Air or steel spring suspension

[JonD212]

Hello all,
I'm very close to ordering a new Macan Turbo and would appreciate some advice from anyone who has driven both suspension versions.
I've spoken with three dealers, all of whom have said that air only really necessary for towing which is something I'll never need to do. However, test reports I've read suggest that the car corners flatter on the air suspension.
I've driven the Turbo, which has steel springs plus PASM as standard and was very impressed but still curious as to the benefits of air.
Any advice would be much appreciated - many thanks,
Jon

 

[Lancerlot]

Springs and PASM seems to be the preferred option for "drivers". It was the one I chose in the early days when specing mine and after driving both. I haven't regretted it subequently. []
However, it does depend a little on which wheel option you chose. I'm told the ride is marginally improved on air with 21" rims and allows you to raise and lower ride height at will too. []
Regards,

Clive

 

[rakh1]

Hi,

I've driven both back to back and on longer journeys. I ended up with air.

There is an extra level of comfort and isolation with the air setup, especially noticeable on A roads. However I did not feel that it ruined the response and feel of the suspension. When your are pressing on it would be hard to tell the differed.

Air had three added advantage of being able to alter the eye height too, which I use surprisingly regularly.

Rich

 

[woodstock]

Check out Nick Murray comments. I personally had a Macan diesel on springs and now have Cayenne with air, more essential on the bigger car.
https://youtu.be/59BdxkI17dg

 

[JonD212]

Many thanks to all for your informative comments.
I'll be ordering my Macan with 20" wheels (never really got the big rim thing) and from what you say it would appear that I'll be better off with the air suspension. I still like having fun on the twisty country lanes where I am in West Fife but, at the age of 71, the increased comfort on A roads and motorways is major plus.

 

[ScottishSpyder]

I run my S on our Scottish roads with PASM and 21” wheels and it is fine. I have it on Sport mostly as normal is a bit soft.

 

[Philthechip]

I've had my Macan for a couple of months now with air suspension and it is fantastic. In normal mode it probably is a bit softer than springs and not quite such a sporty drive but in this mode it absorbs the bumps, including speed bumps brilliantly. If you want a sportier drive or are on A roads or motorways, you can lower it 50mm with the press of a button and feel it sharpen up in my judgement a bit sportier than springs. Then if you need it, it has an off road mode where it will lift the vehicle above the normal ride height by... I'm not sure how high - does anyone know?

On another point, it was noted at the recent Macan meet at PC Solihull that if you have air suspension and need to jack the vehicle, you must switch off the self levelling function - in my car by pressing the low level button for about 20 secs - dash display comes up with 'self levelling off' or similar. It switches back on again as soon as you drive the car again and works a treat if you need to collect 100 bricks (200 - 250Kg?) from the builders merchant as I did last week.

I'm loving it.

 

[JonD212]

I picked up a Macan Turbo with air suspension on Monday for a 48hr test drive and I was initially disappointed by, what I considered to be, quite a choppy and jittery ride; it didn't feel as 'planted' and stable as my BMW 640i. However, the weather was appalling and being unfamiliar with the car, I reserved judgement until the following day.

I totally get the point about lowering the suspension and once I'd also lowered the seat the car felt a great deal better and I drove it for about 300 miles over all types of road surfaces. Compared to my BMW there's a great deal of tyre roar but that's just about the only negative I can find.

I also really like the good old-fashioned analogue buttons, especially the instant access knob to dim the instrument lights. This is a very important feature to me as, here in the Knockhill area, I'm surrounded by miles of twisty unlit roads and nighttime driving is great fun, provided that you don't have overly bright interior lighting.

I took out a 911 after the Macan and until it got dark I was pretty much convinced that it would be my next car. But... the only way to control the instrument lighting is to enter the main screen menu, select lighting brightness then rotate from -5 to +5 and after all that, there's hardly any difference.

I know Porsche are trying to achieve a sleek look to the interior but, to me, it's a classic case of 'style over substance', so I think I'll stick with the Macan Turbo and save myself £20k in the process!