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I was thinking about this over coffee. Anybody who is considering spending $400 for the Macsboost kit could DIY this for next to nothing. I need somebody to confirm the relationship between the spacer thickness and the camber, but I don't have a refresh X. If anybody is in the Bay area I'd be down to shim and measure the camber and toe values so we can share the data freely.

Some notes:
- Another member has already confirmed the $400 shims are off the shelf 2.9mm (approx 1/8").
- Factory hardware appears to be M12

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To do this at home you will need four M12 (metric, so the nominal diameter is 12mm) washers, approx thickness of 3mm; 1/8" is a close standard equivalent. A correctly sized washer will work in pinch.

If we can measure the factory arm's flange, I can draw a simple square part that others can customize for their desired thickness, if they want to hit a target alignment. There are plenty of shops that will mill these for you

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Quick mock up with a non-standard thickness that I priced through Xometry. I quoted laser cut 6061 below but other materials are available for an additional cost. Grade 5 Titanium will double the price...to a whopping $11.

If you are happy with the alignment from the 1/8" thickness there is no reason to have a spacer machined.

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Of course, the cost goes way down with volume and we can do cool things like anodize or powdercoat. There are also other manufacturing options available with volume.

If none of these options speak to you grab some 1/8" stock, a hacksaw, and a drill!
 
Has anyone installed this on a 2024 X? I imagine it should work the same but just wanted to confirm. Where is the best place to buy the current kit? Also, can it be aligned at Tesla afterwards or needs to be done at another shop?

I can confirm the red shims from Thadeus Strong did work on my '24 Plaid X.

Just spent most of 6 hours and only got one side done. Started with both sides jacked up equally. Loosened, and later removed the 2 top and one bottom bolt, but couldn't get the bottom bolt all the way through. Then loosened the toe arm, then was able to get the bottom bolt in, but then had trouble with the toe arm.

Still need to set the toe, then see if I really want to do the other side. Thought for awhile I'd have to drive it with a loose bolt to get it aligned and let the shop finish my work.

I can't say I'd recommend this to anyone as a DIY.
 
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I wonder if where I went wrong was setting the air suspension height to max, then jack mode, then jacked the rear tires off the ground.
Strong's directions say to raise it enough to get the jack under. He also says for the red shims, to loosen the top bolts, add shims, tighten, then remove them one at a time and replace with longer bolts, to prevent shifting.

Guess I'll find out today.
 
I wonder if where I went wrong was setting the air suspension height to max, then jack mode, then jacked the rear tires off the ground.
Strong's directions say to raise it enough to get the jack under. He also says for the red shims, to loosen the top bolts, add shims, tighten, then remove them one at a time and replace with longer bolts, to prevent shifting.

Guess I'll find out today.
I used a lift, fully off the ground, high then jack mode. What do you mean bottom bolt? You just need to loosen the 2 upper control arm bolts you're shimming and the other 2 control arm bolts in front of those on the frame side, the toe arm doesn't need touched. It took me less than 10 mins per side with the wheel off. If you don't loosen the other control arm bolts, it would be much harder to try to pry the one you want to shim out far enough for shims.

After the wheel is off, the entire process is loosen 4 bolts, put the shims in, torque the 4 bolts. Optionally pre-adjust the toe after that to compensate.
 
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I wonder if where I went wrong was setting the air suspension height to max, then jack mode, then jacked the rear tires off the ground.
Strong's directions say to raise it enough to get the jack under. He also says for the red shims, to loosen the top bolts, add shims, tighten, then remove them one at a time and replace with longer bolts, to prevent shifting.

Guess I'll find out today.
Do you know the thickness of the reds? I wonder how close they are to 4.8mm
 
Interesting. The taller 5.5mm require aftermarket hardware but the 4.8mm do not. I'm interested in final readings on your reds once you get the car aligned. Curious how they compare to the 4.8mm, which looked very good.

It looked like the Tesla can be so crooked it's a crap shoot what you get ;) Nevertheless, an interesting crapshoot ;)

My guess is the bolt is that 5mm longer as there is space for it.
 
Got my alignment today. I thought it turned out pretty good. Apologies for the rain drops on the ink jet printout. :rolleyes:

This is with Strong's red shims. I had trouble installing them and one of the things I tried on the right that may have helped was to loosen the right toe adjustment 3 turns, but apparently I messed up counting 3 turns back, or my right toe was waaay off from the factory.

Also added lowering links just to the rear to even it out. Why lower just the rear? I had Blox Racing lowering links so infinite adjustment and I wasn't impressed by the quality, so they're close, but not measured with a micrometer. I might replace them later and lower it all the way around. If I go to that much work, I should probably add a bit more shim to the left rear to even it out more.

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This is my slightly tweaked version of N2itive's recommendation that I gave my alignment guy.

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Got my alignment today. I thought it turned out pretty good. Apologies for the rain drops on the ink jet printout. :rolleyes:

This is with Strong's red shims. I had trouble installing them and one of the things I tried on the right that may have helped was to loosen the right toe adjustment 3 turns, but apparently I messed up counting 3 turns back, or my right toe was waaay off from the factory.

Also added lowering links just to the rear to even it out. Why lower just the rear? I had Blox Racing lowering links so infinite adjustment and I wasn't impressed by the quality, so they're close, but not measured with a micrometer. I might replace them later and lower it all the way around. If I go to that much work, I should probably add a bit more shim to the left rear to even it out more.

View attachment 1039105


This is my slightly tweaked version of N2itive's recommendation that I gave my alignment guy.

View attachment 1039103

This looks similar to @bradthebold's results. My conversion might be off, but his toe is approx 0.19 degrees using the stock wheel diameter. Based on that, I think the move is to use a 4.8mm shim stack and reuse the OEM bolts
 
Anyone have a source for a shim taller than 6 mm?

... or a flat, anodized shim I can stack under my current shim? I want knock down my high side (-1.4°) to closer match the right rear, -1.1°. I'm going lower on the front so have a realign anyway.
 
So here’s my alignment sheet….

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2023 Model X LR w/ N2ITIVE lowering links set at -2 (Front) and -8 (Rear) + 15mm spacers front & rear + generic 1/8” (3mm) camber shims. @ngng 👀

I have already ordered the thicker Red shims w/ longer bolts from Secret EV Performance and think they will be better suited for my lowered and modified setup. 🤞🏻
 

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