Stiff suspension
 

Hello all
I’m new to the xc90 forum but have been around the s60/v70 ones for a while . I’ve traded my old V70 in for an xc90 R design. Which I thought was a good idea. Sadly the hardness of the suspension is making me think I’ve made a mistake, the car has 19” wheels and I’ve upgraded to bigger tires to help, but I just doesn’t seem to.
I’ve been thinking of going to 18” ? Has anyone done this ? And dose it help ?

Any ideas

Tim

Ive had the perspective of owning both simultaneously, and onwing them from new so some other bugger hasn't shagged them out before I got my hands on them.

The R Design is a touch lower and stiffer, but the standard set up is a bit of a directional blancmange instead. The R Design helps the steering at the expense of a bit of ride comfort.

But the standard set up is not brilliantly well damped either, nothing to write home about The difference in terms of ride isn't massive and going down to 18's isn't going to alter the spring rate or make the front ARB any slimmer - its not the 19" wheels causing the characterics you dislike.

This has been my experience, going from a D5 SE to a V8 Sport (Sport being the precursor model to R-Design, before that was adopted as a model designation).

I went from 19" to 17" (Neptune) and it has softened the ride somewhat but not vastly. On that basis (and taking Familyman's comments into account) I wouldn't expect going to 18" to make a noticeable difference. I've also lost some of the steering improvements and have a little more body roll now (there's more flex in a taller tyre wall, especially with a heavy vehicle). After this winter (I've M&S tyres on the Neptune rims) I'll likely return to the 19" set.

I have just gone from a D5 Exc with 18" wheels to a V8 Sport with 19" wheels. the D5 is very comfortable. The V8 Sport is quite a hard ride which i don't mind but my wife noticed it the first time she got in the car, I'm just hoping she will get used to it.

I like that :-)

I have a 2009 XC90 R-Design with 17" Winter wheels and 20" Summer wheels
It's a night and day difference

17" for comfort all the way.
20" for performance, but you need nice smooth roads.
If your area of travel has bumps and potholes and poorly maintained roads, go for 17" wheels.

Thank you for all your input . It’s helped a lot I may look for some wheels and see how it goes.

XC90 harsh ride.
 

What you need to take into account that this vehicle is S U V, and as such was designed for a specific purpose.
If you look into the spec, one of the aspects you will see is its towing capability, therefore a simple test to put this vehicle to is to fit a tow hitch and attach a caravan or trailer on the back, up to its maximum (2400kg) and feel the difference.
I've tried and tested various vehicles similar to the XC90 for towing and found the ride with a large caravan to be absolutely superb for comfort and handling,
my current XC90 is 2010 2.4 d5 auto, and other than routine maintenance and some tyres (235 60 18) over the years, has never given me an ounce of bother.
Yes the ride can be a bit harsh/hard when light but then so is a 40footer when its empty.
If you have self levelling Nivomat, rear dampers you could change them to Ridex, Bilstein, or one of the other mono tube types which will take out some of the harshness.
Best of luck
Charlie