Air suspension comfort vs normal vs sport
 

Hey y'all...

Have about 115 miles on the new LS, a question for those of you that have air suspension, how noticeable is the difference between comfort mode, normal mode and sport (13-17 Sport +)? Driving around today and playing with the modes, I can't really tell much of a difference at all. No difference in body lean on turns, or dive and squat when accelerating from a stop either. The height high does work, I confirmed that with a tape measure. How much height increase am I looking for? It seems to raise it about an inch.

Recalling mckellyb's experience with his being stuck on high dampening all the time I think I should probably have the dealer take a look at this.

Thoughts?

Yes I can tell a difference on mine. Mostly on the freeway. I dont think it changes the lean whatsoever, one of the best attributes of air suspension in my opinion is that the sway on corners is always flat and consistent the corners regardless of the speed or height. On long highway stretches when you are on comfort it really feels like you are floating down the highway.

Enjoy

Even on the highway I can't really feel a difference. Today I drove down a street with speed bumps and did so in Comfort, Normal and Sport + and felt no difference...

I'd be willing to bet your driving style is playing a large factor into why you're not experiencing much of a difference between drive modes. Being a Lexus, first-off, and an LS on top of that, the primary mission, even in its sportiest settings, is for luxury and comfort. That said, luxury also means catering to whatever your needs/driving scenarios may be and this is an area modern Lexuses excel at, IMO.

Start driving a bit more aggressively so the vehicle's ECUs are aware that's what you're looking to get out of it and I'd bet you'll notice things begin firming up accordingly as the car adapts and adjusts. I'm not as familiar with this generation of LS but if it's equipped with VGRS, you'll notice the steering ratio quicken and the steering weight gain a bit more heft as well.

You should definitely feel the difference between the 3 over speed bumps. Would definitely have someone look into it.

Hey Steve! One to 1.5" sounds right for 'Height High'.

I have definitely noticed a difference between Normal and Comfort, particularly when driving on the highway. Hitting any undulations in Comfort mode makes turns what is already a pretty soft ride into unbelieavably floaty. Sport mode, on the other hand, I have not used as much other than to take off-ramps in a "spirited" manner. In that setting, I would say the car has felt more planted with slightly less roll, but I am less comfortable opining on Sport vs. Normal than I am on Comfort vs. Normal, as I have fewer data points.

Now, my LS was/is pre-2013, so I can control the suspension and ECT separately. In your case (correct me if I am mistaken...), I think that there are two Sport settings: Sport and Sport +. The former sets the suspension to Sport, and the latter does so as well adding to the equation what used to be the ECT PWR setting, which should definitely give you increased throttle response (it was very noticeable in my 460L, and it is insanely noticeable in the 600).

I’ll try it out some more tomorrow, I have a 40mile highway trip to take, I’ll take it in and have it looked at...

Steve, what is the 2017 Warranty like nowadays?

I can feel a big difference on the highway. The comfort setting feels like our family’s old 1976 Cadillac Sedan Deville. Definitely some suspension bounce. The various modes change the rebound damping in the shocks so the car feels very bouncy (to me) in comfort mode. I agree with the other posts about body roll. The settings do not seem to impact roll.

The few times I have tested Sport+ Vs Normal Vs Comfort, I could barely tell the difference. I leave my car on Comfort mode, and have not really explored the other modes much. It's a bit floaty, but I like it that way. If the ride settings aren't working as calibrated, I would guess the car would give an error code. I use the High setting when parking to avoid scraping the front end, so I know it works.

The reason I bought my 460L was I had been used to driving my 1998 Cadillac Deville for so long, I wanted to get a newer car with the same feel. I went to drive the New Cadillac XTS and it felt like a sports car. My friend told me to go drive the BIG LEXUS. I did and it had the Soft Float ride I was looking for. I was sold.

Yeah I don’t have any floariness on the highway. Don’t get me wrong it rides great, I don’t feel like mckellyb did like the dampers are on full, but I was expecting more difference between modes.

I thought it was only me but I don't feel any noticeable difference either.

Have you ever hooked yours up to techstream?

According to me in my car being on oem air ride. Driving in normal and then comfort, the difference isn’t much to be able to tell the difference but it gets a little more floaty. Sport on the other hand makes the car get much more stiffer and you can easily tell the difference