Motors, Control Arms and Ground Clearance

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I don’t and I have never had them so I just don’t think it’s worth the extra expense.

As we get closer I need to go test drive a Rivian again. We are so close to the factory you just sign up and they let you take one for 45 minutes. It would be helpful too to have my husband drive it since he has never driven anything electric and that’s an easy way to make that happen.
There are other accessibility concerns, that was just an example. My 78-yr-old aunt might need kneel mode to get into my vehicle. Not in a wheelchair, but does have significantly limited mobility.

That's the main thing I have in mind right now. May be other reasons that aren't related to accessibility.
 
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Both my wife's Mercedes coupe and my Grand Cherokee have air suspension. Wife needed rear airbags and some related components replaced just out of warranty which the dealer wanted something like $5k for and the car only had around 25k miles on it. Jeep needed the entire air suspension system replaced including the compressor, I want to say in the 50k-60k mile range, but it was warrantied and I think I saw $6k on the paperwork.

I say that only to reinforce your comment about how expensive it can be.
This may sound crazy, but that’s not nearly as bad as I expected. High end off road coil overs or shock/spring combos (Fox, King, etc.) are about in that 5-6k price range. If that really is a good ballpark I might not mind an air suspension as much.

I still think the offroad package should be steel rather than air, but that kind of negates my replacement cost worries if something goes out on air.
 
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This may sound crazy, but that’s not nearly as bad as I expected. High end off road coil overs or shock/spring combos (Fox, King, etc.) are about in that 5-6k price range. If that really is a good ballpark I might not mind an air suspension as much.

I still think the offroad package should be steel rather than air, but that kind of negates my replacement cost worries if something goes out on air.
How long is an air suspension system expected to last versus a traditional setup?
 
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I don’t and I have never had them so I just don’t think it’s worth the extra expense.

As we get closer I need to go test drive a Rivian again. We are so close to the factory you just sign up and they let you take one for 45 minutes. It would be helpful too to have my husband drive it since he has never driven anything electric and that’s an easy way to make that happen.
I have one reserved for a trip to Utah in November. Wrote up my Hummer EV impressions a while back and will do the same with the R1S
 
That’s exactly why I don’t think I want them.

I get more comfortable ride but any other reason I should consider them. I don’t tow anything.
In the Mercedes, the air suspension adjusts ride firmness based on mode. Eco & Comfort mode and it's a cushy ride. Sport mode firms things up and Sport+ is so firm you feel every little inconsistency in the road, but the car drives like it's on rails. Handles super well.

In the Jeep, it's about ride height and ground clearance. There's Entry/Exit mode which is the lowest setting, Aero which is highway driving, Normal which is slighly higher surface street driving, Off Road 1 which is available at up to 40mph, and Off Road 2 which is the highest ground clearance setting and available up to 20mph. It automatically adjusts itself between Entry/Exit, Aero and Normal based on speed but can also be manually adjusted via buttons in cabin. Off Road 1 and 2 must be manually selected unless the transfer case is put into low range, at which point it automatically raises to those height settings based on mode.
 
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Both my wife's Mercedes coupe and my Grand Cherokee have air suspension. Wife needed rear airbags and some related components replaced just out of warranty which the dealer wanted something like $5k for and the car only had around 25k miles on it. Jeep needed the entire air suspension system replaced including the compressor, I want to say in the 50k-60k mile range, but it was warrantied and I think I saw $6k on the paperwork.

I say that only to reinforce your comment about how expensive it can be.
Meanwhile my 2004 Lexus GX470 has 210k miles on my factory air bags and they are still going strong.

Semi trucks use them for hundreds of thousands of miles. Lots of heavy equipment uses air ride for cabs and/or suspension.

Sounds like an incompetent/greedy dealership issue... or maybe its a Jeep thing and I just dont understand. 😂
 
In the Mercedes, the air suspension adjusts ride firmness based on mode. Eco & Comfort mode and it's a cushy ride. Sport mode firms things up and Sport+ is so firm you feel every little inconsistency in the road, but the car drives like it's on rails. Handles super well.

In the Jeep, it's about ride height and ground clearance. There's Entry/Exit mode which is the lowest setting, Aero which is highway driving, Normal which is slighly higher surface street driving, Off Road 1 which is available at up to 40mph, and Off Road 2 which is the highest ground clearance setting and available up to 20mph. It automatically adjusts itself between Entry/Exit, Aero and Normal based on speed but can also be manually adjusted via in buttons in cabin. Off Road 1 and 2 must be manually selected unless the transfer case is put into low range, at which point it automatically raises to those height settings based on mode.
This doesnt sound right to me.

Air bags are springs.

Springs lift and level.

Struts/Shocks control the firmness of the ride.
 
Meanwhile my 2004 Lexus GX470 has 210k miles on my factory air bags and they are still going strong.

Semi trucks use them for hundreds of thousands of miles. Lots of heavy equipment uses air ride for cabs and/or suspension.

Sounds like an incompetent/greedy dealership issue... or maybe its a Jeep thing and I just dont understand. 😂
Yes this is true. I know that semis use air ride, but I don't know if they adjust or are constant pressure. The Jeep system is constantly adjusting itself. In Arizona summers, I have had multiple occasions where I get a warning light on the dashboard and a message that the air compressor has overheated and the system is inoperable until it cools down. The compressor is loud enough I can hear when it is running. Hard acceleration, hard braking and hard cornering will all cause it to have to level the vehicle back out, not to mention the speed based self raising and lowering. The MB system adjusts itself constantly as well but it is silent so almost imperceptible. All moving parts eventually wear out and I assume that constant adjusting contributes to reduced lifespan.
 
Yes this is true. I know that semis use air ride, but I don't know if they adjust or are constant pressure. The Jeep system is constantly adjusting itself. In Arizona summers, I have had multiple occasions where I get a warning light on the dashboard and a message that the air compressor has overheated and the system is inoperable until it cools down. The compressor is loud enough I can hear when it is running. Hard acceleration, hard braking and hard cornering will all cause it to have to level the vehicle back out, not to mention the speed based self raising and lowering. The MB system adjusts itself constantly as well but it is silent so almost imperceptible. All moving parts eventually wear out and I assume that constant adjusting contributes to reduced lifespan.
Increasing the pressure on a bag lifts the vehicle and dropping pressure lowers it. Dampening is not controlled by this action.

Air systems on SUVs and Pickups usually consists of a rear air bag in place of the rear coil springs. And they work by having leveling arms on each side of the axle.
When you hitch up a trailer with 600lbs of tongue weight and the pressure stays the same, the bags compress and the rear droops.
Then the leveling arms sense they are not maintaining the stock ride height so the valves open and the compressor gets the run command until they satisfy their level reading. If they are too high, it will dump air pressure. Same for when you are side hilling or parked on an uneven surface.



Even in the Mercedes case, they are adjusting stiffness and handling with valve dampening with a hydraulic system. The air bags may be integrated into struts so that may be where the confusion is coming from. The bags are meant to raise or lower the vehicle. Rivian is another example of an integrated air strut. The strut part is hydraulic and controls the ride dampening, and the integrated air springs control the ride height.
 
This may sound crazy, but that’s not nearly as bad as I expected. High end off road coil overs or shock/spring combos (Fox, King, etc.) are about in that 5-6k price range. If that really is a good ballpark I might not mind an air suspension as much.

I still think the offroad package should be steel rather than air, but that kind of negates my replacement cost worries if something goes out on air.
Air ride is optional.

It is not standard on the Off Road Package.

They only mention special shock tuning for that package.


Also keep in mind that those high end systems like Kings, Icons, etc require being rebuilt every 1,000-5,000 miles if the vehicle is really being pushed hard offroad. For daily duty they can last about 50k miles in ideal conditions, but many leak within 10,000-30,000 miles.

That means your vehicle will be down for several weeks while you wait for a shop to rebuild them.
 
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Some Mercedes systems have air struts, not just air springs.
The strut is air over hydraulic, is it not?

The ADS system adjusts the flow of the hydraulic fluid which controls rebound and dampening if I am reading this correctly.


Screenshot 2025-08-26 at 16.20.06.png



 
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I don’t and I have never had them so I just don’t think it’s worth the extra expense.

As we get closer I need to go test drive a Rivian again. We are so close to the factory you just sign up and they let you take one for 45 minutes. It would be helpful too to have my husband drive it since he has never driven anything electric and that’s an easy way to make that happen.
Since you are not planning on off-roading and keeping to the pavement, I would absolutely want to consider air suspension in a truck like the Scout (if offered as an option). It is really night and day compared to running a solid rear axle in terms of ride and comfort, and kneel mode is something that you can set and forget (if needed). I would say keep an open mind.

I just had my Rivian in the shop for a day and I was given a Ram pickup with a solid rear axle - WOW, now I remember what it was like driving my Silverado 2500. The rear end of that truck acted like rubber ball over the slightest of imperfections. I could not wait to get back into the R1T.

To be fair, most pick-ups with a solid rear axle and springs drive much better with a payload. With an empty bed (or with a light load / no passengers in a Traveler, for example) the ride will feel quite different based on whether the truck has air or a solid axle.
 
Since you are not planning on off-roading and keeping to the pavement, I would absolutely want to consider air suspension in a truck like the Scout (if offered as an option). It is really night and day compared to running a solid rear axle in terms of ride and comfort, and kneel mode is something that you can set and forget (if needed). I would say keep an open mind.

I just had my Rivian in the shop for a day and I was given a Ram pickup with a solid rear axle - WOW, now I remember what it was like driving my Silverado 2500. The rear end of that truck acted like rubber ball over the slightest of imperfections. I could not wait to get back into the R1T.

To be fair, most pick-ups with a solid rear axle and springs drive much better with a payload. With an empty bed (or with a light load / no passengers in a Traveler, for example) the ride will feel quite different based on whether the truck has air or a solid axle.
Solid axle vehicles can have air ride suspension. Did you mean compared to traditional coil springs?
 
Since you are not planning on off-roading and keeping to the pavement, I would absolutely want to consider air suspension in a truck like the Scout (if offered as an option). It is really night and day compared to running a solid rear axle in terms of ride and comfort, and kneel mode is something that you can set and forget (if needed). I would say keep an open mind.

I just had my Rivian in the shop for a day and I was given a Ram pickup with a solid rear axle - WOW, now I remember what it was like driving my Silverado 2500. The rear end of that truck acted like rubber ball over the slightest of imperfections. I could not wait to get back into the R1T.

To be fair, most pick-ups with a solid rear axle and springs drive much better with a payload. With an empty bed (or with a light load / no passengers in a Traveler, for example) the ride will feel quite different based on whether the truck has air or a solid axle.
Thanks for this. Something’s I have 100% decided on. This is not one of them. I’m so used to the ride in my Wrangler it’s going to be like night and day if I do get them.
 
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