Air Suspension

[ToddRLockwood]

And then there's the supposedly revolutionary Bose suspension. Looks great in the lab, so one wonders why it hasn't been picked up by anyone.

From the sounds of it, the Bose system probably is a superior technology to GM's Magneride, but the weight, complexity and cost of their shocks has kept manufacturers away from them. Rolls Royce and Bentley might be appropriate candidates, but I don't imagine we'll see them on performance cars.

 

[spatterso911]

Perhaps it's tainted with the Bose speakers' brush. There is a lot of hype but they aren't actually all that good.

Don't let Bose owners (those that drive vehicles with Bose installed) hear you say that! Some will swear that it's the best sound they've ever heard...

 

[ElSupreme]

Perhaps it's tainted with the Bose speakers' brush. There is a lot of hype but they aren't actually all that good.

But you can't tell because they don't publish any specs!

I think my Wave Radio sounds pretty good. But it did cost a good bit. But their build quality is top notch, much like Apple.

 

[Todd Burch]

I saw this in the Model S Owner's Guide:

You must press the brake pedal before changing suspension settings.

This wording seems to be open to interpretation. Does this mean the car must be *stopped* to change the suspension setting, or do you just having to be braking? Can those sigs who have their cars already confirm that you can raise the suspension while the car is moving by lightly tapping the brakes? I wouldn't like having to completely stop on a busy road to raise the suspension before entering a steep driveway...

And how do we *keep* the setting at "HIGH" above the threshold at which the car is automatically lowered (for something like a gravel road)? (Can't remember what the speed is)

 

[Ceilidh]

I am also highly interested to hear from an owner how the air suspension works while in motion.

I live on a street with "speed humps"--which is a west coast term. I grew up out east where they were speed bumps. The humps part still sounds like something Beavis and Butt-Head would go off on, or a Black Eyed Peas song to me. But I digress.

I have to drive over the humps every day as I go to and from work. There are like 4 of them. I am hoping I can raise the car before doing so while moving because if I have to stop in the road I would have to pull over to the side every day to raise the car before going down the street. This would be doable, but inconvenient.

As an aside, to add to the Bose discussion:

I knew a guy a few years back who worked in a speaker repair shop. He serviced pretty much anything with woofers and standard tweeters (no electrostatic Martin Logans). He charged a certain rate per hour for all brands other than Bose. For Bose, he doubled the price. The reason was that to check the repairs when he was finished he had to audition the speakers. He hated having to listen to Bose speakers.

 

[contaygious]

When I test drove I coulda sworn the rep changed suspension while I was driving with no brake

 

[ChadS]

I tried changing settings yesterday while driving; nothing seemed to happen (I wasn't sure it would work, but figured I'd at least get a warning--but nothing happened). I tried again at a stoplight, and then it changed. Will have to try while slowing down some time, next time I manage to sneak the car away from my wife. (She's not big on trying out new features; still just trying to get comfortable with the size of the car and where the turn signal is).

 

[stealthnhawk]

Air Suspension give 5% extra range?

Hi all,
Has anyone try to see if the air suspension actually help give better range at high way speed? Like have you try to drive with the air suspension always at highest vs at lowest?
I am planning to get the 40kW version but not sure if the air suspension is worth it..

Thanks.

 

[jerry33]

Has anyone try to see if the air suspension actually help give better range at high way speed? Like have you try to drive with the air suspension always at highest vs at lowest?

That isn't possible because the suspension height lowers with speed. It will only stay at the set height until you reach the trigger speed and then it will lower.

 

[Cattledog]

True - Mine automatically goes to the lowest setting at highway speeds. Can't recall the MPH. Can't recall if that can be overridden - I'd check the manual but my girl's out shopping and turning heads with the Model S.

 

[ckessel]

I hear the compressor for the air suspension kick in most times I come to a stop light or stop sign. Is that normal?

 

[Francis Lau]

I hear the compressor for the air suspension kick in most times I come to a stop light or stop sign. Is that normal?

Mine does not do that. I only hear the air suspension work when I raise and lower explicitly using the controls at low speed. At high speed, it lowers automatically but it is too noisy to hear it. Your experience does not seem normal.

- - - Updated - - -

True - Mine automatically goes to the lowest setting at highway speeds. Can't recall the MPH. Can't recall if that can be overridden - I'd check the manual but my girl's out shopping and turning heads with the Model S.

As of software version 4.1, there isn't a way to customize the speed for air suspension height changes.

 

[Doug_G]

If they raise the vehicle above the height used for crash testing, then it may require redoing the crash testing.

Hopefully they'll be able to raise the threshold for how fast you can drive with it raised. A threshold of 40 or 50 kph (25 or 30 mph) would be very useful.

 

[Robert.Boston]

At 20mph, High shifts down to Normal.
At 50mph, Normal shifts down to High.

No overrides available. I can't recall the Very High to High cutover point.

 

[AnOutsider]

At 20mph, High shifts down to Normal.
At 50mph, Normal shifts down to High.

No overrides available. I can't recall the Very High to High cutover point.

Did you mean Low above?

 

[Bound466]

The parking garage in downtown LA where I work has a HUGE speed bump/ramp to get over when entering and exiting. I would typically bottom-out my Prius there unless I slow to a ridiculously low speed, then go over it at an angle instead of straight on. Yesterday, I tried it with my Model S, and I was prepared.

So as I approached the garage from the street, I raised suspension to Very High. In about 7-8 seconds it was there, and I transversed it perfectly, no problems. I am very glad I got the air suspension.


What I would like to see for "ride height" is something similar to the Homelink button at the top of the screen. The small little icon could show what ride height setting the car is in currently. When you press it, similar to Homelink or User Selection, it would have a small dropdown where you could select the drive height "Very High, High, Standard, and Low". -- Taking it one step further, it could be GPS synced, functioning exactly like Homelink, where it would show the drop down automatically as you approached a location where you want to adjust ride height.

 

[Hank42]

Is it just me, or does it seem to take forever for ride height to go from low to high? Like how long does it take you guys? I haven't timed it yet, but it seems like it takes 5-10 seconds. Is that right?

 

[ElSupreme]

Is it just me, or does it seem to take forever for ride height to go from low to high? Like how long does it take you guys? I haven't timed it yet, but it seems like it takes 5-10 seconds. Is that right?

Seems about right to me. It is normal behavior.

 

[Doug_G]

Seems about right to me. It is normal behavior.

+1. The first time I used it I was following a friend into a parking garage with a steep drop, and he was wondering why the heck I wasn't following him in.

 

[kvietor]

I've made it a habit to go directly to the driving page and select high or very high as I pull into a parking spot that has either a barrier or curb. It has already saved me a few scratches along the bottom.

Keeping in mind that until now the air suspension has not failed me.