# Rough Ride



## moosie (Jun 20, 2004)

Help, my brand new 2004 Sentra 1.8 with air and auto has the roughtest ride I've ever experienced in a car. Every little ripple in the road feels like going over railroad tracks. Is something wrong? What can I do?

Moosie


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## chimmike (Oct 17, 2002)

it's a small car....what do you expect it to do? float like a cadillac?


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## moosie (Jun 20, 2004)

chimmike said:


> it's a small car....what do you expect it to do? float like a cadillac?


I expected a "smooth ride" as advertised in their literature and like I had in the small car I traded in. 

Moosie


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## chimmike (Oct 17, 2002)

um, smooth ride? comared to what. 

it's a small car, with small tires....it's not going to be a smooth ride..........but stock surely isn't "jolty" I really gotta wonder what you're comparing it to.

also....you test drove the car before you bought it, right? because the ride isn't gonna change much between a test drive and purchase.


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## moosie (Jun 20, 2004)

chimmike said:


> um, smooth ride? comared to what.
> 
> it's a small car, with small tires....it's not going to be a smooth ride..........but stock surely isn't "jolty" I really gotta wonder what you're comparing it to.
> 
> also....you test drove the car before you bought it, right? because the ride isn't gonna change much between a test drive and purchase.


Well, first of all it has 15 inch tires which were the same as the car I traded in. a 1997 Toyota Corolla. The test drive was ten minutes and I was checking out visibility, leg reach, instrument panel and discussing the price and options with the sales person. I have now driven the car for 100 kilometres and I'm exhausted when I get out of it from being bounced around constantly. If you don't have some helpful answers for me as to what I can do about this, perhaps you could refrain from further comment as you obviously think it is OK to pay $20,000 for a car and find it is awful to drive.

Moosie


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## spdracerUT (Jun 11, 2002)

sorry bro. I think you need to find a softer ride (and your corolla brand new had a softer ride I'm sure, and add on 6 years of wear and I doubt the dampers were doing anything anymore). There's a compromise in handling vs. comfort. I personally think your car rides like a boat and is smooth, you wouldn't last 1 minute in my car!

One other thing..... check your tire pressures...


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## moosie (Jun 20, 2004)

spdracerUT said:


> sorry bro. I think you need to find a softer ride (and your corolla brand new had a softer ride I'm sure, and add on 6 years of wear and I doubt the dampers were doing anything anymore). There's a compromise in handling vs. comfort. I personally think your car rides like a boat and is smooth, you wouldn't last 1 minute in my car!
> 
> One other thing..... check your tire pressures...


Thanks. I will check the tire pressure. At lease that is a constructive suggestion. It sounds like what you're saying is I have to drop several thousand dollars to get rid of this car and buy something else. Excuse me while I go slash my wrists.

Moosie.


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## lshadoff (Nov 26, 2002)

Complain to the dealer you bought the car from. Ask to drive another car like yours to see if it is more to your liking. If it is, then ask the dealer to fix your car under warantee. If this fails, write to Nissan customer service about your complaint.

Lew


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## moosie (Jun 20, 2004)

lshadoff said:


> Complain to the dealer you bought the car from. Ask to drive another car like yours to see if it is more to your liking. If it is, then ask the dealer to fix your car under warantee. If this fails, write to Nissan customer service about your complaint.
> 
> Lew


Thank you Lewis. I will go back tomorrow. 

Moosie


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## chimmike (Oct 17, 2002)

I really think you're overexaggerating man....the stock suspension in teh 1.8 and gxe is SOFT.


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## moosie (Jun 20, 2004)

chimmike said:


> I really think you're overexaggerating man....the stock suspension in teh 1.8 and gxe is SOFT.


The only car that even comes close to this rough in my memory is an 84 Scirrocco that my son had that had European suspension and felt like you were driving over rocks. I am not exagerating. This ride is bumpety, bumpety, bump. 

Moosie


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## chimmike (Oct 17, 2002)

go buy a cadillac and get it overwith.


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## moosie (Jun 20, 2004)

chimmike said:


> go buy a cadillac and get it overwith.


Are you a Cadillac salesman? 

Moosie


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## James (Apr 29, 2002)

This is a brand new car you're referring to right? Why don't you ask to see if you can drive another car on the lot of the same model and see if its the same. Then complain if its not... you have proof both ways.


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## Bryan200sx (Jan 23, 2003)

i have to agree with chimmike on this one the stock sentra suspensions are soft as hell. i just think you got a car with some sort of problem but you would not last 10 min in my car for sure my car is stiff as shit. But no need to look no further your old corolla had better suspension and it was older go back to the dealer the sooner the better.


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## moosie (Jun 20, 2004)

Bryan200sx said:


> i have to agree with chimmike on this one the stock sentra suspensions are soft as hell. i just think you got a car with some sort of problem but you would not last 10 min in my car for sure my car is stiff as shit. But no need to look no further your old corolla had better suspension and it was older go back to the dealer the sooner the better.



Well, I just got back from the dealer where they took 10lbs of pressure out of each tire to bring them down to 32 and 30 lbs. respectively. Thanks, SpdracerUT. The service manager said if that didn't help then that's just the way it is - in other words, put up with it. It helps soften the bumps some but it is still not what I would call a soft ride at all. They are telling me that it is a brand new car and is stiff but should soften up with a bit of use. Is this realistic or are they just patting me on the head to get rid of me? 

Moosie


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## James (Apr 29, 2002)

they're just trying to get rid of you. its not going to soften up that much... you should have paid more attention during the test drive.


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## moosie (Jun 20, 2004)

Bryan200sx said:


> i have to agree with chimmike on this one the stock sentra suspensions are soft as hell. i just think you got a car with some sort of problem but you would not last 10 min in my car for sure my car is stiff as shit. But no need to look no further your old corolla had better suspension and it was older go back to the dealer the sooner the better.



Well, I just got back from the dealer where they took 10lbs of pressure out of each tire bringing them down to 32 and 30 lbs respectively. Thanks spdracerUT. The service manager said if that doesn't help well that's just the way the car rides so too bad. It does help a bit but the ride is still very bumpy. The salesman is trying to tell me that the car is new and everything is stiff but it will loosen up and get smoother with a little more use. Is this realistic or are they just patting me on the head and sending me home? 

Moosie


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## moosie (Jun 20, 2004)

James said:


> they're just trying to get rid of you. its not going to soften up that much... you should have paid more attention during the test drive.


Sorry for posting that twice. I didn't notice that we went to a second page.
You are right - I should have paid a lot more attention to the ride and gone for a longer test drive. Guess I was mislead by the advertising brochure which said it had a smooth ride. Now I don't know what I can do - I hate this car.

Moosie


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## spdracerUT (Jun 11, 2002)

so the tires were at 42 and 40! damn... that's pretty high.... um, the suspension/dampers will settle/break-in a bit after some use, but I wouldn't expect it to get significantly softer (on the magnitude you're probably looking for) for about another 15-20k miles or longer.


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## tommyfizo (Apr 26, 2004)

Try throwing some Eibach sportline springs on your car. That will really help out your ride! lol

toMmy fiZo


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## moosie (Jun 20, 2004)

tommyfizo said:


> Try throwing some Eibach sportline springs on your car. That will really help out your ride! lol
> 
> toMmy fiZo


I take it you're joking, Tommy. 

I have gone back to the general manager at the dealership who refuses to return my trade-in and my money. He did say he will make enquiries to find out if there is anything they can install that will give me a softer ride. I am now in the process of filing a formal false advertising complaint with Nissan.

Moosie


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## James (Apr 29, 2002)

Not to rain on your parade but I don't think that is false advertising since a "smooth ride" is very subjective... What you think is rough I think is smooth as glass... if you want a rough ride I'll give you a ride in my car with the AGX's turned up high in every corner... like kicks to the kidney in every bump. 

I think you should sell your car and just start over... I don't think you'll have much options.


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## lemarv (May 24, 2004)

moosie,

what tires do you have installed with your car? try to check the specifications of the tires if it was designed with comfort in mind.... or was designed to have a stiffer side wall.....


regards,


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## tommyfizo (Apr 26, 2004)

Yeah I was just joking about the springs. I have them on my '01 SE with 18" rims and 35 series tires. Trust me, after riding in my car for a day you will think your driving a Cadillac. lol. It is rather fun driving a 25MPH onramp doing 50MPH. Anyways, good luck to you!

toMmyfiZo


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## OmegaManEX (Oct 4, 2002)

i can attest after driving every year corolla after 1990, that the corolla suspension is incredibly soft compared to the b14 b15 sentra which i have also ridden in. 

But the way you describe it seems extreme ... i remember test driving (riding) in my car brand new in 1997 and it was no way as bad as you describe it . we basically have the same suspension (b14 / b15) , i would expect the newer one to be slightly better.

IMO i think you should have stayed with toyota , to me their handling and suspension seems "floaty" (i drive my sisters '03 corolla almost everyday) . But for me i like the way the b14 sentra/200sx handles because it feels just more "controllable'

:thumbup:


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## himilefrontier (Jan 21, 2003)

I dunno how you can consider a Sentra to be stiff! My B14 Sentra (95 GXE) is the softest thing I own, it rides and drives so smoothly that it almost puts me to sleep and it's a smaller car than your B15.Toyotas are probably softer than Nissans though. However, newer Corollas are not as good a car as a Sentra since the 1ZZ engine they switched to has alot of reliability problems. I know of someone who went through 2 engines in 60k miles. I know of no aftermarket suspension to make it any softer, most people who modify them want it to be alot stiffer. Sorry I can't help ...


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