Ask Manny: The Motoring Ed

This week’s question: What exactly do you look for when you evaluate a car’s ride and handling?

Answer: I look for a fine balance between a comfortable ride and responsive handling. These two traits run counter to each other, so it’s really a tricky task to get the balance right. For the most part, manufacturers tend to go more for comfort, especially for everyday cars, as more people would rather be isolated from bumps and potholes than have to feel every small pebble that a tire rolls over.  

Going for either extreme is a no-no, though—especially if the end result is a ride that’s too soft, floaty or wallowy. This can actually lead to a loss of control in emergency maneuvers.  On the other hand, too stiff and the occupants—especially the passengers—will be uncomfortable even on short drives. This is only advisable for cars that will be used more for the race track than on the streets. This is why some sports cars and sports sedans have a switch or knob that allows the driver to tune the car’s suspension stiffness. They can make it supple for city driving and stiff for race track duties. In racing you want a stiffly suspended car to minimize body roll during cornering or front “dive” during heavy braking. It’s the sudden weight transfer from side to side or from front to back that can wreak havoc on a good lap time. A race engineer will want all four tires to work as equally as possible for the best cornering, braking, and acceleration.  

And it’s not all about suspension stiffness, either. Having a stiff chassis or body allows suspension engineers to reduce the stiffness of the springs and shock absorbers to achieve that perfect balance of a plush ride and responsive handling. (It also helps a car achieve good crash test results.) BMW has always been the best at perfecting the ride/handling equation, but several manufacturers—including non-luxury car brands—have been able to equal or at least come very close to it. The latest Honda Accord is one example. Fortunately, today’s computer-aided design and finite element analysis software allow car manufacturers to create a virtual car body and optimize its torsional and longitudinal rigidity without having to produce dozens or even hundreds of actual prototypes. 

You can also slightly tweak a car’s ride/handling balance by playing around with tire pressures. The lower the pressure, the softer the ride—and vice versa. You can go as low as 26psi if you really want a comfy ride and as high as the tire manufacturer’s maximum recommended pressure (usually 36psi) if you want to maximize handling. For Metro Manila driving, anywhere between 28 and 32psi is ideal—higher for long-distance cruising or when the vehicle is loaded with passengers or cargo.

So the next time you feel that your car rides too softly or harshly, think first before trading it in. It can be just too-stiff (or worn out) springs and/or dampers (shock absorbers), harsh-riding tires, or wrong inflation pressures.