An active damper is provided for a motor vehicle including a sprung mass, an unsprung mass coupled thereto and at least one wheel and tire combination coupled to the unsprung mass such that road terrain movement acting on the at least one wheel and tire combination along a z-axis induces movement of the unsprung mass along the z-axis which, in turn, induces movement of the sprung mass along the z-axis. The active damper may include a housing configured to be mounted to the unsprung mass, a damper mass received within the housing and movable relative to the housing, and an actuator configured to be responsive to a drive signal to cause the damper mass to move within the housing so as to cancel, or at least reduce, movement of the unsprung mass resulting from the road terrain movement.