Suspension upgrade for my QPV?

Chrisb2015

Chrisb2015

Member
Messages
540
I would advise against cheap coilovers. Corrosion resistance and servicing are two of the downsides from personal experience. Do KW do something for the QP V?
 
mowlas

mowlas

Member
Messages
1,732
Mark, are you after more sporty handling or looking to lower the car for aesthetics, or both?

I believe you have to really want these to go down the non-OEM route for suspension. For example, if your QP has skyhook, you will also need error cancelling units as the skyhook system will expect signals back from the skyhook CANBUS connections. Also you will need experienced installers to get the right trade offs between ride height, compression and rebound… not to mention getting the wheel geometry settings to match.

There is quite a lot experience over on the US Maserati forum and one of the better companies seems to be Formula Dynamics who have these and also sell the error cancellers sold separately.

www.formuladynamics.com

Sport Performance Coilovers for Maserati Quattroporte (2004-2012)

Formula Dynamics High Performance Sport Coilovers - The ultimate in Fully Adjustable Suspension Technology.FD High Performance Sport Coilovers yield a tremendous improvement in handling with significantly reduced body roll and custom ride heights while still offering an amazing street worthy...
www.formuladynamics.com
 
Last edited:
MarkMas

MarkMas

Chief pedant
Messages
8,899
I'm not an expert or a performance driver really, but my issue is that Skyhook seems to be too soft and wallowy in 'Normal', and too firm and crashy in 'Sport'. I think I preferred my previous non Skyhook QPV. Also, I would like to cure the rear tramlining if possible, but that may be more of a tyre choice issue.
 
MarkMas

MarkMas

Chief pedant
Messages
8,899
mowlas said:
....if your QP has skyhook, you will also need error cancelling units as the skyhook system will expect signals back from the skyhook CANBUS connections....
Click to expand...

Yes the 'plug-in error message cancellation kit' is £375 from these guys. Presumably this is some electronics that tells the system that there is Skyhook 'really' and it is responding to commands.

102003
 
mowlas

mowlas

Member
Messages
1,732
MarkMas said:
I'm not an expert or a performance driver really, but my issue is that Skyhook seems to be too soft and wallowy in 'Normal', and too firm and crashy in 'Sport'. I think I preferred my previous non Skyhook QPV. Also, I would like to cure the rear tramlining if possible, but that may be more of a tyre choice issue.
Click to expand...
I had tramlining for months and the dealer could not solve it. Indeed it turned out to be tyres - went away when I switched all four to Pirelli PZ4s. It can be surprising that even though the tramlining can feel like it’s happening from the rear, can start from the behaviour of the fronts. Assuming basic play issues have been ruled out, tyres may well be the issue.

I am at the limit of my knowledge on the suspension side of things but the US forum is definitely worth a search as loads more real life experiences over there.
 
MarkMas

MarkMas

Chief pedant
Messages
8,899
mowlas said:
I had tramlining for months and the dealer could not solve it. Indeed it turned out to be tyres - went away when I switched all four to Pirelli PZ4s. .....
Click to expand...

It was at its worst on my previous QPV with Pirelli PZeros! I wish I understood this stuff better...
 
mowlas

mowlas

Member
Messages
1,732
MarkMas said:
It was at its worst on my previous QPV with Pirelli PZeros! I wish I understood this stuff better...
Click to expand...

Firstly mechanical play should be ruled out. For example in the bearings and tie rods. Or worn out bushings. It can also be related to wheel geometry.

If it’s not mechanical, for tramlining it’s not so much the brand per se, but more related to the age, deterioration, stiffness of the rubber in the tyres - with less give, the tyre will transmit tramlines directly to your vehicle. Our cars are high performance beasts with low tolerances. Out of interest, what are the ages of your tyres? You should have a 4 digit number indicating the week and year of manufacture e.g. 0122 would mean it was made in the first week of 2022.
 
Last edited:
Gazcw

Gazcw

Member
Messages
7,757
mowlas said:
Firstly mechanical play should be ruled out. For example in the bearings and tie rods. Or worn out bushings. It can also be related to wheel geometry.

If it’s not mechanical, for tramlining it’s not so much the brand per se, but more related to the age, deterioration, stiffness of the rubber in the tyres - with less give, the tyre will transmit tramlines directly to your vehicle. Our cars are high performance beasts with low tolerances. Out of interest, what are the ages of your tyres? You should have a 4 digit number indicating the year and week of manufacture e.g. 2201 would mean it was made in the first week of 2022.
Click to expand...
Mine tramlined and skipped about on Pirelli. They are just s**t.
 
mowlas

mowlas

Member
Messages
1,732
Gazcw said:
Mine tramlined and skipped about on Pirelli. They are just s**t.
Click to expand...
Both statements may be true but not related.

This isn’t and shouldn’t be about tyre brands. What’s the point of sharing all this info if we reduce things down to binary opinions?

Switching to brand new Tyres solved my tramlining issues and they were going from really old Pirellis to new ones.
 
E

Ebenezer

Member
Messages
4,487
So how does Skyhook work? Is it as simple as two settings within the shock controlling the size of a hole though which oil can flow? Large hole is soft, small hole is harder? And is it the springs or the shocks that determine the ride. Ie could you just get stiffer springs and keep the shocks?
Eb
 
Tallman

Tallman

Member
Messages
1,833
MarkMas

MarkMas

Chief pedant
Messages
8,899
mowlas said:
Firstly mechanical play should be ruled out. For example in the bearings and tie rods. Or worn out bushings. It can also be related to wheel geometry.

If it’s not mechanical, for tramlining it’s not so much the brand per se, but more related to the age, deterioration, stiffness of the rubber in the tyres - with less give, the tyre will transmit tramlines directly to your vehicle. Our cars are high performance beasts with low tolerances. Out of interest, what are the ages of your tyres? You should have a 4 digit number indicating the year and week of manufacture e.g. 2201 would mean it was made in the first week of 2022.
Click to expand...

It's done the tramlining thing particularly badly on brand new Pirelli PZeroes and on crappy old (as it turned out) Pirelli Sottozeroes. Best has been brand new Pirelli Sottozeroes (previous QPV). Right now I am on newish Michelins with Matt having replaced most of the suspension in April, and it is tramlining a bit, but not so much.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.