ATV riders have a tendency to jump high and land hard and the PDS function is a perfect help to make it as smooth as possible 

Within every motorsport segment the search for the perfectly balanced chassis continues, sharpening the demands on all suppliers that want to take part of the racing industry. The ATV segment is no exception with heavy vehicles, high speeds and rough conditions pushing the suspension to its maximum.

It was here, out on the track, where the idea for a new type of shock absorber was born. Far too often our ATV test riders pushed it to the maximum resulting in a hard bottoming of the shock absorbers.

The solution to the problem was named PDS, Progressive Damping System, and was patented by Öhlins Racing in the mid 90´s.

Shock absorber with the PDS function. The second, smaller piston enters a cylinderat the end of the suspension travel with decreases the chance of bottoming. Without the PDS function (the  picture on the right) the chance of bottoming increases when landing hard.

The general idea was to insert an extra secondary piston above the primary piston that would enter a second cylinder in the top of the shock absorber at the end of the suspension travel. This would eliminate bottoming and guarantee a smother stop when landing hard on the track.