I been participating on this Forum about 2 years now and have enjoyed it and while quite a few things surprise me, probably nothing more than how many seem so concerned as the the C7's smoothness of ride.
I've been involved in Corvettes for over 40 years and have purchased dozens of them however don't believe the smoothness of ride has ever been a factor when considering purchase of a sportscar.
It's always been more about the acceleration, handling, braking and the overall performance driving experience.

Now having said that, my Grandsport Vert is my first modern Corvette, I've always been into the C2s and C3 steel bumper cars. So is this concern/desire for smoothness of ride a C7 thing?
Is it because most C7 owners are older and prefer a luxury car ride as opposed to a sportscar ride?

Just curious and am looking forward to your thoughts on the subject.

 

I went with a Stingray for a few reasons and one was it offers the smoothest ride of all the Corvettes. We go on trips with our Vette and at times drive 10 plus hours a day driving. Our Stingray rides awesome and honestly I have no use for a stiffer riding car. YES a smooth ride is important to us.

 

I don't know about the base suspension of the C7 but the tour mode on the mag ride is pretty good for a sports car. Smoother than my C6 Z51 was. It's not what I would call bone jarring at all. It's not luxury smooth and I wouldn't expect it to be especially with the low profile tires. BTW I'm 63.

 

I bought the car for the performance, but I was impressed with the smooth ride. Most of my prior sports cars would shake fillings from your teeth (including my C6) but the mag ride is incredible.

 

That makes perfectly good sense. I don't typically drive my "toy" cars on long trips but more for just plain pleasure driving when I feel the urge to drive a fine sportscar. I typically drive my Grandsport Convertible in Sport mode but there are times when I do appreciate the smooth ride from the Touring mode. I especially appreciate the quietness of ride (no squeaks or rattles what so ever) in my C7, that's something that's seriously lacking in the older Corvettes.

 

I got my 2019 Z06 Convertible for looks, performance and handling. A side benefit is even in sports mode it has a decent ride not smooth but more than acceptable. In tour mode it is quite impressive. As you mentioned the lack of squeaks, rattles, etc is really impressive.

 

I am also pleasantly surprised by this smooth ride, didnt expect from a sports car and loved it coming from a harsh BMW ride

 

I was shocked at how smooth and comfy the Vette is. I am coming from a 17 WRX and the suspension is much harsher. I got MRC , in tour mode...it was very comfy. Sport/track mode is still better than WRX in absorbing bumps.

 

Maybe the No squeaks and rattles is just a silver convertible with red interior thing.

 

I bought my first Corvette Stingray not knowing anything about them cause I thought they were cool. I got rid of the runflats and went with a Michelin no-runflat for a smoother ride. Just because it's a sports car, it doesn't have to feel like you are driving a tank. I love the way it looks and the power. I was later disappointed that I didn't get a Grand Sport as it seems that some look at the Stingray as just a base car but now I am happy I did as it has a smooth ride. Most people I know don't know there are different models of Corvettes anyway. Besides it was cheaper than a Grand Sport. Take a look

 

Not sure if I am "older" at 48 but the main reason I got rid of my previous sports car (a Nissan 350Z) was due its rough ride. It felt like that car was actively trying to hurt you at times! My wife hated so much she refused to ride in it which prompted us in looking into something nicer. So having a smooth ride was pretty high on my list of reasons to go with a C7. Never owned a previous generate 'Vette so can't compare.

I must say the mag-ride in my Z51 has exceeded my expectations in terms of ride quality - its smooth in Tour, firm but forgiving in Sport, yet rock solid in Track. I'd say its darn near perfect with how it rides since I can twist the dial to suit my needs / desires. I often defended my previous 350Z's ride because it was a no-compromise sports car that was great on track so I accepted the harsh street ride as a trade off. However now with the C7 I learned I can have both a buttoned down track weapon and a comfortable daily driver.

I've owned several entry-level, older sports cars over the years (Mustang, Prelude, Eclipse, 350Z) and actually prefer the stiffer and more responsive feel they have compared to "normal" cars. I really hate mushy, soft and wallowing, but don't want a teeth rattling, bone jarring, rock hard ride either. My wife's Infiniti Q60 comes pretty close to that perfect middle ground, but in the end it was just too soft and sluggish for me.

I'm actually amazed people care that much about handling and braking because unless you've tracked the car you've come nowhere near exploring the true characteristics of the chassis to feel these out properly. I have no complaints about my C7 in terms of overall handling but my brothers Porsche Boxster GTS is better. That thing is telepathic in terms of going where you point it. Can't really comment on how smooth the daily ride is because I've only played with it on track with decent pavement.

 

Smooth ride was critically important to me for sport car buying decision. I was very surprised to find how comfortable my base Stingray was i.e. seat, driving position, visibility, and ride. I live in the northeast and need a compliant suspension to survive :-)

While I find the suspension perfectly tuned, I find the 19/20 inch low profile run-flats to tough and stiff. I wish the "touring" suspension had more complaint wheels/tires.

 

C1,2 and 3 Have such beautiful styling,But ride like Go-Karts.
C7 Has it all.Even smoother has been discussed. If you wanna pay for the suspension upgrade.To bad the road conditions ain't up to Corvette Standards

 

I was never too concerned with smoothness of ride, which is why I bought a Z06 with the Z07 package. Definitely stiffer than the standard Z06. That said, I added the DSC magnetic ride controller and can't believe it's the same car. It absorbs the shock of bad roads much better than the stock controller - it is a much more comfortable ride in Sport mode now than the original controller was in Tour mode, yet still is stiff enough for most spirited driving. As for demographics, I'm 49 and this is my fourth Corvette (C4, C5, C6, and now C7 Z06).

 

I drive mine similar to you. No long trips just spirited driving on twisty country roads. So I'm not concerned with how smooth it drives. It's all about how planted it is and man the Grand Sport is all that. But I gotta say it can smooth out nicely on the bumpy stuff. The C7 mag ride is really the ticket.

 

I agree beautiful cars, but VERY stiff. And as far as convertible tops, Corvette has advanced light years since the C2-3s. The C7 soft top is amazing. At 100mph in a 66 roadster there's little difference in wind with top up or down.

 

I got my first Corvette last October and never intend to track or drag the thing. I wanted mag ride, but it was not available on the one I picked. However, this is a base C7 with the F1 suspension which is the smoothest they come. Because of trips the ride was most important to me. Love it and could not be happier with the machine.

 

I prefer to think of it as a compliant, well tuned suspension.

 

As others noted, ride preferences depend on your particular situation.

In addition to some DD and autocross use, for the last 18 years we've been taking long (1-3 months, 4k-8k miles) road trips in our Corvettes. For that, a smooth-but-not-floaty ride is preferred, especially since we have to begin on the bombed-out roads of the Midwest.

Everyone's butt is calibrated differently. For me, the initial mag ride on our 2017 Z51 was not fun even in Tour. I described the three modes as "Stiff", "Stiffer", and "Brutal". But the mag ride GM computer update from last year made a huge difference, Sport and Tour are now both perfectly appropriate for those purposes.

I'm a happy camper.

 

Making a smooth ride a requirement in a car designed for sport performance ( traction, cornering, acceleration, etc) including track use is like making High MPG a requirement for a 460+ HP engine...

It leads to dilution of design when you can do several things passably Ok but nothing exceedingly well... to use a well-worn saying.

i wonder how much better the C7 would be at its core purpose if they left out AFM and went with a ZF tranny instead of the A6/8, for example?