Magnetic Ride Control vs Air Ride Suspension

[Blueinterceptor]

My premier has mag ride but no auto ride

 

[dernals]

I wasn't interested in the Air ride because all of the range rovers I've owned had expensive repairs related to the air suspension at one point or another. Mag Ride in my high country tahoe rides good enough for me.

 

[semo]

Magnetic ride comes on all vehicles with the 6.2 and air ride is in addition to that if an available option. I have both on my Yukon XL and the ride is amazing!

Amazing? I have a 23 Tahoe premier and am not happy about the ride. My 18 Traverse road a lot nicer.

 

[CASTLEDFW15]

There is one drawback in my mind with the Air Suspension…….Pertty much all current technology Air suspension vehicles, all manufacturer.

The system will hunt during parking, low speeds, etc……..This “hunting” obviously cycles the compressor. Obvious effect is early compressor failure compared to the MRC or even normal NON MRC suspensions.

Example…..Drive Thru……I am old school and was taught that if the vehicle is NOT in motion, then Place Transmission in Park….simple as that. I usually use the one minute rule but can be adjusted as conditions permit. The Compressor will cycle to Entry/Exit mode…..transmission thinks in park then we are getting out. Drops to full down. Twenty seconds or whatever it is, back to drive and raises. Repeat process at next sopping point.

 

[WalleyeMikeIII]

There is one drawback in my mind with the Air Suspension…….Pertty much all current technology Air suspension vehicles, all manufacturer.

The system will hunt during parking, low speeds, etc……..This “hunting” obviously cycles the compressor. Obvious effect is early compressor failure compared to the MRC or even normal NON MRC suspensions.

Example…..Drive Thru……I am old school and was taught that if the vehicle is NOT in motion, then Place Transmission in Park….simple as that. I usually use the one minute rule but can be adjusted as conditions permit. The Compressor will cycle to Entry/Exit mode…..transmission thinks in park then we are getting out. Drops to full down. Twenty seconds or whatever it is, back to drive and raises. Repeat process at next sopping point.

Put it in neutral and keep your foot on the brake. Or just leave it in gear, you won’t hurt the trans…plus, if you leave the Auto Start/Stop enabled, engine will shut down and save you gas. In P, it won’t shut down

 

[Polo08816]

22s ride rather harsh. 20s are much better. You also get better gas milage with 20s.

I had air suspension on my Ram 1500 and ended up having to tear it all out and go with regular shocks and coils. Caused way too many issues in cold weather here in NW Iowa. It would freeze, lose pressure, etc. After that fiasco I'm steering away from any air ride until these companies can figure it out better - especially since it's a new tech/feature.

I believe Ram offers an air suspension delete option for the Ram 1500 Limited in Canada.

I also don't want 22 inch wheels either - 20 inch is the maximum and usually offers more tire choices (like the 18 inch wheels).

 

[zbad55]

Amazing? I have a 23 Tahoe premier and am not happy about the ride. My 18 Traverse road a lot nicer.

You really can't compare 2 different vehicles and how they ride, it's like comparing apples to oranges. There is lot in the design that affects the ride, including frame design, the wheel base, full frame vehicle vs sub-frame, tires size and trim height to name a few.

Now I will compare my new Ultimate Yukon vs my wife's 2015 Yukon and the ride is night and day different, The 2023 rides so smooth with the Mag/Air ride

 

[repairman54]

That's the difference between the new '23 independent suspension vs the solid rear axle.
My old '11 LTZ has electronic suspension and auto air leveling (some call it air ride).
Air bags in the rear shocks called it quits at around 100k miles, taking out the compressor.
New AC electronic air shocks and a cheapo Dorman compressor and it's been good to go for 50k miles now.

 

[Polo08816]

You really can't compare 2 different vehicles and how they ride, it's like comparing apples to oranges. There is lot in the design that affects the ride, including frame design, the wheel base, full frame vehicle vs sub-frame, tires size and trim height to name a few.

Now I will compare my new Ultimate Yukon vs my wife's 2015 Yukon and the ride is night and day different, The 2023 rides so smooth with the Mag/Air ride

I think no matter what you do to a 1/2 ton body on frame SUV, it's going to be challenging to make it ride better than a mid size unibody SUV.

That's the difference between the new '23 independent suspension vs the solid rear axle.
My old '11 LTZ has electronic suspension and auto air leveling (some call it air ride).
Air bags in the rear shocks called it quits at around 100k miles, taking out the compressor.
New AC electronic air shocks and a cheapo Dorman compressor and it's been good to go for 50k miles now.

I agree. I attribute the improvement of the 2023 over the 2015 GM full size SUV to be mostly the transition from solid axle to independent rear suspension. I'm sure that the MagneRide system contributes to that but it's not as significant as the completely revised rear suspension setup.


At the end of the day, I'm not convinced that the MagneRide or even the Air Suspension + MagneRide suspension would be worlds better than a well tuned coil spring suspension. Granted, I wouldn't consider most traditional factory suspensions to be "well tuned". But I think most would be impressed by an aftermarket suspension setup like Bilstein 8112/5162, Fox 2.5 reservoirs, or King 2.5 reservoirs. (I'm not saying these setups are available in the GM SUVs - they probably are not at this point in time.)

 

[greg_tahoe84]

Anyone test drove vehicles with MRC and MRC with air ride to see if they are different?