jomo

I agree! For the plush ride, you should look into the Echo or XA springs. You may be able to pick them up for next to nothing.....The softer, linear springs of the Echo or XA with the nearly full suspension travel sounds like what you are looking for. The problem is, I don't know if anyone has tried it yet. The lower spring rate of the Echo or XA will inherently lower the vehicle a bit which may not result in the proper ride height (front to back), but it is worth a try.

You can also change the tires out to 195/60/15's when the time comes. Higher damping shocks (TRD, Tanabe.....) will likely go in the wrong direction with the soft springs.

About tire pressure, my XB tires were delivered at over 50 psi. Painful! Definately check....

Icecream_Truck

All you need are new tires. I got new Goodyear Assurance TripleTred P195/60R-15 for my car and they run 100% smoother and softer then stock tires. Discount Tires have them for $105.00. Get new tires before all of the suspension work. Yes over time you will need to do some suspension work but when that time comes then you could do what the other guys are talking about. All you really need are tires.

uncompiled

You should go for the cheapest solution first:

(1) check tire pressure.
(2) Get tires with a higher sidewall. Ask your tire salesman what he recommends... a lot of touring/luxury tires are much softer and quieter.
(3) Try playing with suspension mods... I think the TEIN H-tech springs are called "luxury springs"...

Another question... Do you have the factory 15" wheels? If you have the 18" TRD wheels, it will definately feel horrible going over a bumpy road...

I came from sports car land... while this thing is not as soft and cushy as our Nissan Maxima, the stock setup was much softer for me... louder, but more comfortable. Try test driving a Mini and get back in your Scion! That might help out too. hehe

Romanova

If it really bothers you, take it to the dealer and make them look at it. You have a warranty... the dealer can't charge you for looking at your concerns under warranty. Who knows... maybe you have a blown strut? Parts fail, even on new cars.

scottwood2

I have the exact same issue. My solution is to install Tein H tech springs. I did a lot of reading and everyone with the H techs say that it rides way way better. Hopeing to install them very soon. They do drop the car about a inch but not too bad.

The Scion replacement shocks/struts are a new one on me. I know a lot of people have complaned about the ride (sorry preformance guys ). Maybe this is their answer.

Tires is another way to go. They can make a big differance in ride. I drove the xB with the 18" wheels. I love the look of the large wheels but not the ride. The stock 15" is a lot better. I know that if you go to Discount tire they will take care of you. I know they will let you try the tires and give you a refund if you don't think it is what you want.

I will post something when I change out the springs.

Good luck1 Let us know with you end up doing with yours.

Tomas

The stock suspension on my xB is at about the median of the 'stiffness' of the suspensions of my previous 27 vehicles (I've had some pretty brutal sports car and 4X4 suspensions over the years).

Before I decided to test drive an xB I'd read in a number of reviews that the reviewers felt the ride was "stiff" or "choppy."

Considering the tall, boxy, short wheelbase nature of the xB I could see how that could quite easily be the case.

When I first test drove the xB I made a point of driving it to the neighborhood I grew up in so that I could try it on one specific street that always seemed as though it has been finished by a steamroller with octagonal wheels - a very regularly spaced washboard surface, with the added delight of patched and unpatched potholes.

The xB I test drove had 18" wheels and ridiculous 'rubber band' tires, so I felt if *IT* was OK on 45th street, one with reasonable rubber would be just fine.

The test drive was a bit brutal (kidney belt recommended), but it showed me that the xB's suspension was well engineered, and with apropriate 'urban guerilla' tires (tall, compliant sidewalls) it would be just fine.

Right now, I'm still running the US stock 185/60R15 tires, but when it come times to replace them I will probably go to the 185/65R15 tires that are stock in Japan (which should also correct the minor speedometer error).

Personally, the xB's ride quality fits my preferences just fine, though I do slow down for some especially nasty speed bumps.

I've had two riders who did not care for the ride, but after being informed that if they felt it was that bad, they could walk, warmed to it quite well.

Going to the xA, or even softer Echo, springs seems as though it would compromise the handling ability AND load carrying capacity of the xB. Some, though, may feel that's a worthwhile trade-off.

YMMV...

jdub

If you want a soft ride you should have bought a Buick.

mitchell

i bought the tein-h's.
softer ride AND better handling. less body roll.
but as someone else said: "you go from really stiff to just stiff"
I'm looking into some shocks.
I wonder if i can just do the back?
that's where the ride suffers most. front ride is bearable with tein H's.

Chimmy3

If I looked at the specs correctly... tein Hs have a stiffer spring rate in the back
which is why the back suffers.

mitchell

so i'm not crazy.
at least about the stiffness.
do you know if I can ad softer shocks to the back?

Scion05BOPxB

So, according to some people, going from 18's to 15's is the answer?

I guess I'm totally screwed because I think the ride in my box is very "firm" and I'm still rocking the steelies until my 18s get here.

mitchell

ooops.
yea 18's will feel stiffer
i have 45's on 17in wheels and I'm hurtin (but I ilve in NY "worst roads in USA)

jomo

Actually, with the stiffer rear spring rate, you may want to do just the opposite. The high spring rate in the rear is because the rear suspension design has less suspension travel to "give up" for lowering. Combine this high rate spring with the stock shock and you have a rear end that bounces a bit. This will wear out the rear shocks prematurely because of the excess movement and will give a giggly ride. You're not going to be able to provide enough dampening with a softer shock so the rear would bounce like crazy (like a 1974 Caddy). You would best to increase the dampening in the rear which will get rid of the "giggle" in the rear.

mitchell

the problem is my rear doesn't bounce at all.
It is bone jarring.
I'd LOVE to make it like a 74 caddy...
i will attack any body roll with anti-sway bars
I have an 8 week old and when I hit bumps there is no giggle in the rear.
only crying.

The shocks on the scion were designed to accept some "lowering" so I'm not too worried about premature wear with the tein h's
..and this is why I only want to replace 2

scottwood2

So do you think the ride is worse now in the rear with the H tech's? I did not think the H techs were stiffer? How can it be a better ride if it is stiffer?

Chimmy3

here you guys go.. this is the table I did of the spring rates for various springs...

https://www.scionlife.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=50481

though its an exact science you can get a grasp of how the springs will feel from the spring rates supplied.
Progressive rate springs MAY help more for ride comfort and handling. but if you think about how springs work, its really hard to get the best of both worlds (handling AND ride comfort).

I believe the xB stock rates are 160/160. so you'll see that tein H's have a stiffer rate in the back. I always wondered if rear ride comfort would suffer.

tanabe NF210s and RSR downs have softer springs in the back. So do some of the JDM brands. Can't speak for others b/c they refuse to give numbers. Progressive/variable rate springs are pretty difficult to tell... the eibach for example, despite having a softer initial spring rate are reputed to have a harsh ride.

btw, I've been told a rear sway bar will degrade ride quality to a certain degree, since its essentially a stiff bar between both wheels.

Oh and I think you can buy adjustable shocks in pairs... instead of sets of 4.. that may help with the rear.

jomo

What I meant with the 74 Caddy was that the rear of the car will be severly under damped with a softer shock. You'll be bouncing around forever......however, not at the slow frequency (soft) rate of a Caddy, but at a high frequency (stiff) from the Tein springs. You notice this bounce with a lot of the lowered Civics because their spring rates are sooooo high. Way too high for the stock shocks. Hell, I notice a little bounce with my S-Techs. I can't wait for those Koni's to come out to correct this .

I still think the XA or Echo springs may not be a bad idea for the "softies" out there. There should be a ton of springs laying around for the taking.

kenfuji

lol my xB feels so smooth compared to my 240sx with some 10kg/8kg spring rate jump on my car and the only thing that moves is the side wall flex from my tires...

Chimmy3

i wonder if they changd the spring rates for the rs2

xB_Nutt

Anybody install these yet? Are they "more complient"? I ask because other places describe the ride as "firmer, more responsive" So does "complient"="firmer"? Just curious if anyone has any real world experience with these.

p/n PT901-48030-15
High Performance Struts

Description:

TRD Performance Struts are gas-charged, monotube constructed for increased cooling, and are valved to give the xA and xB a firmer, more responsive ride. They are tuned to work best when combined with the stiffer TRD Scion Lowering Springs, but also improve handling using the stock Scion spring setup.