| PDLines |
Everyone thinks I am crazy. It does not inspire a lot of confidence in freeway driving. Most every person raves about the handling. I am not that impressed at highway speeds.
I brought it in to the dealer and they confirmed that nothing is wrong with the suspension. They drove it and said it was fine. I noticed it in the non-sport loaner car they gave me too.
I think it's a design issue, not a mechanical problem. I just think it does NOT handle as well as everyone says and that the people who think it does are just being swayed by reviews.
I sometimes feel like I am could easily lose control of this vehicle and roll it over after doing a quick right/left avoidance maneuver at any speed over 55 MPH.
It has a very sloshy feel with a skating wandering sideways sway when doing these MINOR corrections at 55 MPH or greater. |
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| JL_SS |
quote:
Originally posted by PDLines
Everyone thinks I am crazy. It does not inspire a lot of confidence in freeway driving. Most every person raves about the handling. I am not that impressed at highway speeds.
I brought it in to the dealer and they confirmed that nothing is wrong with the suspension. They drove it and said it was fine. I noticed it in the non-sport loaner car they gave me too.
I think it's a design issue, not a mechanical problem. I just think it does NOT handle as well as everyone says and that the people who think it does are just being swayed by reviews.
I sometimes feel like I am could easily lose control of this vehicle and roll it over after doing a quick right/left avoidance maneuver at any speed over 55 MPH.
It has a very sloshy feel with a skating wandering sideways sway when doing these MINOR corrections at 55 MPH or greater.
What are you comparing it too? Other SUV's you have driven or other cars you have driven? It is still a large SUV and will not handle as well as a car. I have not driven a 2007, so I can't comment on it specifically. Our 2003 handled well for an SUV but nowhere near as well as a car. |
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| G. COLTON |
Based on reading your post I would most suspect that the problem is your driving technique. As was already noted this is not a Corvette! It will not handle like a NASCAR roadster.
I have a 2004 and it handles very well. Over the years I have driven many different vehicles, including those that were designed as performance vehicles. I have a fairly large base against which to compare the MDX.
G |
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| creacker |
quote:
Originally posted by PDLines
Everyone thinks I am crazy. It does not inspire a lot of confidence in freeway driving. Most every person raves about the handling. I am not that impressed at highway speeds.
I brought it in to the dealer and they confirmed that nothing is wrong with the suspension. They drove it and said it was fine. I noticed it in the non-sport loaner car they gave me too.
I think it's a design issue, not a mechanical problem. I just think it does NOT handle as well as everyone says and that the people who think it does are just being swayed by reviews.
I sometimes feel like I am could easily lose control of this vehicle and roll it over after doing a quick right/left avoidance maneuver at any speed over 55 MPH.
It has a very sloshy feel with a skating wandering sideways sway when doing these MINOR corrections at 55 MPH or greater.
Go drive another SUV and rip around some corners, then (assuming you didnt roll) go do the same in an ) & MDX. Perhaps the reviews on it are correct and it is you that are expecting too much from them. It drives like a car, just not as fast.
But, thats only my opinion. |
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| Fabvsix |
it is about time someone chimed in......This is where the "sport" model steps in and takes out all the "SWAY" in this vehicle. Most say " I could NOT tell a difference" between a "sport and a "non-sport"....well here is where it makes a difference! Keep in mind it REMAINS a SUV and NOT a sport car however.......
I was doing some "spirited" driving and I couldn't understand why I was having so much "understeer and oversteer"????? Dah I was in comfort mode, put her in Sport mode and all that was GONE ! It makes a HUGE difference when you are "pushing it" over the basic model or comfort mode......Another way to feel the difference, just drive over a speed bump in a shopping center in comfort mode and do it again same speed in sport mode. If you can't feel the difference, something is wrong with you.......
Hope this helps.... |
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| PDLines |
I am not doing the cones at 55 MPH!
It's avoiding a rock bouncing in front of you going down the freeway or avoiding a mattress on the left side of your lane.
Ordinary driving. Well, ordinary for Houston Texas Freeways with dump trucks and people leaving letting their trash fall off the back of their trucks... |
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| shootist |
Let's start with the basic- have you checked the tire pressures with an accurate gauge? Try bringing them up to 34-35 cold, and see if it makes a difference in feel. If not, go back to 32.
Have you driven other SUV's, or just cars? The MDX is a Big Vehicle, and will have more sway than a car.
(Having said that, the Sport model, with the active dampers, corners very much like a big sports sedan. It's on rails.) |
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| ayanomich |
| I've had one or two occasions where I made a quick swerve to avoid an object in the road; my 03 handled the quick moves like a charm. And I'm talking 60-65 mph with a quick snap of the steering wheel either left or right then back to straight on line. I can understand a handling issue with a wide swerve but you are talking quick movements, so that should be a piece of cake for the 07 models if all the reviews and our member's comments are factual. |
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| SullyC5er |
quote:
Originally posted by PDLines
I think it's a design issue, not a mechanical problem. I just think it does NOT handle as well as everyone says and that the people who think it does are just being swayed by reviews.
I like the handling, but I do have the Sport Pkg. I can tell you it handles better than the SUV's I have driven...RX-330, Vue, FX35, Expedition, Blazer, Explorer & Equinox. I believe that the test results posted in one of your other threads validates this. Since I race a highly modified Corvette, I think I have a good benchmark for my asessment.
I think most of the people who praise the suspension are Sport Pkg owners and those who selected this pkg probably expect more from the MDX.
With all of this said...it is an SUV. Under extreme stress, such as a quick maneuver to avoid a rock, she will sway...even my stock Corvette with the performance suspension did that. |
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| mindmachine |
I bought the sport package and I agree with the others who have the sport package the difference between comfort and sport is like night and day.
I have a 05 Porsche Cayenne S with the standard suspension and in comfort mode the Porsche is much more stable than my 07 MDX , in sport mode the my MDX is a close tie to maybe even firmer than the Cayenne S.
Hey Fabvsix at least we can agree on something! |
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| sobrien1087 |
I too have the Sport edition, and I cannot say that I have driven many other SUVs for comparative purposes, other than test drives. Having said this...
I still find myself applying the brakes out of habit many times when a daunting corner is approaching, and on those occasions when I put my trust in the suspension I have not been disappointed.
One time in particular I was rather grateful. I was coming out of a downhill acceleration, when I hit a sharp corner a little faster than I wanted to. Just as I made the bend I caught an oncoming car, and naturally dug in tighter on the turn. Once I came out of my surprise reaction to the situation I realized how nicely the X gripped the road and kept me stable. I know my other cars would not have handled so well. I was riding in Sport mode at the time.
I do notice an appreciable difference between Sport and Comfort, and was certainly thankful to have been in sport mode during this particular incident. |
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| crazymjb |
Still waiting to get ours, but I am using this to sell my parents the sport package :)
I can't imagine the body sway is that bad. I made a huge dodge going 40ish in my sierra when some woman on a phone opened her audi door right in front of me and even that thing didn't feel like it was remotely close to losing control.
Mike |
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| PDLines |
I am comparing it to every other vehicle I have ever driven in.
Everyone keeps telling me its just personal preference. At this point I am just settling down and dealing with it. I doubt it will roll over or even lose control. It just feels funny. Like I said it doesn't inspire confidence, that's all. I am going to stop talking about it and just drive. I got a ticket the other day. I was driving 48 in a 35 and just doing little left/right adjustments just to test the feel of the car. I wasn't paying attention to the cop ahead sitting there. I was more concerned about trying to figure out if I could live with the handling.
Anyway, I got this stupid ticket and I think its a lesson. Stop worrying about it and just drive the damn car. Lesson learned.
At speeds under 50 MPH, I agree, this car handles great. SHawd really helps it hug slow bending curves.
I do not recommend testing the handling at rates above posted speed limits !!!
:eek: :( :) :D |
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| dj-mdx2 |
quote:
Originally posted by PDLines
I am comparing it to every other vehicle I have ever driven in.
Everyone keeps telling me its just personal preference. At this point I am just settling down and dealing with it. I doubt it will roll over or even lose control. It just feels funny. Like I said it doesn't inspire confidence, that's all. I am going to stop talking about it and just drive. I got a ticket the other day. I was driving 48 in a 35 and just doing little left/right adjustments just to test the feel of the car. I wasn't paying attention to the cop ahead sitting there. I was more concerned about trying to figure out if I could live with the handling.
Anyway, I got this stupid ticket and I think its a lesson. Stop worrying about it and just drive the damn car. Lesson learned.
At speeds under 50 MPH, I agree, this car handles great. SHawd really helps it hug slow bending curves.
I do not recommend testing the handling at rates above posted speed limits !!!
:eek: :( :) :D
Sounds like you need this. You can always trade the X in for an X5 or Cayenne if you're so fixated on the handling. |
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| PDLines |
BTW, the cop didn't buy my excuse that I just got a new car and was testing the handling. He could not have cared less. Probably thought I was the biggest idiot he had seen that day. From his perspective I probably looked like a drunken sailor driving home from the docks after being at sea all day. I was lucky he didn't make me get out of the car and do a sobriety test. I wonder how many DUI people say they just got a new car and were testing the handling and that's why they were weaving??
I thought how stupid that sounded when I got home. |
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| sobrien1087 |
quote:
Originally posted by PDLines
I thought how stupid that sounded when I got home.
Don't beat yourself up over it. The cop probably went home to his wife that night and said "Honey, you should have seen how this MDX that I pulled over, handled in the slalom! We definitely need to get one!" ;) |
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| shootist |
quote:
Originally posted by sobrien1087
I do notice an appreciable difference between Sport and Comfort, and was certainly thankful to have been in sport mode during this particular incident.
It's not just the Sport mode! The active dampers tighten up a lot on the outside of a curve, even if you're in Comfort mode.
Keeping it in Sport mode definitely feels tighter on straights, but the steering position sensor, and yaw sensors still send "Do the Tighten Up" signals to the outside shocks in a tight turn in both modes. |
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