Good morning everyone.

Bought a 2019 ST line Focus in 2020 between lockdowns and am generally really pleased with the car.

However on a late night run on the A14 last night I could feel every bump and rut in the left hand lane. On smooth roads ( which are getting more difficult to find) no problems at all.

Car is shod with 215/50R17 Contispeed Contacts which have only done 10,000 miles. My wife has Fiesta St line with 215/45/R17 Michelin Pilot 4 and not noticed a similar problem

Would a tyre change help sort it out?

Many thanks

Geoff

The ST-Line’s and ST’s do get lower and stiffer suspension. I highly doubt a tyre change would help. 

Has this only just occurred? Or been like this since you bought it?

Suspect that it has been like this since I bought it but haven't used the car much over lockdown. Also since then most roads have got significantly worse. It just seems that the ride is very bad compared with my 2015 focus Titanium. Expected it to be firmer but not so bone shaking over bad roads. Wife's fiesta st line has much better ride.

Have you checked the tire pressures?

Tyre pressures all checked. Ride is at the complete opposite end of the spectrum of my 2015 Titanium. Expected the ride to be firmer but not the crashing and banging over potholes. Any suggestions welcome on how to reduce this as it spoils what is a really nice car.

39 minutes ago, GeoffWS said:

Wife's fiesta st line has much better ride.

Presumably you have driven both on exactly the same roads?

Not driven an ST-Line Mk 4 Focus so can't comment from experience. My Fiesta has exactly the same wheel/tyre combination as your wife's, and behaves pretty much as you describe your Focus. On (rare!) smooth roads it feels entirely different. 

It might be worth trying a different tyre brand when you need to change. I had Contis on an Audi that was very firm and intended to try Michelins but the tyres lasted very well and I sold the car first!

 

I recently changed my Skoda Rapid for a Focus ST-Line. What I did notice on the test drive, and remarked to my wife about at the time, was that the steering/suspension seemed to sit somewhere between the Rapid (185 tall tyres, soaked up all bumps and didn't notice rough surfaces much) and my MX5 (which certainly notices bumps, and gives lots of "feedback" especially if the nearside front wheel hits a puddle!)

It certainly has a marked feeling of "self centering" which I don't have on either of the other cars, and which increases in intensity in sport mode so I suspect that it is entirely artificial and, TBH, I could do without it along with lots of the other "electrickery" as Henry Cole puts it.

On 10/31/2021 at 3:08 PM, GeoffWS said:

Tyre pressures all checked. Ride is at the complete opposite end of the spectrum of my 2015 Titanium. Expected the ride to be firmer but not the crashing and banging over potholes. Any suggestions welcome on how to reduce this as it spoils what is a really nice car.

 

On 10/31/2021 at 11:27 AM, GeoffWS said:

Good morning everyone.

Bought a 2019 ST line Focus in 2020 between lockdowns and am generally really pleased with the car.

However on a late night run on the A14 last night I could feel every bump and rut in the left hand lane. On smooth roads ( which are getting more difficult to find) no problems at all.

Car is shod with 215/50R17 Contispeed Contacts which have only done 10,000 miles. My wife has Fiesta St line with 215/45/R17 Michelin Pilot 4 and not noticed a similar problem

Would a tyre change help sort it out?

Many thanks

Geoff

Generally a good ride, but occasionally get a thump from off side rear, tyre pressures are okay and run the 17" wheels, maybe most of the road defects are on the left.

3 minutes ago, Nimrodmk8 said:

 

Generally a good ride, but occasionally get a thump from near side rear, tyre pressures are okay and run the 17" wheels, maybe most of the road defects are on the left.

 

Torsion beam? 

2 minutes ago, Alex.S said:

Torsion beam? 

The Fiesta has a torsion beam too though.