Boanerges
New member
- Joined
- Oct 19, 2005
- Messages
- 71
- Points
- 24
Good evening everyone.
I have a 54 reg 1.2 Dynamic and over the past seven months have come to realise the ride is more bouncy and unsettled than my previous 2001 Punto. This is rather annoying as the Punto drove me mad with it's harsh rock hard ride which crashed into every pothole. Now with the Panda I find it is too bouncy. Where I live a lot of my daily driving is on 50 or 60mph limit country roads which were basically tarmac laid over the moors. Hence the Panda gets a bit out of shape when asked to press on and I get Mondeo or Vectra drivers about one inch behind me pushing to get past.
I am lead to believe the kerb weight of Panda and Punto is near identical. One major difference is the wheelbase which will be shorter, and possibly the track measurement between the wheels - both which make things worse if you are looking for stability. However I feel there is some built-in issues with the Panda set up, either the dampers or springs are not stiff enough or else it is the tyres. One theory is that with some weight in the car it would control things better - ie a bag of sand in the boot! The Multijet may be better in this respect due to extra weight of the engine. By the way I am not a boy racer and just expect safe responsive handling.
I am tempted to start with the tyres before tampering with anything more major/expensive and drastic especially whilst it's relatively new. Has anyone else considered things are a bit out of shape on the standard rims with 155/80 R13 tyres? I have never driven an Eleganza or Sporting with the 165/65 R 14 option but imagine they would offer better grip and stiffer responses.
My two main gripes are the bouncy responses to anything but smooth motorway level roads, and also poor wet grip (in particular it slides sideways when going over any metal cattle grid at 10mph if you touch the brakes or happen to go over a wet manhole cover). Perhaps the standard Continetals are poor and Michelins would help. If I do go down that route then a change in size and aspect ratio would be part of the deal.
Comparisons to similar cars such as the Ka, Arosa, or Picanto show they all have 165/70 14 as a minimum spec. Any thoughts?
I have a 54 reg 1.2 Dynamic and over the past seven months have come to realise the ride is more bouncy and unsettled than my previous 2001 Punto. This is rather annoying as the Punto drove me mad with it's harsh rock hard ride which crashed into every pothole. Now with the Panda I find it is too bouncy. Where I live a lot of my daily driving is on 50 or 60mph limit country roads which were basically tarmac laid over the moors. Hence the Panda gets a bit out of shape when asked to press on and I get Mondeo or Vectra drivers about one inch behind me pushing to get past.
I am lead to believe the kerb weight of Panda and Punto is near identical. One major difference is the wheelbase which will be shorter, and possibly the track measurement between the wheels - both which make things worse if you are looking for stability. However I feel there is some built-in issues with the Panda set up, either the dampers or springs are not stiff enough or else it is the tyres. One theory is that with some weight in the car it would control things better - ie a bag of sand in the boot! The Multijet may be better in this respect due to extra weight of the engine. By the way I am not a boy racer and just expect safe responsive handling.
I am tempted to start with the tyres before tampering with anything more major/expensive and drastic especially whilst it's relatively new. Has anyone else considered things are a bit out of shape on the standard rims with 155/80 R13 tyres? I have never driven an Eleganza or Sporting with the 165/65 R 14 option but imagine they would offer better grip and stiffer responses.
My two main gripes are the bouncy responses to anything but smooth motorway level roads, and also poor wet grip (in particular it slides sideways when going over any metal cattle grid at 10mph if you touch the brakes or happen to go over a wet manhole cover). Perhaps the standard Continetals are poor and Michelins would help. If I do go down that route then a change in size and aspect ratio would be part of the deal.
Comparisons to similar cars such as the Ka, Arosa, or Picanto show they all have 165/70 14 as a minimum spec. Any thoughts?