I got rid of my GS400 last weekend because I'm going to be getting a new Corvette. The paperwork is still being filled out right now so I probably wont' be able to pick up the car for another few days. While I'm waiting I rented a Chevy Aveo because I blew all my money on the Vette and I didn't have any extra to spend on a rental

The Aveo is a complete piece of crap, probably one of the worst cars I've ever driven. The interior is trash, it's probably the ugliest car on the road, and I'm almost embarrassed to be seen in it. One thing that absolutely shocked me though is the quality of the ride. This might be almost blasphemous to say on here, but the car rides better than my GS ever did. Driving it over the same terribly maintained Boston streets, it goes over potholes, bumps and road imperfections a lot more smoothly than the GS. I almost couldn't believe it

The only explanation I have is that the Aveo is riding on 14 inch (maybe even 13?) rims with high profile tires. My GS (suspension and rims remained stock) had 245/45/ZR17 low profile Kumho Escta ASX tires. Thinking about all the cars I've ever driven, it seems like the ride quality is directly proportional to the profile of the tires. Nothing else really seems to matter. Obviously the GS weighs about 1000-1200lbs more than the Aveo, and handles exponentially better (although the Aveo can be manhandled through turns pretty well) so the suspension probably has to be stiffer in order to deal with the weight and deliver the performance required, but there is still no reason a *****box rental like the Aveo should be more comfortable than a Lexus that costs about 5 times as much when new.

Maybe I'm just hallucinating, but has anybody else ever experienced something similar?

 

I know what you're saying. Lots of factors here though.

Yes, tire sidewall height matters. But so does suspension, a LOT.

My new MX-5 (Miata) handles great, and has low profile tires , but the shocks allow a fair bit of travel, so going over speed bumps for example, is really very surprisingly comfortable.

I'm going to upgrade the springs but keep the shocks, something that's popular on the car. The new springs will be progressive though, so the ride should remain pretty comfy in normal driving, but more capable when pushing it.

Another factor is brakes. Specifically, the weight of brakes. When I had a GS400 the car got more comfortable when I swapped out the huge heavy stock front brakes for much lighter StopTechs.

 

Than there's always air suspension.

 

In addition to what bitkahuna said, the type of tires will make a big difference also. More specifically, how stiff the sidewalls are. I can't help but assume that the Aveo has bargain basement cheapy all-seasons with very soft sidewalls, and would contribute greatly to absorbing imperfections before they can rattle the cabin.

 

Don't forget about runflats. I've heard those don't dampen very well.

 

You bring up a term I hear alot of people use but haven't quite figured out yet, Low Profile Tires.

When is a tire considered low profile, I haven't seen that term used with a particular tire manufacturer or size, so is there a set profile that makes a tire low profile?

 

I've always thought tires with an aspect ratio less than 50 were considered low profile, I could be wrong about this though

 

Low pros give it a much stiffer ride, from what i know you'll hear more road noise from just driving on a street, correct me if im wrong. The bigger the rim size stiffer ride because the rims and tires have much less room for play (moving harder and faster when hitting bumps)

 

Weight of the tire-wheel combo too will effect it.

 

I would trade the Lex for 3 Aveo's then mod them.. Quite the comfy pocket rocket lol.. Forget the Vette

 

thetopdog, i've experienced the same thing. I have the worse ride in the family (even stock). My mom's honda odyssey, honda accord, and toyota camry all ride smoother. My buddy's 93' accord that's lowered 2" all around rides even better. The last time I rode in something that was worse than my car was when the tow truck guy had to rescue me because my starter died

 

The Aveo is made in Korea, for Chevy, by the Daewoo Corporation, and sold in the U.S. as the Aveo and other countries by different names. Daewoo also builds several models for Suzuki...their Leganza, Forenza, Verona, and Reno. Daewoo, in general, did a pretty nice job on those other cars, but the Aveo, I agree, leaves a lot to be desired. It is noisy, primarily from the small size and lack of insulation, with a lot of both engine and road noise, and, while maybe smooth compared to some low-profile-tire vehicles you've owned, somewhat rough-riding for my tastes. The interior and fit-and-finish is nowhere near as nice as what you'll find in Hyundais. which are also Korean-designed.


AS far as the issue of lower-profile tires go, in general, although other things come into play as bitkahuna pointed out, the lower the profile, the rougher the ride, the sharper the steering, and the less wheel impact protection from potholes and road damage.

I know that I am probably in the CL minority on this one, but I myself don't like low-profile tires except on purposely-designed sports cars or high-performance sport sedans like BMW M series luxury cars that are specifically designed for handling. To put them on family sedans and luxury cars, as more and more manufacturers are doing, IMO, is ludicrous.

You also must keep in mind, while switching tire and wheel sizes, that if the new wheel/tire outside rolling diameter is not the same as on the factory combo, you may get inaccurate speedometer and odometer readings, which could lead to speeding tickets and possible loss of the factory warranty.

 

Dang that doesn't look half bad. Kind of like a smooshed Volvo.

 

I remember when the 86.5 Supra was introduced it had something like a 245/50-16 "gatorback" goodyear and it was considered low profile.

I think these days 45 aspect ratio is the threshold to be considered low profile and thats only with smaller sizes (ie 17) because a 19 with a 40series tire still has a pretty tall sidewall.

Nowadays when I think low profile I think 30 and 25series.

 

You have no idea how true this is! In the last 3 months I have driven a SC430 with Runflats and a C5 Corvette with Runflats and both have the same weird ride characteristics! Its a mushy, but harsh feeling. Like in the Lexus it was odd that the car rode so floaty but jolted so hard over impacts, its like the worst of both worlds, mushy handling and terrrible impact absorption.

Of course the Corvette wasn't as mushy, but it still had a nice dampened ride until any impact was encountered, then it felt like the trunk was gonna fly open.

The most amazing thing about runflats is any conventional tire rides so much better. The vette rides 2.5 times better with the 20's than it did with the oem runflats!