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Hey guys I just bought a used 2005 Honda Civic 4 door base model and it runs nice and the gas mileage is amazing coming from a 90's F150. But the suspension feels really awful on the crappy streets I come across on my daily commute. It feels like someone is slamming a hammer into the bottom of the chassis when going over a bumpy road with many pothole patches/ dips/bumps/etc. It feels like the the suspension can't catch up fast enough or the shock isn't strong enough or big enough for the load. I can make a video if needed. I was told the suspension on the car is only a few years old, all 4 corners were done at the start of 2018.I have no way of knowing if this is true or not, however the seller did tell me that the "stiff" ride is just a characteristic of this year. When I test drove the car near the seller's house there were no issues because the streets over there were new and even. However in my neighborhood its a crap shoot, my daily roads are pretty bad and now I see what the seller was talking about it being "stiff". So my questions are, can a new stock suspension wear out in a couple of years? Is this "stiff" suspension the way the car is supposed to feel? Are there any ways to get the car to be more spongey/softer via modifications or aftermarket struts/springs/shocks? To me a soft squishy ride is a late 90's Mercedes E55 , Mid 90's Crown Victoria, Early 90's Ford F-150, all giant gas guzzling vehicles but if you have ever ridden in one of those you can hardly feel any bumps at all. My last car was a 2002 BMW 330ci and I could also barely feel any bumps the way I can feel everything on this Civic. The BMW wasn't as good as those v8 gas guzzlers but still miles ahead of the way this Civic feels. How can I remedy this? Any help is appreciated. I really would like to keep this car, I'm already enjoying the gas mileage and how zippy it feels.

 
Rep Power: 243

Compared to all the other vehicles you have owned yeah a 7th gen will feel stiff. That being said if they used cheap aftermarket struts and springs the car might ride stiffer then it should. Can you take a look and see what you have?

OEM Honda struts are easily good for 100k+ miles but if someone put garbage on it might need replacing already.

 
Rep Power: 222

This

 
Rep Power: 367

a 7th gen civic is way lighter than the cars you listed, so they will jump more on bumps.

but worn dampers could increase the issues. like golnat mentioned, check them.