{"id":120153,"date":"2024-10-24T01:32:16","date_gmt":"2024-10-24T08:32:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogv2prod.wpenginepowered.com\/blog\/?p=120153"},"modified":"2024-12-09T21:35:14","modified_gmt":"2024-12-10T05:35:14","slug":"what-is-vertical-acceleration-in-cars","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.carparts.com\/blog\/what-is-vertical-acceleration-in-cars\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is Vertical Acceleration in Cars?"},"content":{"rendered":"<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC \"-\/\/W3C\/\/DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional\/\/EN\" \"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/TR\/REC-html40\/loose.dtd\">\n<html><body><span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Reading Time: <\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> 3<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minutes<\/span><\/span><style>.kadence-column120153_296e6e-dd > .kt-inside-inner-col,.kadence-column120153_296e6e-dd > .kt-inside-inner-col:before{border-top-left-radius:0px;border-top-right-radius:0px;border-bottom-right-radius:0px;border-bottom-left-radius:0px;}.kadence-column120153_296e6e-dd > .kt-inside-inner-col{column-gap:var(--global-kb-gap-sm, 1rem);}.kadence-column120153_296e6e-dd > .kt-inside-inner-col{flex-direction:column;}.kadence-column120153_296e6e-dd > .kt-inside-inner-col > .aligncenter{width:100%;}.kadence-column120153_296e6e-dd > .kt-inside-inner-col:before{opacity:0.3;}.kadence-column120153_296e6e-dd{position:relative;}@media all and (max-width: 1024px){.kadence-column120153_296e6e-dd > .kt-inside-inner-col{flex-direction:column;justify-content:center;}}@media all and (max-width: 767px){.kadence-column120153_296e6e-dd > .kt-inside-inner-col{flex-direction:column;justify-content:center;}}<\/style>\n<div class=\"wp-block-kadence-column kadence-column120153_296e6e-dd inner-column-1 qk-look-widget\"><div class=\"kt-inside-inner-col\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-ultimate-post-row ultp-block-eb5a3a  qk-main-wrap\"><div class=\"ultp-row-wrapper\"><div class=\"ultp-row-content\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-ultimate-post-column ultp-block-8445a7\"><div class=\"ultp-column-wrapper\"><style>.wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading120153_89267a-4a, .wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading120153_89267a-4a[data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading120153_89267a-4a\"]{text-align:center;font-size:20px;font-style:normal;}.wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading120153_89267a-4a mark.kt-highlight, .wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading120153_89267a-4a[data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading120153_89267a-4a\"] mark.kt-highlight{font-family:Inter;font-weight:500;font-style:normal;color:#f76a0c;-webkit-box-decoration-break:clone;box-decoration-break:clone;padding-top:0px;padding-right:0px;padding-bottom:0px;padding-left:0px;}.wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading120153_89267a-4a img.kb-inline-image, .wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading120153_89267a-4a[data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading120153_89267a-4a\"] img.kb-inline-image{width:150px;vertical-align:baseline;}<\/style>\n<div class=\"kt-adv-heading120153_89267a-4a summary-title wp-block-kadence-advancedheading\" data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading120153_89267a-4a\"><span>Summary<\/span><\/div>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Vertical acceleration is acceleration in a vertical, rather than horizontal, direction.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>To minimize the effects of vertical acceleration on vehicle drivers and passengers, manufacturers design their vehicle suspension systems to cushion the impact from the bumps and dips in the road.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>When an object moves parallel to the horizon, it&rsquo;s performing horizontal motion. When it moves perpendicular to the horizon, it&rsquo;s performing vertical motion. Vertical acceleration is acceleration in a direction perpendicular to the horizon.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Picture this: You&rsquo;re driving down the highway in your vehicle, well within the designated speed limit. All at once however, your vehicle&rsquo;s tires hit an unexpected bump in the road, and you and the vehicle&rsquo;s passengers all receive a small jolt in your seats. What you&rsquo;ve just experienced is called vertical acceleration, and your vehicle&rsquo;s suspension played a large part in minimizing its effects on you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Is Vertical Acceleration?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To put it simply, vertical acceleration is acceleration in a vertical direction. In the case of our imagined scenario, vertical acceleration occurred when your vehicle hit the bump in the road that caused it to briefly accelerate vertically.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Vertical Acceleration and Vehicle Suspension Systems<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In order to minimize the effects of vertical acceleration on vehicle drivers and passengers, manufacturers design their vehicle suspension systems to cushion the impact from the bumps and dips in the road. Springs and dampers absorb the kinetic energy released during vertical acceleration, protecting the people inside the vehicle from bouncing around as much as possible. In short, vehicle suspension systems reduce vertical acceleration to protect the people in the vehicle and maximize comfort while on the road. Here&rsquo;s how the different parts of the suspension system help manage vertical acceleration:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Springs<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.carparts.com\/coil-springs\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"Coil springs\">Coil springs<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.carparts.com\/leaf-spring\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"leaf springs\">leaf springs<\/a> absorb bumps and shocks whenever your vehicle&rsquo;s tires hit anything in their path. This helps keep the tires in contact with the road, reducing vertical acceleration for the whole vehicle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There&rsquo;s also the torsion spring, which is also known as the sway bar. This spring connects the suspension&rsquo;s lower control arms and twists to prevent the vehicle body from rolling. In other words, it keeps the vehicle level and prevents one side from vertically accelerating more than the other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Struts<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The vehicle&rsquo;s struts support the vehicle&rsquo;s weight and house the suspension system&rsquo;s shock absorbers and some of its springs. Struts are structural components. Without them, the other parts of the suspension system wouldn&rsquo;t be able to reduce vertical acceleration efficiently. Struts manage spring and suspension movement using hydraulic fluid to minimize vertical acceleration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Shock Absorbers<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Finally, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.carparts.com\/shock-absorber-and-strut-assembly\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"shock absorbers\">shock absorbers<\/a> serve to keep the springs contained, reducing rebound and controlling oscillation. They reduce vertical acceleration by dissipating the kinetic energy absorbed by the springs. Shock absorbers are also called dampers because they dampen the vibrations and other jolts as your vehicle&rsquo;s tires travel over the road.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Horizontal vs. Vertical Motion<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It&rsquo;s important to understand the difference between vertical acceleration and horizontal acceleration. Vertical acceleration has to do with vertical movement, while horizontal acceleration deals with horizontal movement. When an object moves parallel to the horizon, it&rsquo;s performing horizontal motion. As for the definition of vertical motion, it&rsquo;s when an object moves perpendicular to the horizon. A simpler way to view this is that vertical motion is simply upwards and downwards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Vertical acceleration is an interesting concept with a lot of nuances. It&rsquo;s especially important for vehicle manufacturers to take note of it when designing their vehicle suspension systems. For the everyday driver though, all you need to know is that when you hit a bump in the road, vertical acceleration occurs as you&rsquo;re jolted out of your seat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Reading Time: <\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> 3<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minutes<\/span><\/span>Picture this: You&rsquo;re driving down the highway in your vehicle, well within the designated speed limit. All at once however,&#8230; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.carparts.com\/blog\/what-is-vertical-acceleration-in-cars\/\" rel=\"nofollow\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":120439,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":true,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3768],"tags":[],"ppma_author":[2607,2985],"class_list":["post-120153","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-lifestyle","entry"],"acf":{"adrotate_specific_mobile_ad":"","adrotate_specific_desktop_ad":""},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>What Is Vertical Acceleration in Cars? - In The Garage with CarParts.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Vehicle manufacturers need to consider vertical acceleration when designing suspension systems. 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Guided by CarParts.com's thorough editorial process, our team strives to produce guides and resources DIYers and casual car owners can trust."},{"term_id":2985,"user_id":1646,"is_guest":0,"slug":"richardmccuistian","display_name":"Richard McCuistian, ASE Certified Master Automobile Technician","avatar_url":{"url":"https:\/\/www.carparts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/richard-mccuistian.png","url2x":"https:\/\/www.carparts.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/richard-mccuistian.png"},"author_category":"","user_url":"https:\/\/www.carparts.com\/blog\/author\/richardmccuistian\/","last_name":"McCuistian","first_name":"Richard","job_title":"ASE Certified Master Automobile Technician","description":"<div class=\"auth-social-links\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/richard-mccuistian-2681891b\/\" class=\"btn\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"linkedin\" aria-labelledby=\"linkedin\">LinkedIn<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/McCuistian\" class=\"btn\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"instagram\" aria-labelledby=\"instagram\">Youtube<\/a><\/div>\r\n\r\nRichard McCuistian grew up in Alabama learning from his father who ran an automotive repair shop. Richard has worked for nearly 50 years in the automotive field as a professional technician, an instructor, a freelance automotive writer for Motor Age, ACtion magazine, Power Stroke Registry, and others (published every year since May 2000). He has developed training courses and written or edited training material for companies in the U.S. Canada, and the Netherlands, and even Bulgaria. He maintained an \u201cask a mechanic\u201d website for 10 years answering questions emailed to him from all over the world.\r\n\r\nRichard has an instructional automotive YouTube channel \u201cMcCuistian\u201d with 13,500 subscribers and over 1,300 videos. Much of his professional work requires photography and videography in shop environments, but Richard also enjoys taking pictures of landscapes, skyscapes, old barns and houses, small towns. He has produced a coffee table book of digital watercolors called \u201cMemories of South Alabama\u201d created from his personal photos, along with a dozen Christian fiction short original novels and a collection of short stories, all available in Kindle or softcover format. Richard has written a 2,500-word Bible study every week for the past 20 years and uses it to teach a small group at his church every Sunday morning.\r\n\r\n<strong>Credentials:<\/strong>\r\n\r\n<ul class=\"author-list\">\r\n<li><p>ASE Certified for more than 30 years in 10 categories, including L1 Advanced Engine Performance and Light Vehicle Diesel.<\/p><\/li>\r\n<li><p>Professional Mechanic\/Technician for 25 years with experience on diesel and gasoline engines, vehicles and equipment (including hydraulics).<\/p><\/li>\r\n<li><p>Spent 5 years in fleet maintenance, 20 years in independent shops and dealerships (VW, Mazda, Renault, Jeep, Ford, Lincoln), specializing in driveability and electronics for the last 14 years of his career at the same dealership.<\/p><\/li>\r\n<li><p>Senior Contributing Editor at Motor Age Magazine, first published in Motor Age in May of 2000 and every year since. He has won two International Automotive Media Awards for technical articles published in trade magazines.<\/p><\/li>\r\n<li><p>Has attended hundreds of hours of automotive training from OEMs including GM, Volkswagen, Mazda, Renault, Jeep, Chrysler, as well as additional training at events like KC Vision and MACS (Mobile Air Climate Systems Association).<\/p><\/li>\r\n<li><p>Taught college level auto mechanics for 19 years.<\/p><\/li>\r\n<li><p>Has written for automotive training companies (including course development work for training companies in Canada and the Netherlands) and has been hired to teach professional trade show technician courses at multiple training events in Texas and Alabama.<\/p><\/li>\r\n<li><p>While still teaching at the college level, Richard launched a new automotive program in Geneva, Alabama, setting up a dual enrollment department in a new building, organizing the shop and classroom, teaching morning classes to high school students for 2 years while still teaching at the college in the afternoon.<\/p><\/li>\r\n<li><p>Richard\u2019s college program at Lurleen B. Wallace Community College worked at professional shop speed during his tenure to prepare graduates for production level work in the real world.<\/p><\/li>\r\n<\/ul>"}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.carparts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120153","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.carparts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.carparts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.carparts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.carparts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=120153"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.carparts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/120153\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.carparts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/120439"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.carparts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=120153"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.carparts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=120153"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.carparts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=120153"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.carparts.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=120153"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}