I am going through the options list before I put the order in for my new XE. My wife (who will drive it more often than myself) wants the Prestige with its softer suspension while I want the Sports model for its better suspension in the corners. I was wondering about the adaptive suspension option. Has anyone compared the adaptive suspension to either the standard or sports suspension? Does it give more adjustment when switching from comfort to sport mode or does it just adjust the suspension according to how you are driving at the time?

 

Hi. We have the R Sport on 19"s. It doesnt have adaptive suspension but seriously I dont know how the ride could be any better - it sits flat around corners, handles perfectly, but doesnt crash over bumps. It rides better than my first XF which had an extraordinarily good ride, but rolled a little around corners. My wife (who is the primary XE driver) adores the ride.

I have the adaptive dynamics in the F Type. I got the S specifically for them, because in the f type the base suspension is dialled up for a street/track compromise which makes it much firmer than the standard setting with the adaptive dynamics. But when I put it into "dynamic", the ride is noticeably firmer and really too jiggly for anything but good roads.

I've driven the XE S on the track with 20"s and dynamic engaged, and it seemed very good, but driving a car at track speeds doesnt really show what it is going to be like on our rubbishy roads.

I'd see if you can get your wife to test drive a R Sport. I'd think she would love it.

 

So you are saying the adaptive suspension only makes it stiffer, not plusher? I was under the impression that with adaptive suspension, selecting comfort mode actually made the suspension softer and then firmed it up in sports mode but I don't know much about it. I thought the ride on the Prestige version was pretty good as well, but my wife is expecting a ride like her friends S Class Merc and Audi A7. but doesn't want to step up to a big (or much more expensive) car. I was also hoping that if I got the Portfolio with the non sports suspension, that the adaptive suspension would be able to stiffen things up to a sporty feel for when I drive it occaisionaly, but it doesn't seem like many people rave about the adaptive suspension except some brief mentions by motoring writers.

 

My XE doesnt have adaptive suspension, but my f type does. The suspension really only changes when you push the "dynamic" button which sharpens the suspension, throttle, tweaks the transmission so you hold gears longer, and makes the dash angry and red. I dont think of it as being "comfort" and "sport" rather it is normal and then a bit agro. I think in normal mode it is pretty much the same as a standard Personally I wouldnt pay extra for it in the 25T, the ride in it is pretty awesome. I'd just compare it with 18" and 19". If your wife wants something softer, the previous gen XF had a more luxurious ride on 19"s and they are a lovely car (I had a 4.2 and a 5.0 though the supercharged 6 in the 2012 and on models is a cracker engine) and the interior is more plush though I prefer the XE to drive. There is also configurable dynamics which lets you tweak it all further and that might be what you are after, but I think that is usually to dial it up rather than down.

 

OK, I see what you mean. It doesn't seem like it will do anything to make it plusher than it is. While I would like a slightly older XF or XJ, she wants mid sized and new so she will likely have to make do with a standard prestige or Portfolio.

 

Yeah, I test drove the XE in a 20T Prestige on 18"s and it was lovely, I was amazed at how well it dealt with our roads. I got the R Sport which is meant to be a firmer drive but I havent noticed that. I must be the target market because I think the ride is pretty much perfect. My missus too, though previously she drove volvos and they tend to ride pretty hard on sub-par roads.

Let us know how you make out.

 

Well it sounds like the standard suspension has no issues so it appears that putting in a special order , or looking for the rare car with that adaptive suspension option in stock might not be needed.

 

CR500: You think its hard to find one o the lot with this option? I have it on mine and I don't notice a thing really. When I click on Dynamic I just feel th throttle pedal get more sensitive and the steering to get a tiny bit heavier, and nothing else with the rest of the car. Seems like a pricey gimmick to me so far. I am wondering if this option is also giving me me my AWD binding feeling as I am the second person with this option and the 20"s complaining.

 

cr500,

Adaptive Dynamics will stiffen your suspension (compared to Active Dynamics off) for better cornering, while introducing more cornering control by constantly measuring speed and braking/acceleration to introduce more computer control to dynamically increase traction by keeping the wheels in contact with the pavement better and adjusting which tires get the most power. ( You can push your cornering harder with computers help).
I recently bought the XE 3.0T Premium without Avtive Dynamics, as I did NOT want that much computer control (I'm more aof a tire spinning, sliding purist). The ride is tuned to COMFORT and soaks up bumps nicely, but you CAN get in trouble above a 100MPH on bouncy roads with the standard suspension, which has a little too much give for very aggressive driving.

Over the holidays we put 1000 Mi on it with three adults, two dogs, and luggage, amd IMHO the non-adaptive suspension is perfect for those seeking a smooth and non-aggessive ride for long trips, and those who don't push the limits while cornering.


In cornering I actually found the suspension a little soft for my tastes, and will probably start my suspension mods by lowering my center of gravity 30MM with these, which will also permenantly stifffen the ride and reduce roll during cornering, but these sport springs WILL take some of the cushy ride away while eliminating the double bounce I get when pushing hard through a dip.

H&R Lowering springs Jaguar XE TÜV 30/30mm 28765-1 | eBay

For your wife, I bet she'd be very happy WITHOUT Adaptive Dynamics, and with the default suspension settings as tuned by Jaguar. They did a nice job to set it for comfort. Any more softness and you'd lose some of the beautiful handling performance you get with this car stock.

Finally, your wheel size has a lot to do with the comfort. The 18's will provide the softest ride compared to low profile tires on the 19's and 20's. Get the 18's of you care about keeping you tire replacement budget low, and if you want the maximum ride comfort available.

 

I have the Adaptive on my R Sport (19") and it does not ride hard at all compared to our S60 Volvo. It's a shame if you don't maximize the XE's potential in terms of suspension since that is a high point of the car.

 

My 35T with the Adaptive Suspension and stick 20"s rides like a brick regardless of the tire pressure setting I use but is as expected so I can't complain much. I wish that when I am in ECO mode that it would soften up a bit more as I don't feel a ride difference from ECO to Dymanic at all unless I am cornering . It's as if this option doesn't do much or it's hard to notice so I should have opt out of this feature.

 

I completely agree that if you can come up with the extra funds (and if you don't plan to do you own aftermarket mods) factory installed adaptive suspension is way better. It simply allows you to get more out of your car, and can be disabled at any time. It will stiffen the ride when active.

I owned an S60R with the "Skyhook" adaptive setup and its comfort mode WAS somewhat more cushy than the volvo without the Skyhook, so I can understand his question as in the case of the Volvo, adaptive dynamics actually ADDED comfort to the ride . But it would then handle like a 80's Lincoln Towncar, and my wife and I never used that comfort mode ourselves...it compromised the driving dynamics too far.

I think in this post he questioned if Adaptive Suspension would ADD comfort compared to the standard setup ( it will not ). But for the real drivers in the crowd, Adaptive Suspension IS better. (Sorry, I did not mean to add confusion to the post).

cr500: Don't forget to choose the 18" wheel options for the softest ride, if that is what your goal is. Then your replacement rubber will be cheaper!

Bigcat09, I'd venture to guess your stiff ride is more due to the 20 " wheel choice than anything else, my "non sport" model has the same suspension as the "sport" model (sport was more of a cosmetic decision), and on 18's rides great for long trips. However you will grip the corners better with low-profile 20's. Comfort vs handling is ALWAYS a compromise.

 

Does anyone really know what JLR's implementation of adaptive suspension actually does or on what basis it works? Looking at aftermarket adaptive shocks such as Koni FSDs, they have no external sensors or electrical connections - they simply detect the harmonic difference between a sudden shock (e.g. hitting a pot hole) and a prolonged steady shock (e.g. cornering) and react accordingly by being more supple or more stiff.

As such I would expect them to provide more comfort on uneven surfaces as there needs to be less compromise in the way they behave. A standard shock will always be limited by the fact that it has to deal with two very different and conflicting demands with one solution.

How is JLR's 'adaptive suspension' different?