Making an ML270CDI Auto more comfortable to drive

[Chrisk]

Does anyone have any suggestions for making my 03 Mercedes Auto ML270CDI more comfy to drive. I dont know if anyone else has the same problem, but I find the suspension on the ML is very hard and unforgiving. Most of my journeys are around town with all the potholes and stuff. I also have a 1998 Ford Explorer and I find this is more comfortable to drive.
Can I change the springs for something softer or should I put bigger tyres (I dont mean wider,I mean go to a 65profile the car has the original 255/60/16 ) on it for more "bounciness"
Any suggestions (polite ones" would be good as I have come to the end of my tether with this truck, I am even considering a new Range Rover, thats how bad it is
Regards
Chris

 

[OlafMaxwell]

Its a trade off. Smaller wheels and higher profile tyres will give a more comfortable ride. Bigger wheels and lower profile tyres give better roadholding but a harsher ride. 60 tyres seem low to me but I am not a 4 x 4 person so cant be sure. I reckon a 65 will be better but if this is bigger than allowed for in wheelarch tolerances you may have to go for a slightly narrower tyre to compensate. Worth borrowing another one to try it out. Other thing I find is that its worth watching tyre pressures and not running pressures too hard when you are lightly laden. A bit of a pain but an electric pump makes this a doddle when you do need to up them for a heavy load.

Have a look at the manual if you have it. The more basic wheel specs [smaller wheels and higher tyres] are very often a softer ride.

I dont know anything about the suspension settings or the set up. My E320 is avantgarde but has the standard suspension instead of sport to allow for bad roads. I imagine though it should be possible to get some aftermarket units that are a little softer or even adjustable manually from underneath.

 

[Chrisk]

Thanks Olaf
Got my 16" inch wheels from ebay so Im going to try that to see if it makes any better. This was the only suggestion that I received. MB said contact dealer, dealer said try this. Brabus, Performance Products and all the aftermarket tuners laughed and said most customers want the opposite ! I couldnt imagine a more harsher ride.
Im just back from a weeks holiday where thankfully I havent had to drive the bus and I only just realised how pleasurable that was !

 

[guydewdney]

are you sure there isn't a problem with the suspension.. on the S class there is a set of spheres that if they go 'down' then the suspension gets really hard. does the car have self levelling suspension?

drive another ML and see what its like?

Guy

 

[Richard W]

Mine had big wheels with 275 tyres on and my feeling was that the dampers couldn't cope with the weight. The banging and crashing felt like the wheels were bouncing then having a 'secondary motion' that the dampers were struggling to bring the wheel back to earth.

The car only lasted 3 months before I sold it - 19mpg and the cr$p build quality was enough to send me to BMW ownership :lol:

 

[Chrisk]

Thanks Guy, I have asked MB Swindon to let me have a Petrol ML for a 24hour test drive when they get one in to see if its the same. I will ask about the self levelling thingy, it must have that !
Yep, I feel the same Richard, although I have heard the BMW has even stiffer suspension (is that right) what about space inside ?
As to fuel consumption the newer ML's have a huge tank costs £62-£65 to fill up but I dont get more that 450miles on a tank, that equates to 25mpg. No difference to my 98 Ford Explorer Petrol (when driven carefully) with 4LitreV6 that cost me £6K and lovely soft "spudgy suspension" that I can leave anywhere without fear of it getting scratched, stolen or dented by shopping trolleys

 

[Richard W]

Yes Chris, I think the BMW X5 is stiffer, that doesn't mean the ride is worse though, if the springs and dampers are 'matched' better then you can still have a supple ride with decent handling.

I'd definately try an X5 as all the reports say it's the best on-road, off-roader you can buy....