Air suspension

wilco said:

I have test test driven a coil suspension Ipace but would like to try it with the air option but can't find a dealer who has a suitable vehicle.

1 I live near Oxford, does anyone know of a dealer with air suspension to test drive?

2 Has anybody driven both coil & air and if so what is you opinion of each?

Thanks for any help

Click to expand...

It's only air suspension in the USA.

While I have not driven either, OEM air suspensions are generally superior to coil suspensions in the ride vs handling trade off. Coil suspension, however, seems to have higher tuning limits for true performance, which isn't at all what the iPace is about. Then there's the whole reliability angle, but if I'm buying a 90k car, I can replace the **** suspension every 10 years.

Air suspension is obviously superior in terms of ride comfort, but its generally more expensive to maintain and as said, availability of this option is limited.

My Touareg with air suspension is 14.5 years old and has >120,000 miles on it. It has seen some serious terrain, with the suspension getting pretty crazy workouts and thousands of miles on awful washboard etc. Never had a problem.

I have read that the coils are pretty good except on the 22 inch wheels & I don't fancy those. I am very impressed with air suspension on the Touareg, amazing.

My last car but one was a Merc CLS with airmatic, lovely car & a great drive. The airmatic was another matter, 3 months out of warranty it all started to go pear shaped, to the tune of £7K overall. I am just sceptical of air I suppose & errinr afainst I think.

Air ride is just more complex and so more prone to fail. That said, I've got it on my truck and love it.

Drove a pre-production demo today, 9-13-18, here in South FL, USA...it had the air suspension & 22" wheels. Smooth "like buttah."


https://www.i-paceforum.com/forum/1...ction-demo-1st-drive-9-13-18-a.html#post17421