At a time where active suspension is becoming a reality in passenger cars and semi-active solutions are present in more segments than ever before, a collaboration between KYB and Citroën introduced a new suspension concept based on passive shock absorbers, but capable of approaching the high performance of the semi-active systems with significantly more competitive costs. It was developed and applied as original equipment to the Citroën C5 Aircross, which originally launched in 2017. The vehicle was nominated for the 2019 Car of the Year award and won the 2019 CarWow Comfort Award. KYB was also awarded a Supplier Excellence award from PSA following this very successful development.
Until now this technology has only been fitted to brand new manufactured vehicles, however, in 2022 it will be available as aftermarket parts from KYB Europe – part numbers 3348095 & 3448033. KYB is the only company to offer these parts to the aftermarket. Currently there are over 150,000 C5 Aircross on European roads equipped with double hydraulic stops.
With this technology, the total stroke of the shock absorbers can be divided into three differentiated parts for which the shock absorber will provide different characteristics. The first part corresponds to the position around the centre of the stroke. In this working area the conventional valving in the piston and the base valve provides the damping forces. The second and third parts correspond to the positions close to the end of the rebound and the compression strokes, with the hydraulic compression and rebound stops responsible for providing additional energy absorption.
This split allows the shock absorbers main valves to focus on comfort and the two hydraulic stops take responsibility when more demanding situations are encountered, thus increasing both comfort and handling performance. To achieve this effectively, both the rebound and compression stops have to be able to provide sufficient energy absorption and to have a very flexible response. This patented technology provides an unprecedented comfort level and what PSA describes as a “flying carpet effect”, as the car feels like it’s flying over bumps and holes in the road.
Jordan Day, Marketing Manager for KYB Europe aftermarket, explains “having this technology available to the aftermarket is an exciting addition to our existing range and will allow motorists to continue to enjoy the award-winning comfort these shock absorbers offer. It’s another great example of how KYB is at the forefront of OE suspension research and development”.