Poor suspension

[leroyjenkens]

Hello, I just bought my Mazda2 about 6 months ago and after driving it for a while, I noticed that the suspension is horrible. I'm not sure if all of them are like that or just mine. Just driving over reflectors in the street is a pretty harsh bump.
My dashboard started creaking on bumps, like it was loosened by the vibration. Then something in the passenger door started rattling. I feel like just driving the thing is tearing the car apart. I planned to go back to the dealership and have them fix the creaking and rattling of various parts inside the car, but I planned to also get better suspension if I can, because this is ridiculous. Is anyone else having this problem?

Thanks.

 

[DaleNixon]

Get H&R springs! lol

 

[PGTBrow]

Yea I hear even more noises now that I have the H&R springs lol. But you're not alone, I always think my dash is about to fall out.

 

[fam]

Oh great ;-( (buying some HR springs for the upcoming autox season)...oh well...guess I can buy a louder stereo.

 

[PGTBrow]

Oh great ;-( (buying some HR springs for the upcoming autox season)...oh well...guess I can buy a louder stereo.

Its not that bad lol. The car is just squeaky like that mouse that it is...

 

[rsmbud]

I bought my 2 brand new 10 months ago. Since then I've put 38K on it with no noises or issues (knock on wood).
Just wondering if you have an automatic or manual transmission?

 

[Racebrewer]

Leroy,

That doesn't sound normal to me. I have a stiffer suspension and 15 K miles on the car with no appreciable rattles.

How much pressure are you running in the tires?

John

John

 

[CorkSport]

That seems weird to me too. Nothing flying around in your glove box? I have stiffer suspension and tires that are less than forgiving sidewalls and I have no squeaks or rattles.

-Derrick

 

[leroyjenkens]

rsmbud, I have an automatic transmission.

Racebrewer, the pressure in the tires WAS too high when I bought the car, according to the manual, so I let some air out down to 31 psi in the front and like 29 in the back. That may have made it a little better, but I really can't tell, it's still a pretty harsh ride.

CorkSport, there's nothing bouncing around in the car, and I try to avoid every bump possible. But I literally think if there was a penny on the ground, I could feel it when I ran over it. It's bad. And I'm not just sensitive, either, because when I rode in my friend's car, it felt like I was riding on a cloud. A world of difference from my car.

Do you guys think there's something wrong with mine? I'm going to call the dealership this week and have them fix the rattling and creaking that this vibration has caused, and then ask them if they can check the suspension to see if there's something wrong with it. It seems like the suspension is the same on each tire, so it's not like it's just something wrong with one or two of them.

Is there a way to adjust suspension to make it looser? I'm not too familiar with cars to know these things.

Thanks for the responses.

 

[DrWebster]

And I'm not just sensitive, either, because when I rode in my friend's car, it felt like I was riding on a cloud. A world of difference from my car.

What kind of car does your friend have?

The 2 is supposed to have a fairly sporty suspension, which means it won't be overly cushy or floaty like other econoboxes or luxury cars. I wouldn't expect the 2's ride to be teeth-rattling, but it's definitely softer than our 1st gen Mazda 3's ride (which is firm but not intolerable). You might want to stop by the dealer and politely ask to test drive another 2 from the lot, and compare how it rides to yours. I'm not sure that there's anything "wrong" with your car per se, as if something were broken (such as blown shocks), the ride would actually get softer/more bouncy.

 

[ElZoom]

I think the ones with the automatics rattle around a bit due to having too many parts...

 

[Racebrewer]

Leroy,

What tires do you have on the car? Stock Yoko's or did someone swap them for a tire with a stiffer sidewall?

Some thoughts:

What are the roads like where you live? Lots of sharp edged cracks?

Try a different tire pressure guage, maybe you're still at a high pressure.

Its not likely that all four shocks are bad. Perhaps your experiences and expectations of ride quality are different from others. Doesn't make it wrong, just a different set of expectations. I have a friend that has a car with a soft, cushy ride. He loves it. I get car-sick as it wallows down the road like a drunken hippo.

What was your last car? How many miles on the M2? It does take a little while to break in and loosen up a bit.

Different tires will affect the ride quality. Sidewall and tread stiffness would make a big difference. A higher profile tire on a smaller diameter rim (14") could have a better ride quality. Keep the same overall diameter or close to it.

Tirerack might be able to advise you on this topic (ride quality). Here is a subjective survey on tire ride:

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/surveyresults/surveydisplay.jsp?type=AS&VT=null&sortValue=11



Most of us are masochistic boy (and girl) racers so we don't mind the ride. We also tend towards low profile, stiff tires for better handling.

John

 

[MazdaTwo]

Another thing to check, and I know it's a bit obscure, would be to make sure they took the spring separaters out after shipping. I'm sure a few people would laugh or scoff at that comment (and I'm not even sure Mazda uses those), but on my 2006 GTI (first year for that model in the states), VW put these rigid rubber things in the springs to keep the suspension from settling on the boat. After I got mine, the wheel gap just never closed up as much as other people on the forum and the ride was super harsh. Popped the wheels off for the first rotation and what do you know... the dealership never took those things off. Made a world of difference.

Yeah, I know. Cool Story, bro.

Also you might just be used to nicer cars.

 

[CorkSport]

Another thing to check, and I know it's a bit obscure, would be to make sure they took the spring separaters out after shipping. I'm sure a few people would laugh or scoff at that comment (and I'm not even sure Mazda uses those), but on my 2006 GTI (first year for that model in the states), VW put these rigid rubber things in the springs to keep the suspension from settling on the boat. After I got mine, the wheel gap just never closed up as much as other people on the forum and the ride was super harsh. Popped the wheels off for the first rotation and what do you know... the dealership never took those things off. Made a world of difference.

Yeah, I know. Cool Story, bro.

Also you might just be used to nicer cars.

Cool Story! I don't remember hearing about Mazda running rubber blocks in the springs while the cars are in transit but you never know, lol.

-Derrick

 

[MazdaTwo]

Cool Story! I don't remember hearing about Mazda running rubber blocks in the springs while the cars are in transit but you never know, lol.

-Derrick

Yeah, and I actually HIGHLY doubt that Mazda uses them. On the GTI it had to do with bumper height upon arrival in the States... it needed to be a little higher for some reason.

But I don't feel like Mazda was pushing any boundaries on the ride height of the 2.... just a feeling though.

 

[Replica]

Mine has been solid, no dash rattles or creaks at all. Even with the corksport torsion bar and rather violent driving habits. I do agree the suspension could be better. It crashes really hard on bumps but is too soft in turns and leans a lot.

 

[atekt]

I love my 2 with the exception of the little creaks and rattles. It has progressively got worse, which is fine except my vehicle only has 13k on it. The roads where I am from are not the best but are not all that bad either. I run the correct pressure and swerve to miss just about every pot hole I safely can. Its annoying but I can deal with it, just thought it would have a lot less creaks/rattles with this low of miles.

 

[Slow Paul]

I'm coming up on 13k on my M2. There are no complaints on my end concerning the suspension. It's a little rough riding, but coming from a MINI that I had Bilstein sport dampers on, it feels like driving a cloud. I have a couple squeaks on some interior panels (inner left a-pillar, and front dome light bezel) but it's nothing serious to me.

 

[caloyski5]

have a 2010 model here in the philippines; world's worst roads. hehe. no problems with rattles so far at 30k kms

 

[CorkSport]

have a 2010 model here in the philippines; world's worst roads. hehe. no problems with rattles so far at 30k kms

I will vouch for you on the worlds worst roads, haha. The crazy part is the roads seemed to get better the further you went out in the province compared to manila/quezon city/etc