For those that thought the Genesis suspension was "harsh"

[wallymn]

I am also a member of the BMW forum, sorry for the cross post, but this was an interesting thread regarding the problem of "pothole explosion" this is the name given to the total failure of the suspension to handle common road imperfections... including concrete expansion joints....

http://www.bimmerfest.com/forums/showthread.php?t=490530


While a number of members here have experienced less than ideal handling of their Genesis none have reported the failures discussed in this post..

 

[ctrcbob]

I'm pushing 30k miles on my Genesis and so far (knock on wood) I have not had the "Pothole Explosion" happen to me.

Slightly off subject --- many years ago, I had a BMW. What a POS. (The price excedes the value). Not worth the money. Sold it to someone else who believed the BMW hype.

 

[wallymn]

I am with you... i had just seen so many threads complaining about the suspension of the Genesis... I just haven't had any problems. it is a firm ride as expected from a performance sedan.. many have suggested BMW/MB deliver a sporty suspension without "jittery" ride... I just wanted to point out that no matter the brand, someone is unhappy with the ride.....

 

[Disaster]

The pothole issue is a big problem and I suspect there have been more than a few Genesis rims destroyed, despite not seeing posts about it here. I lost two rims on our much less aggressive wheeled Avalon. The first was from a nasty pothole on an on ramp. The second was from a chunk of concrete left behind by a construction truck.

 

[robthoke]

I am with you... i had just seen so many threads complaining about the suspension of the Genesis... I just haven't had any problems. it is a firm ride as expected from a performance sedan.. many have suggested BMW/MB deliver a sporty suspension without "jittery" ride... I just wanted to point out that no matter the brand, someone is unhappy with the ride.....

Agree. I love the ride of my Genesis. It works for me. If everyone were the same we'd only need one car to drive around in. How boring would that be?

 

[hvarsov]

I have had a 2010 3.8 for 6 months now----The problem I have, and have had, is the hard hard ride.....It never has "softened up" and everybody who rides in the car brings it to my attention too......Sort of takes the joy out of what otherwise would be a great car.....Will have to get rid of it soon as I cant take the jarring bumpy ride about town, every day, day after day a jarring ride.........Its great on the hwy but I dont ride the highway that much.....very disappointed

 

[ShoNuff]

I have had a 2010 3.8 for 6 months now----The problem I have, and have had, is the hard hard ride.....It never has "softened up" and everybody who rides in the car brings it to my attention too......Sort of takes the joy out of what otherwise would be a great car.....Will have to get rid of it soon as I cant take the jarring bumpy ride about town, every day, day after day a jarring ride.........Its great on the hwy but I dont ride the highway that much.....very disappointed

When you replace the Dunlops with a tire with a little more "give" in the sidewall, you'll experience a much less jarring ride. Try the Bridgestone Serenity or Continental Conti3 DWS. Either will soften up the ride significantly.

 

[CenTexan]

I have had a 2010 3.8 for 6 months now----The problem I have, and have had, is the hard hard ride.....It never has "softened up" and everybody who rides in the car brings it to my attention too......Sort of takes the joy out of what otherwise would be a great car.....Will have to get rid of it soon as I cant take the jarring bumpy ride about town, every day, day after day a jarring ride.........Its great on the hwy but I dont ride the highway that much.....very disappointed

I've had my 2011 3.8 (Tech & Nav) for a week. . . and am very unhappy with the ride. Worst thing about the car so far. But I guess it's my fault for not taking a longer test drive and driving my work route before I bought. I almost shouted for joy when I read in the manual that there is a suspension setting option in the DIS. . .only to find that my vehicle does not have that option. SIgh . . .

 

[Sayantsi]

There was never a problem with the Genesis suspension - it just didn't match certain owners' expectations, and a good number of these owners came from vehicles with well-known cushy suspensions, cars like Lincolns and Lexuses.

That aside, I've never read or heard about any "pothole" explosions with the Genesis, likely because the Genesis uses tires with normal sidewalls that can absorb such shocks. Among the many issues with BMW these days is the fact that BMW uses low profile wheels on just about anything anymore, and the car is more susceptible to damage from road imperfections because of it.

 

[Disaster]

There was never a problem with the Genesis suspension - it just didn't match certain owners' expectations, and a good number of these owners came from vehicles with well-known cushy suspensions, cars like Lincolns and Lexuses.

IMHO, that is an uneducated or plain insulting explanation. A suspension can be firm AND controlled. The Genesis's suspension (at least on the first generation cars) lacked control...not damping properly. I'd actually like the shocks firmer...to stop the body from going into resonance.

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[chompra]

This will help keep up the suspension issue into prospective. I first traded for a Genesis Coupe Track edition. I wanted a sports car, and this had been reviewed very favorable by the car magazines as a sports car. I love it! I was able to trade really well for the Coupe, and I was so impressed with Hyundai quality that I took a test drive in the Sedan. I was also very impressed with it as a sedan. I traded a 2003 Infiniti Q-45 with only 28000 miles for the Hyundai. Again the dealer traded well.

While the weather here in the midwest is still nice I use the Coupe as my daily car (that will come to an end when the snow flies). I use the Sedan for trips. Switching from the Coupe to the Sedan makes you feel like you are riding in quiet cloud. If you hit a really nasty pot hole you will feel it, but that is to be expected.

 

[Disaster]

Switching from the Coupe to the Sedan makes you feel like you are riding in quiet cloud. If you hit a really nasty pot hole you will feel it, but that is to be expected.

That "cloud" like driving is exactly what I feel is wrong with the sedan. It floats around, instead of being controlled. If you hit the right bumps it starts bouncing and bucking, instead of staying composed. It is a tuning issue, plain and simple.

 

[Seattle Genesis]

Theres a few thunderstorms in my cloud driving. gotta be the worst performing car to date.

bad suspension (to hard, uncontrolled, rear wheel drop out on potholes, huge discomfort going over speed bumps)

bad transmission (doesnt know what gear its in when excellerating from a rolling stop. car lunges forward)

bad handling (wonders all over the road when ruts are present in the road)

Nav system is just adequate. nothing to write home about compared to other American made cars

Tire's completely suck

Water drips into the trunk..... REALLY? that couldnt have been redesigned?


Other than that... great looking car.

That "cloud" like driving is exactly what I feel is wrong with the sedan. It floats around, instead of being controlled. If you hit the right bumps it starts bouncing and bucking, instead of staying composed. It is a tuning issue, plain and simple.

 

[Seattle Genesis]

I agree Disaster... completely uneducated explanation.

Hopefully the 2012 Genesis will have the 5.0 and air suspension. If so then Im trading !!

IMHO, that is an uneducated or plain insulting explanation. A suspension can be firm AND controlled. The Genesis's suspension (at least on the first generation cars) lacked control...not damping properly. I'd actually like the shocks firmer...to stop the body from going into resonance.

 

[chompra]

Who are these people on this forum? If you hate the car so much, go get something else to drive.

 

[hazelwood7]

Who are these people on this forum? If you hate the car so much, go get something else to drive.

People with the early 2009 suspension have a right to complain since the rear springs overloads the shocks.They fixed this defect mid model year. I spent 1800 dollars upgrading to the 2010 suspension to fix this issue. That is one reason why certain people are mad. The 2010 cars had many fixes.

 

[Seattle Genesis]

WOW... I didnt realize this forum was dedicated to one single thought process and that being all is great and wondeful with the Genesis...

Who are these people on this forum? If you hate the car so much, go get something else to drive.

 

[ASHDUMP]

Every car, regardless of how much you spend has its pros and cons.... When you find a con on the Genesis all you have to do is remind yourself of how much you paid.

 

[doug725]

It's not even worth responding to Sayantsi - he has a script and he's stickin to it.

IMHO, that is an uneducated or plain insulting explanation. A suspension can be firm AND controlled. The Genesis's suspension (at least on the first generation cars) lacked control...not damping properly. I'd actually like the shocks firmer...to stop the body from going into resonance.

 

[Disaster]

Who are these people on this forum? If you hate the car so much, go get something else to drive.

Being disappointed in the poor suspension tuning on an otherwise stellar car does not make me want to get rid of it. I have other complaints as well, for example the traction control is wayyyy too nannyish...to the point of being dangerous...but I still like the car overall. Discussing it's shortcomings, as well as good qualities is what forums like this one are all about.