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Approaching the three year mark with the R and my biggest complaint would be the suspension and how it crashes over bumps and potholes. I'm just tired of feeling like my teeth are being knocked out every time I hit a ridge in the road.
There have been many discussions of how the 4C stiffens the shocks whenever it detects a bump. So instead of letting the strut absorb the bump, it overcompensates, goes rock hard and goes "BANG".
Last week when switching back to summer mode, I stopped and looked at the accelerometer and thought if it were mounted on the chassis it would not be able to detect the pot holes. The 4C system would simply think it were running on a smooth road. Otherwise the system should still know when I'm braking or accelerating hard. The baseline settings for the shocks would still be the same when changing from Sport to Advanced. They struts would not stiffen when hitting a bump.
So I did a temporary relocate of the front accelerometers to the chassis using black outdoor cable ties. I made sure they were mounted in the same orientation and secured the cables away from harm.
Took it for a test drive and wow! The crashing is gone! I still have control over ride stiffness. Comfort Sport and Advanced feel a bit softer, because the struts don't stiffen up on bumps. The struts do seem to stiffen up when accelerating and braking in Advanced just as before. The system has not thrown any codes.
I'm not sure if this has been done before, and it's probably not for everyone. But I sure do like it!
I expect this will also extend the life of the struts and other suspension components.
I'm going to drive around for a couple more weeks and if I have no issues, then I will be finding a permanent home on the chassis for the sensors.
I may also try moving the rear sensors at one point, but for now I could not be happier with the R.
UPDATE: I have added a complete HOW TO on Page 4 of this thread.
There have been many discussions of how the 4C stiffens the shocks whenever it detects a bump. So instead of letting the strut absorb the bump, it overcompensates, goes rock hard and goes "BANG".
Last week when switching back to summer mode, I stopped and looked at the accelerometer and thought if it were mounted on the chassis it would not be able to detect the pot holes. The 4C system would simply think it were running on a smooth road. Otherwise the system should still know when I'm braking or accelerating hard. The baseline settings for the shocks would still be the same when changing from Sport to Advanced. They struts would not stiffen when hitting a bump.
So I did a temporary relocate of the front accelerometers to the chassis using black outdoor cable ties. I made sure they were mounted in the same orientation and secured the cables away from harm.
Took it for a test drive and wow! The crashing is gone! I still have control over ride stiffness. Comfort Sport and Advanced feel a bit softer, because the struts don't stiffen up on bumps. The struts do seem to stiffen up when accelerating and braking in Advanced just as before. The system has not thrown any codes.
I'm not sure if this has been done before, and it's probably not for everyone. But I sure do like it!
I expect this will also extend the life of the struts and other suspension components.
I'm going to drive around for a couple more weeks and if I have no issues, then I will be finding a permanent home on the chassis for the sensors.
I may also try moving the rear sensors at one point, but for now I could not be happier with the R.
UPDATE: I have added a complete HOW TO on Page 4 of this thread.
