Sprung vs Un-Sprung Weight vs Ride Quality

I developed a suspension system computer model (way back in the days when everyone just had to have the latest abacus) which gave pretty convincing evidence that the more unspung mass (in relation to spung mass) the harsher the ride. Mathmatically, the energy tranferance from the road to the unsprung mass served to amplify the effect on the sprung mass as it was tranfered thru the suspension. That was a major part of the reasoning used when they went to IFS in passenger cars. We ran a bunch of tests on the track that pretty well tracked the model - you would be surprised what the tar strips on a concrete highway will do to you if hit at exactly the right speed.