The harshness is largely due to Load D 14" tires IMO, with very stiff
sidewalls and high pressures needed to carry the rated weight in that
small size.

If you go to a 15" or 16" you can get tires rated to carry that weight
but with softer sidewalls and lower pressures.

I like 215/65/16 as there are MANY tires in 98 and quite a few in 102.
To get 102 they need to be XL in that size. That is what I have on 2 of
my vans. These XL tires reach their max weight rating at only 41 or 42
psi, but can usually hold up to 50 or 51 psi if desired. These are about
5% larger than stock rolling circumference. Both the vans I have them on
have stock wbx engine 2.1 and I find that increase in tire size acceptable.

I wrote a bunch more but then decided it was too much.

Mark