[Dinesh_Malhotra]

Guys,

I understand and do believe that nexon is a better car when it comes to ride and handling and safety, but need to mention the objective of this thread is to serve lots of users like me (irrespective of the reasons) who have chosen to own a Sonet, to manage this!

Let Team-bhp a way for them to understand this better and manage it well during their ownership.

[Turbohead]

Originally Posted by Dinesh_Malhotra

Guys,

I understand and do believe that nexon is a better car when it comes to ride and handling and safety, but need to mention the objective of this thread is to serve lots of users like me (irrespective of the reasons) who have chosen to own a Sonet, to manage this!

Let Team-bhp a way for them to understand this better and manage it well during their ownership.

1) Exchange the 16" wheels for the 15" ones in the lower models. This will get you more sidewall cushioning. Choose the softest riding tire in that size. Experiment with the air pressure too.
2) After doing point 1, if you still find it difficult, you may want to get a softer suspension system. I don't think such options exist in the markets as of today. If done, will compromise handling and will increase body roll.
3) Try doing back strengthening exercises. Will help you to avoid back pain if your having desk job too.
4) Try adding additional cushion to the seats. You might have to reupholster the seats too. Strictly avoid it for cars having side airbags on the seats.

I hope this helps.

[dark.knight]

You are in luck, not only do I hate hard suspension setups (Hello, VW) but I just came back from a Sonet test drive in the city with no roads - Bangalore.

I found absolutely no problem with the suspension, didn't hear thuds either, you will have to tweak your driving is my guess, and that'll happen as you gain familiarity with the car. It remained solid over undulations, albeit a little stiff, but no thuds.

As always though, I'm open to people's personal opinion as each driver has a vastly different perception on what a car is, your options are : downsize the wheel and get softer tyres like Michelin, or just drive a bit more carefully over the craters we call potholes here.

Alternatively, you can just stop short of crying for a lifetime and go for the safer option, the Nexon. This thread will soon fill up with Tata fans to batter the two most hated brands in the forum. Serously though, if you don't like the driving/suspension/steering of a car, get a base Nexon and upgrade to a Sony Android unit.

[Grease_Monkey]

If you hate the ride quality of the Sonet, then cancel the booking and go for another car. Before that, do test drive Sonet from other dealers and check the tire pressure. Usually they keep the tire pressure quite higher than recommended, I drove an Ecosport which had 40 PSI! at a dealership.

Do check out XUV300 too, as it has excellent ride quality. I had almost purchased it after driving all the CSUVs extensively, but backed out due to parking & financial issues. Otherwise Nexon is a good option too

[Nalin1]

Test drive cars can be rattling machines, unfortunate but true.

The first time I ever drove a Duster was a test drive car and that was after some 3 years of it becoming India's game changing crossover. My God!. That was probably the worst car I ever drove. I was wondering what is in this car that has made it a super hit. Anyway that was not a purchase decision for me, so I did not break my head. But yes, if a test drive car ticks all boxes, that is the best case scenario, but if it feels weird in any way, that is not the worst case scenario.

[Cyborg]

Originally Posted by Dinesh_Malhotra

I understand and do believe that nexon is a better car when it comes to ride and handling and safety, but need to mention the objective of this thread is to serve lots of users like me (irrespective of the reasons) who have chosen to own a Sonet, to manage this!

Forget about the Nexon vs Sonet for the moment.

Our super team has given you plenty of options to help with your situation. However, I don’t believe anyone has posted problems with the ride quality of the Sonet as much as you have.

The collective knowledge and experience of our members is off the charts. Having said that, there is no magic wand which can be waved to make the suspension of the Sonet which seems pathetic as per your description into a magic carpet ride with a brand new car considering warranty issues.

There are limitations which have to be accepted and generally plenty of options to choose from if a particular object becomes impractical. Perhaps a change of mindset is what’s required.

Cheers

[Dinesh_Malhotra]

Originally Posted by Cyborg

Forget about the Nexon vs Sonet for the moment.

Our super team has given you plenty of options to help with your situation. However, I don’t believe anyone has posted problems with the ride quality of the Sonet as much as you have.

The collective knowledge and experience of our members is off the charts. Having said that, there is no magic wand which can be waved to make the suspension of the Sonet which seems pathetic as per your description into a magic carpet ride with a brand new car considering warranty issues.

There are limitations which have to be accepted and generally plenty of options to choose from if a particular object becomes impractical. Perhaps a change of mindset is what’s required.

Cheers

Nobody is doubting what has been stated in the forum, but one can't dictate written words against real life experiences.

I am more inclined to know about a solution to this problem than arguing with anyone on their perception of this being a issue limited to a very few observers like me. Please focus on the issue in hand.

If you have time, please check out KIA Sonet FB group (DM me for link if you need towards the right one). There are real stories being shared by real owners.

Let's discuss solutions if there can be for existing users of KIA Sonet who might land up here and learn a thing or two make their ownership of KIA Sonet better thanks to Team-BHP.

[digitalnirvana]

Originally Posted by Dinesh_Malhotra

Please focus on the issue in hand.

With all due respect, the members are doing exactly that and are giving their opinions. Please understand that none of the posters who've posted so far have experienced a nightmarish suspension which you've described.

Hence they're going on hearsay and are suggesting a) test drive from somewhere else b) looking at a different car which suits your riding style better c) after market changes like tyre downsize or cushions etc.

You can't disparage people's opinions and expect them to continue to support.

[Dinesh_Malhotra]

Originally Posted by digitalnirvana

You can't disparage people's opinions and expect them to continue to support.

Agreed. But, you too focused on a single line out of everything I wrote?

Can't we discuss this in a broad sense keeping in mind that there are many unregistered users of team-bhp who can learn from here?

It's a very real problem being faced by most SONET owners and there are dedicated channels where this issue is being discussed in length amongst owners, which lacks expertise that is present on team- bhp.


Anyways, I think I will end here. The conversation has drifted away from discussing the issue in hand to something I can't comprehend anymore (may be you have a word for this too).

Mods, if you wish to, please close the thread. I will try to find answers by myself.

[sagarpadaki]

Since you cannot cancel the booking and will end up owning one in a while, two things can help

-> Switch to comfort oriented tyres, like , MRF ZLX or Conti CC5/CC6, Conti MX5, Michelin Primacy series
and/or
-> Reduce the tyre pressure by a couple of PSI all round.

Either of the above or the combination of the above are the feasible options.

If doing either of them after purchase does not help your cause then only option left is to accept the dynamics of the car and live with it. Either way you have to live with it since you have made up your mind to purchase the car

[himanshu1058]

Sharing my experience even though a short one, will try to share the complete ownership experience once it clocks 10,000 kilometers:

Booked my Sonet HTK+ Diesel (Grey) Automatic on 23 September and it was ready to be delivered to us on 10th October. But we took the delivery during Navratri season. Dealer was a friend of my father, so he offered us free accessories worth 10K. On a funny note, there were hardly any accessories available with them at the time of delivery, so we opted for the 7D mats and chrome surround door handles which look quite good.

Pros:

Easily one of the best looking cars in this segment and probably above.
The only car with a proper diesel automatic in this segment.
HTK+ offers all the necessary and useful features that we required with a spot on pricing. Totally a VFM variant in the complete lineup.
Automatic transmission is quite smooth, love the fact that it can be driven as a manual too.
Suspension is tuned to my taste, offers great comfort while driving.

Cons:

No rear wiper & cruise control which is a must these days.
No crash test ratings until now.
Rear space is not that comfortable for 5 of us.
Not as toughly built as my first car Volkswagen Polo.
I don't like those wheel caps, have asked the dealer about the alloys available on higher Trims. They have quoted 30-35K approximately but not sure when it would be available.

Overall I am quite happy with the ownership and experience so far, right from the day we booked it. On the safety front, I wish it fares well. Eagerly awaiting the crash test results.

Stay Safe,
Himanshu.

[akshay380]

From my about 12 years of experience in Automobile domain, here are my observations.
Suspension, steering, powertrain, BIW are the absolute basics of any vehicle architecture. Their characteristics are not typically changed even in refresh/updates unless some issues are reported either by customers or the internal QA teams. A car with firmer suspension will not really ride well with tire pressure variations unless you go one size down on rims. That will again change vehicle dynamics.

IMHO it's better not to reinvent the wheel when you have still not got the car delivered.

PS: I am Ford fanboy. Not Tata.

[Cyborg]

Originally Posted by Dinesh_Malhotra

Anyways, I think I will end here. The conversation has drifted away from discussing the issue in hand to something I can't comprehend anymore (may be you have a word for this too).

Mods, if you wish to, please close the thread. I will try to find answers by myself.

Dinesh, everyone here has been trying to help you with your issue since the beginning. You are unable to see or accept that judging by your responses.

Let’s see, you asked for help by starting this thread today, 10th December at 1620. It’s 2000 as I write this which means it’s been a little less than 4 hours since the thread kicked off. You definitely couldn’t have had the time to properly process or apply the different possible solutions suggested by us.

You need to change your attitude first or forget finding a solution to the suspension problems with the Sonet, you will end up not finding a solution to anything in life.

Cheers

[avdhesh15]

Originally Posted by Dinesh_Malhotra

1. Reducing Tire Pressure?
2. Changing Tires to Michelins or any other soft compound ones?
3. Tuning the suspension setup to one's liking? (is that even possible?)
4. Replacing the suspension setup with some other cars'?

1. Surely the first effort which is free. Get a tyre inflator and play around yourself
2. Get tyres with more sidewall and then play with tyre pressure
3. I don't think that's possible
4. Get one with a lift and play with points 1 & 2

Update once successful!

[Dinesh_Malhotra]

Originally Posted by Cyborg

Dinesh, everyone here has been trying to help you with your issue since the beginning. You are unable to see or accept that judging by your responses.

Cheers

Thank you for the life lesson. I will be more understanding and accommodating in the future.

I appreciate it. Cheers!

Originally Posted by avdhesh15

1. Surely the first effort which is free. Get a tyre inflator and play around yourself
2. Get tyres with more sidewall and then play with tyre pressure
3. I don't think that's possible
4. Get one with a lift and play with points 1 & 2

Update once successful!

Noted.

I will update here if others on FB groups are able to mitigate this issue (somewhat).