Postby DanJetta » Sat May 17, 2014 9:53 pm
When you read reviews for the R51, you're bound to read a lot of complaints about its rough ride. The airbags and new rear shocks will improve your handling and prevent rear sag but you shouldn't expect a tremendous improvement in ride quality. In fact, airbags will stiffen your rear suspension and make the back feel jumpier - more responsive to changes in road texture.
It took me a while to learn that the Pathfinder is a body on frame, which, by nature, rides as if the wheels were connected directly to your spine. They all do.
With new shocks, airbags, new tires and perfect alignment (I get one every oil change), my Pathfinder still shutters over every bridge joint and pothole. There are some bridge joints that are mid-turn and when I hit them it feels like the truck jumps sideways and gets a little squirly. What feels like a pebble in my wife's Jetta feels like a brick wall in the Pathfinder. And it's normal. Though I've gotten used to it, passengers still describe the ride as "violent" and "rough." Like the opposite of how I like my women.