02 GP-GT suspension question

[JRTBandit]

Was wondering if anyone can give some advise as to what is going on.
I picked up a 02 a few months ago and to me the ride is very hard when you hit holes and bumps. One of the things is the dealer put on new tires on the car and naturally they are the cheapest tires you can buy, not sure if there is even a name on them. The car has 50,000k on it, but when I go around a turn like an off ramp and you hit a little bump in the road the car gets air and skips/shifts over a bit. Would this be struts?
The car has 50,000 on it, we have an 2000 GT with 63,000 and the ride is so much better but that car has Eagle GT's on it. I know with tires it can affect the ride, and even though the ride is hard it's shouldn't skip/shift as you round a turn.
Another the thing that has me confused is I pushed down on both cars and the 02 (with the hard ride) is much stiffer than the 2000 (with the smooth ride) I would think it's the other way around.

Thanks,
Confused

[richtazz]

IF the rear end feels like it's going to come around when you hit a bump mid corner, you may need an alignment or have a blown out rear strut. IF the strut is the culprit, that would make it ride rough also. That doesn't rule out cheap tires (check the inflation pressure too). The number on the sidewall is a MAXIMUM pressure, not recommended pressure. If they had some lot monkey do the car prep, your tires could be dangerously overinflated.

[JRTBandit]

Originally Posted by richtazz

IF the rear end feels like it's going to come around when you hit a bump mid corner, you may need an alignment or have a blown out rear strut. IF the strut is the culprit, that would make it ride rough also. That doesn't rule out cheap tires (check the inflation pressure too). The number on the sidewall is a MAXIMUM pressure, not recommended pressure. If they had some lot monkey do the car prep, your tires could be dangerously overinflated.

Thanks Rich, once I get motivated to go outside I will check it... It's raining pretty hard here (raining in Chicago in Jan???). I didn't bounce the back end so I will check that as well.
I should really jack it up and check for fluid leakage. If a strut is blown will there always be fluid leaking?