Our ’08 Kuga now starting to look a bit less modern just feels a lot more “crashy” around town. Same (2nd) set of tyres as we’ve had for three years. The same thing has happened to a colleagues 5yo Kia Sportage.

Otherwise no complaints, it’s as much as a townies workhorse / kids carrier can be expected of it, whilst we start to consider its hybrid replacement.

So, why? Do shocks and springs get less forgiving as they age, or maybe the tyres compound has gone off?

The first part of the first sentence says it all.

Everything wears, suspension, bushing etc. Surely you knew an 8yr old car would be beginning to feel ‘tired’ ?

As above – and add to that seats, soundproofing, fixings…

It’s not just cars; I’m feeling the effects of age myself!

3years from a set of tyres is good!

Big heavy car in worn out suspension shock.

My land rovers shock springs were 3 inches shorter than the direct replacement due to fatigue !

We’ve just had the tyres on the wife’s car changed; the old ones were just about on the limit but otherwise fine and worn evenly, the new ones are pretty bog standard but cor blimey the difference is huge for some reason; it feels much smoother and less buzzy now. Most of the random vibrations and rattles from around the inside have gone. I wasn’t expecting much from basic tyres but I’m impressed.

For much the same reasons as an 8 year old full sus’ with just enough maintenance will feel sloppy. Knackered bushings and bearings make things less precise, sealed for life shocks have a life span, saddles lose their shape and grips wear through.
Newer stuff equally gets more refined, trickle down of finish and materials.

Roads are also in a worse state, LAs have been starved of cash for nearly a decade now….

shock absorbers used to thought of as a service item, maybe they still should be?

Have you got a broken spring, very common on modern cars. Often the 1st coil breaks so the ride height doesn’t drop much, but the ride can be harsh.
if you are the other side 100k shock could be worn.

“the new ones are pretty bog standard but cor blimey the difference is huge for some reason; it feels much smoother and less buzzy now”

The tyre wall like on your bike is the first bit of suspension travel.
The tyre wall is working all the time. so a worn out tyre will have worn out side walls.

Thread resurrection:

Just been reading about suspension bushings, which I apparently need to replace; and thinking about how my dad’s new car feels (and other cheaper new cars feel) compared to my 10 year old one.

It seems that bushes have a major role in isolating road noise and cushioning the knocks, and they harden and break down with age. Costly to replace though in terms of labour. The parts are pretty cheap.

tbh i often get in modern new cars and think how harsh they feel…. talking focus’s, I30s , Insignias and other popular hire fodder.

I like my soggy barge handling french cars(both at 100k plus) – very compliant if not very good in corners…..

i fitted all new bushes to my landy when i built it along with 13 inch travel shocks…. it took aobut 4000 miles for the bushes to bed in , when first on the road it was horrendously harsh.

theres definantly a mid point where they are best.

Strangely, I’ve often noticed the exact opposite but mostly with saloon/estate cars. i.e. they feel a lot smoother than newer cars. Maybe it’s a trend for sportier handling and stiffer suspension? or perhaps it’s worse on more “upright” cars like MPVs and SUVs, that tend to have stiffer roll bars and so on to control the handling?

My scenic makes a horrible graunch / creak when you go over speed bumps. Its a known issue when the ARB bushes get a bit old. I’ll probably get around to it when the weather is better. Its a bigish job, as you have to drop the front subframe to get them out.

I’ve been in SaxonRider’s old 406 estate, which is very soft and squishy, like my older Passat used to be. But that’s clearly softer springs. My Dad’s Golf and my Passat seem to handle similarly, the difference is the initial shock when you hit a pothole that resonates through the car. Far more noticeable in the Passat. I’ve also noticed how the car’s getting noisier over the years – I put this down to the road surface on the M4 deteriorating, but bushings could be a factor too.

i fitted all new bushes to my landy when i built it

PU or rubber? PU is seen as an upgrade, but would seem to result in a harsher ride.

Just replaced all mine on my TT, £322 for all incl labour.

It’s so much nicer to drive.

soft pu genuine polybushes. touted to wear fast but give a better ride with the long shocks. – they are much much better than the OEM set up now …..i expect they are probably worn out but mot next month will tell

OEM Rubber bushes dont have enough rotation apparently for the LT shocks and arms.

My scenic makes a horrible graunch / creak when you go over speed bumps. Its a known issue when the ARB bushes get a bit old. I’ll probably get around to it when the weather is better. Its a bigish job, as you have to drop the front subframe to get them out.

Mine used to do that, although I sold it before getting round to fixing it.

Yeah that makes sense TR. I found when doing my CV joints that the lower arm was really stiff to move. I thought about greasing it, but with further reading, the swingarm’s not meant to rotate in the bush, it’s just meant to stretch.

BB, that’s quite cheap really – all bushes on all corners? Indie garage?

My money’s on the bushings, these have a big effect on NVH and will wear out as the car ages. That said, a lot of other things will too.

If it’s making clattery noises, there’ll be a reason.

PU or rubber? PU is seen as an upgrade, but would seem to result in a harsher ride.

It depends a little on the particular bush. PU doesn’t handle rotational forces well and tend to bind – or something like that, but is fine and works well in other applications. It can also be very harsh in the wrong place, viz, my old Mk2 GTi had poly bushes in the rear beam and was horrifically harsh after they were fitted, apparently because used in that location they tend to bind and actually reduce suppleness.

Poly bushes are generally viewed as an upgrade, but to be honest, if your original bushes are tired, fitting brand new rubbers ones will make a big difference without adding harshness ime.

An upgrade re handling, I meant, which is what about 75% of the online car fixing community is interested in. In my case, I’ve already been told I’ve got damaged and split bushings, has been an advisory for the last 3 or 4 MOTs.

Performance poly bushes such as Powerflex are a handling upgrade, but they are very hard, so whilst a performance upgrade, not really a comfort upgrade.

I had a car fully kitted out with them years ago, inluding engine mounts etc, in conjuntion with sports suspension kit, it certainly sharpened the ride up, but it was harsh!

i tell a lie its not polybush its superpro polybush

Suspension bushes are consumable items, in fact a good many cars require you to replace wishbones and tie rods as per a service schedule.

molgrips – Member

Thread resurrection:

Just been reading about suspension bushings, which I apparently need to replace; and thinking about how my dad’s new car feels (and other cheaper new cars feel) compared to my 10 year old one.

It seems that bushes have a major role in isolating road noise and cushioning the knocks, and they harden and break down with age. Costly to replace though in terms of labour. The parts are pretty cheap.

Yeah, they do make a difference. Consider whether you want to ‘upgrade’ to performance bushes though.
I had the trailing arm bushes on my Ibiza replaced with the Cupra spec ones when mine were knackered. This was mainly due to extra durability reported on loads of forums if you swap to the Cupra ones….
But, bloody hell they were harsh! Improved the ‘tightness’ of the steering, but every pot hole/rut and small piece of grit was felt in the cabin!!

trail_rat – Member

tbh i often get in modern new cars and think how harsh they feel…. talking focus’s, I30s , Insignias and other popular hire fodder.

I like my soggy barge handling french cars(both at 100k plus) – very compliant if not very good in corners…..

Our soggy French people carrier barge has managed not only to be pretty unreliable in the short amount of time we’ve owned it (I had my doubts about buying a French car), but the soft, wallowy, pitchy, rolly suspension also manages to crash through ruts and pot holes far worse than our ‘sporty’ Ibiza. It’s quite an impressive feat……I am sure one day it will roll so far on a roundabout I’ll scrape the mirrors….. 😆

Our soggy French people carrier barge has managed not only to be pretty unreliable in the short amount of time we’ve owned it (I had my doubts about buying a French car), but the soft, wallowy, pitchy, rolly suspension also manages to crash through ruts and pot holes far worse than our ‘sporty’ Ibiza. It’s quite an impressive feat

Ah, you drive a Grand Picasso? 😆

Are you sure the tyres aren’t to blame? My Freelander started to get very noisy and seemingly harsher when the first set of tyres were almost done. At the next service I said that I thought it had drive shaft/bearing issues and the mechanic said, “No, it’ll be the OE tyres”. Rubbish, I thought. He was spot on, new tyres, smooth & quiet again. 😳

Sometimes i wonder if i got the only half decently built french cars in the world when i read this forum….

The Goodyear efficient grip performance tyres are indeed noisier than the nokians they replaced, despite being billed as store quiet.. Will only buy Nokian again, they were outstanding.

Generally (but not in this case) new tyres are much more comfy than old ones, due to presumably more rubber to cushion the ride.

I’ve been using the same Indi Audi garage now for 5 years after an extended warranty from Audi ran out and they wouldn’t extend any further. The guys I use are a performance VAG specialist and have always been very good at offering good advice and such when it’s asked for.
I didn’t need to change the bushes, but felt as part of a big service due that I’d get them done. I was offered some pollywhatsit bushes but I’m not performance orientated so chose std Audi bushes instead. To be honest I thought I’d just get the fronts changed since the cars quite heavy it being the big engined one, then just thought sod it and got them all done. Glad I did, when the fronts came out they looked wrecked to me.

I know mine are wrecked already.

Just had a look, rear subframe send to be mounted on bushes too…

if only it was a designer italian marque…. rather than a ford. then maybe you would see it in a different light (presumably through your deisgner shades that match your italian marque)

PJM1974 – Member

Ah, you drive a Grand Picasso?

Close. C3 Picasso!! We only have one sproglet to cart around, so the grand Picasso would have been a stretch too far.

trail_rat – Member

Sometimes i wonder if i got the only half decently built french cars in the world when i read this forum….

I reckon so… 😆

My Wife’s 308 turned out to be a bag of crap that she couldn’t wait to get rid of & as much as the C3 Picasso suits our needs it isn’t endearing itself to us so far with 3 trips back to the dealer so far (in about 5 months), a completely corroded exhaust bracket that needed replacing and quite a thirst for oil….