Drop your tire pressures 3-5psi and it will soften up.

 

No one can tell you whether what you are experiencing is normal or not since we all have a different "seat of the pants" feel for cars!

But here's a couple of things to check.

Are the tires the correct size for the 19 inch wheels? Sometimes people put on different size tires because they're cheap.

Are the tire pressures correctly set as per the door card?

How old are the tires?

Check the date of manufacture stamp on the sidewalls.

It's in a square box and will be 4 digits, the first two being the week of manufacture and the second two being the year.

0115 means made in the first week of 2015 and 5219 means it was made in the last week of last year.

The reason for asking is that rubber hardens so an old tire will not be quite as pliable as a new one but you'd need to be very in tune with the car to spot this.

Playing around with slightly lower pressures may help but beware going too soft.

 

No one can tell you whether what you are experiencing is nornal or not since we all gave a diffetent "seat of the pants" feel fot cars!

But heres a couple of things to check.

Are the tires the correct size for the 19 inch wheels? Sometimes people put different size tires on because they're cheap.

Are the tire pressures correctly set as per the door card?

How old are the tires? Check the date of manufacture stamp on the sidewalls.
It's in a square box and will be 4 digits, the first two being the week of manufacture and the second two being the year. 0115 means made in the first week of 2015 and 5219 means it was made in the last week of last year. The reason for asking is that rubber hardens so an old tire will not be quite as pliable as a new one but you'd need to be very in tune with the car to spot this.

ok so the tire size is 275/45/19 and the date code is 4219. the brand is continental extremecontact dws.

 

ok so i did some investigation after replacing the pcv system and noticed these. are these lift spacers? i think i found the culprit. View attachment 241532

 

My '11 had a stiffer ride compared to other vehicles I've owned. I recently replace the struts/shocks at all 4 corners, they had ~ 93k on them. The ride got a little softer over bumps, especially multiple concurrent bumps. It also got rid of the boat feeling in bends at highway speeds. It is still a little stiffer than my other vehicles were but much better than it was. My '11 sits high also, not too high, just about where yous looks like it sits.
OK,now the item you think might be a spacer I believe is just the coil/spring seat. I'll include a pic of an OEM setup that I found on Ebay that shows the same item.
Maybe being an '08 your struts/shocks are due for replacement.

 

idk, it definitely looks like a polyurethane puck thing. in that picture it appears to have slots in the bottom

 

And the actual tire pressures versus the door placard?

 

i dropped my tire psi to about 35 per the above advice. it seemed to help a lot. it seems to ride a bit better

 

The polyurethane puck is stock. These are sporty, european suv. This is how they ride.

 

ok got it

You can always import a Peugeot ... it is like riding a darn couch on wheels ...

lol i prefer my unreliable cars to at least look good on the side of the road

 

I think everything German has a firmer ride....they dont sell many Buick's over there....and come to think of it, firmer seats. It's the nature of the beast

 

You can always import a Peugeot ... it is like riding a darn couch on wheels ...

 

...and the cost to federalize one would be a great investment 🙄

 

I found a '59 203 in a farmers field and bought it for ff400 which was about $100 at the time. The back seat still had the original clear vinyl cover on it and the car was a lot of fun.

 

My '07 has the 19" wheel option and I run the same continentals as you. It does ride firm. But when I swap out to my 17" winter tires and wheels it softens right up. But then I lose the crisp steering. Corning then feels a bit mushy.

A lot of it is the tires and wheel size. If it's too stiff step down a wheel size or two.

 

I think I read an article yesterday that Buick is dropping the regal line?

 

Opel Germany built the last Buick Regals and Holden Commodores back in 2019 but they've both been selling very slowly.

GM are following Ford and getting out of cars, focussing on CUVs and SUVs - 2021 is the last model year for Chevrolet Malibu

 

Wow no kidding! I had no idea! Gm cars suck anyways

 

Gm cars suck anyways

LOL, considering a good share of them on the roads in here are GM products ... I did try to love Fords, I did try to love Toyotas, I even tried a Jeep in my life and hell no ... for me, apart from the clunkiness the one thing that keeps me anchored in German cars is the dash design and the more ergonomic interior. This is why I will never get a Tesla. It sucks internally and touch screens just distract me.

 

American cars are boring, cheaply built, 20 years behind the technology curve. I could go on. Love me some german and japanese cars, both for different reasons.

 

Strange that you say that, my old 2004 V8 Explorer was one of the nicest put together, well built 7 seater vehicles that I've ever driven in 63 years of licenced driving. Wouldn't handle my 20' van on hills without me having shares in a petrol pump, but had it a 3 litre diesel such as in my 09 TDI, then I'd still be driving it, Had it for eight years, replaced timing chains at 250,000km, and NO other problems at 285,000. If my TDI can last as long with zero probs (I've changed the centre shaft bearing) then I won't bitch too much

 

I have an 09 TDi 4Xmotion it’s not harsh ( not air suspension)
Any low profile like your 45s is going to give a hard, harsh ride that jars through every pothole, bump, irregularity
I’d go back to a more normal size/ratio like 17 inch on a 60 profile or whatever gives you correct gearing/speed etc
I have two sets of original mags one set with Pirelli scorpions but use TOYO AT open country both very smooth but the ATs are noisier ( thrum like a worn wheel bearing ) compared to the road pirellis but noise is par for the course on ATs
My daughter just bought a Merc A180 on 45 profiles it was jarring when I threw it around out backroads ( harsher than my Treg on 60 profile ) and when she drove me around Sydney ( in back seat ) it was also harsh and bumpy as had been my experience in many low profile shod cars
At the speeds the nanny states let us drive low profile tyres are hardly necessary mostly they are applied so people can add show off larger wheels that then need a lower profile to keep the rolling circumference the same to ensure correct gearing and speed readings

 

The standard fitment on 17 inch wheels is 235/65/17 108XL load or 255/60/17 106 load.

 

Ford trucks are built well but they're still overpriced, no frills, not fun to drive rigs. I've owned several trucks by ford.

 

i ended up putting a different wheel and tire setup. from a G500 and it rides a lot better but still a bit stiff. i think i’m just used to my old e320. i do like the new meaty setup though

 

i’m so confused. isn’t stiff suspension a german car fan’s wet dream?

 

i’m so confused. isn’t stuff suspension a german car fan’s wet dream?

Definitely

 

Depends on how crappy your roads are. The roads I drove on in Germany was much much better.

 

.

 

And they like to refer to it as "firm" and not stiff.

 

...double entendre

 

Hmm. What mileage? If the shocks are shot I could definitely see them stiffening up like crappy coilovers. Look at your spring code, confirm the color coding

 

180k but changing the wheels helped a lot

 

Wow, shocks are undoubtedly shot. Springs are probably fine assuming they're even stock

 

that would make the shortest lifetime for shocks on any car i’ve ever owned......

 

Is it a sport suspension Touareg? It is a bit stiffer than the stock steel suspension. You will definitely feel a difference in the ride between air and steel. Steel spring are a harsher ride.
You are already on 19” wheels which is a better ride than a 20” or 21”!
Reducing the air pressure in the tyres would help too.
The picture that you posted is stock spacer in the steel spring suspension.
Changing your shocks will make a difference in how the bumps are being handled.
Euro suspension is slightly stiffer. Euro legislation for car suspension dampening frequency is higher than that of North America. I can’t remember what the frequency (Hz) range required.

 

It's not a legislation matter - Europeans generally prefer good damping to boat wallowing.