.