Ride quality refers to a vehicle's effectiveness in insulating the occupants from undulations in the road surface such as bumps or corrugations. A vehicle with good ride quality provides comfort for the driver and the passengers.

Importance

Good ride quality provides comfort for the people inside the car, minimises damage to cargo and can reduce driver

fatigue Fatigue is a state of tiredness (which is not sleepiness), exhaustion or loss of energy. It is a signs and symptoms, symptom of any of various diseases; it is not a disease in itself. Fatigue (in the medical sense) is sometimes associated wit ...

on long journeys in uncomfortable vehicles, and also because road disruption can impact the driver's ability to control the vehicle. Suspension design is often a compromise between ride quality and

car handling Automobile handling and vehicle handling are descriptions of the way a wheeled vehicle responds and reacts to the inputs of a driver, as well as how it moves along a track or road. It is commonly judged by how a vehicle performs particularly duri ...

because cars with firm

suspension Suspension or suspended may refer to: Science and engineering * Car suspension * Cell suspension or suspension culture, in biology * Guarded suspension, a software design pattern in concurrent programming suspending a method call and the calling ...

can result in greater control of body movements and quicker reactions. Similarly, a lower center of gravity is more ideal for handling, but low ground clearance limits suspension travel and requires stiffer springs.

Ambulance An ambulance is a medically-equipped vehicle used to transport patients to treatment facilities, such as hospitals. Typically, out-of-hospital medical care is provided to the patient during the transport. Ambulances are used to respond to ...

s have a special need for a high level of ride quality to avoid further injury to the already-ill passengers.

Technology

Early vehicles, like the

Ford Model T The Ford Model T is an automobile that was produced by the Ford Motor Company from October 1, 1908, to May 26, 1927. It is generally regarded as the first mass-affordable automobile, which made car travel available to middle-class Americans. Th ...

, with its

leaf spring A leaf spring is a simple form of spring (device), spring commonly used for suspension (vehicle), suspension in wheeled vehicles. Originally called a ''laminated'' or ''carriage spring'', and sometimes referred to as a semi-elliptical spring, e ...

live axle A beam axle, rigid axle, or solid axle is a dependent suspension design in which a set of wheels is connected laterally by a single beam or shaft. Beam axles were once commonly used at the rear wheels of a vehicle, but historically, they have a ...

suspension design, were both uncomfortable and handled poorly. Historically, weight was key to allowing cars such as the

Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud The Rolls-Royce Silver Cloud is a luxury automobile produced by Rolls-Royce Limited from April 1955 to March 1966. It was the core model of the Rolls-Royce range during that period. The Silver Cloud replaced the Silver Dawn and was, in turn, ...

and the

Cadillac Cadillac Motor Car Division, or simply Cadillac (), is the luxury vehicle division (business), division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM). Its major markets are the United States, Canada and China; Cadillac models are ...

in the 1950s and the 1960s to have a more comfortable ride quality. However, there are various drawbacks to heavier cars, including poor

fuel efficiency Fuel efficiency (or fuel economy) is a form of thermal efficiency, meaning the ratio of effort to result of a process that converts chemical energy, chemical potential energy contained in a carrier (fuel) into kinetic energy or Mechanical work, w ...

, acceleration, braking, cornering and additional stresses on components. Over time, technology has shifted the curve outward and so it is possible to offer vehicles that are extremely comfortable and still handle very well or vehicles with excellent handling that are also reasonably comfortable. One technical solution for offering both excellent comfort and reduced or eliminating body roll is by using computer-controlled suspensions, such as hydraulic active suspension system (like

Active Body Control Active Body Control, or ABC, is the Mercedes-Benz brand name used to describe electronically controlled hydropneumatic suspension. This suspension improves ride quality and allows for control of the vehicle body motions, allowing for reduced b ...

) or active anti-roll bars, but such systems are expensive because of their complexity.

Factors

The main factor affecting ride quality is the stiffness of suspension components (e.g.

spring Spring(s) may refer to: Common uses * Spring (season), a season of the year * Spring (device), a mechanical device that stores energy * Spring (hydrology), a natural source of water * Spring (mathematics), a geometric surface in the shape of a he ...

shock absorber A shock absorber or damper is a mechanical or hydraulics, hydraulic device designed to absorb and Damping ratio, damp shock (mechanics), shock impulses. It does this by converting the kinetic energy of the shock into another form of energy (typic ...

anti-roll bar An anti-roll bar (roll bar, anti-sway bar, sway bar, stabilizer bar) is an automobile suspension part that helps reduce the body roll of a vehicle during fast cornering or over road irregularities. It links opposite front or rear wheels to a t ...

s and

bushing Bushing may refer to: *Bushing (bearing), a type of plain bearing *Bushing (electrical), an insulated device that allows a conductor to pass through a grounded conducting barrier *Bushing (isolator), a mechanical device used to reduce vibrational ...

s). Other factors include suspension geometry, vehicle mass and

weight distribution Weight distribution is the apportioning of weight within a vehicle, especially cars, airplanes, and trains. Typically, it is written in the form ''x''/''y'', where ''x'' is the percentage of weight in the front, and ''y'' is the percentage in t ...

Importance

Technology

Factors

References

Further reading