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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!
 
I got mine put in today. It was easier than I thought it would be even. I put the 3mm shims in first and with a level/angle gauge on the tire, it looks like I was around 1.6-1.8° of camber. I took them out and put the 4.8mm ones in and got around 1.4-1.6°, assuming my measuring is close.

The instructions on page 6 are good. Loosen these 2 bolts on the other control arm in front

ENAoLqDl.jpg


Then you can loosen 1 of the upper control arm bolts and take the other one out. Then you can easily by hand pry/rotate the arm out of the way to fit the shim in. Then replace the bolt and do the other one. Then torque all 4 bolts. The toe arm bolts don't need loosened. I did add 3/4 of the turn CW to the toe adjuster based on macsboost instructions.

AgaUVD2l.jpg


DfbDlxHl.jpg


You can barely tell once they're in.
The stock bolts are very long, I don't know where the 6 threads things came from. These pics are with the 4.8mm shim in and the threads just engaged. With the shim, there are still 13 threads plus the 1 that's already engaged, almost a full inch, holding these arms on. Even with the 6mm shims, that's less than 1/16" more, you would still have a dozen threads and 7/8" bolt. There is no way that more than that is required. I have longer bolts but felt no need to use them.

YuBiYApl.jpg


6kW6KATl.jpg
 
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I got mine put in today. It was easier than I thought it would be even. I put the 3mm shims in first and with a level/angle gauge on the tire, it looks like I was around 1.6-1.8° of camber. I took them out and put the 4.8mm ones in and got around 1.4-1.6°, assuming my measuring is close.

The instructions on page 6 are good. Loosen these 2 bolts on the other control arm in front

ENAoLqDl.jpg


Then you can loosen 1 of the upper control arm bolts and take the other one out. Then you can easily by hand pry/rotate the arm out of the way to fit the shim in. Then replace the bolt and do the other one. Then torque all 4 bolts. The toe arm bolts don't need loosened. I did add 3/4 of the turn CW to the toe adjuster based on macsboost instructions.

AgaUVD2l.jpg


DfbDlxHl.jpg


You can barely tell once they're in.
The stock bolts are very long, I don't know where the 6 threads things came from. These pics are with the 4.8mm shim in and the threads just engaged. With the shim, there are still 13 threads plus the 1 that's already engaged, almost a full inch, holding these arms on. Even with the 6mm shims, that's less than 1/16" more, you would still have a dozen threads and 7/8" bolt. There is no way that more than that is required. I have longer bolts but felt no need to use them.

YuBiYApl.jpg


6kW6KATl.jpg

Were those mine, or did you make them yourself? I might put together another set of thicker shims with hardware
 
Nice! After seeing people use these I am thinking about revising the design to include a slot on one end so you don't need to completely remove the bolt
I feel like it would be harder to do without removing the bolt. Without it in, that whole ear swings out of the way and you can slip the shim in. I think you'd have to do more awkward prying if that side of the arm was fixed.
 
bQW4odEl.jpg


Got my alignment, they just set the toe. I lowered it 3/4-1" and used the 4.8mm shims in the back. Front camber was good, rear ended up at 1.3-1.4°. Rear toe was pretty close giving the adjuster 3/4 turn clockwise. Front toe was way off, they were both pointed right. I went with slightly toe out in the front and a little toe in for the rear.
 
bQW4odEl.jpg


Got my alignment, they just set the toe. I lowered it 3/4-1" and used the 4.8mm shims in the back. Front camber was good, rear ended up at 1.3-1.4°. Rear toe was pretty close giving the adjuster 3/4 turn clockwise. Front toe was way off, they were both pointed right. I went with slightly toe out in the front and a little toe in for the rear.

These look really good. Slightly more toe than I'd like in the rear but for the price, the results are excellent. I actually want to walk back on my original statement that aftermarket toe arms are needed.
 
These look really good. Slightly more toe than I'd like in the rear but for the price, the results are excellent. I actually want to walk back on my original statement that aftermarket toe arms are needed.
Ugh, I did not convert the degrees while there. I asked for 0.1° rear toe in. Since it started at 1/32", that should be possible.

I called him and he said an extra 1/10 of a degree shouldn't hurt anything or cause wear and should help more under acceleration.

And this is on an S. Not sure what differences there would be for an X.
 
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Ugh, I did not convert the degrees while there. I asked for 0.1° rear toe in. Since it started at 1/32", that should be possible.

I called him and he said an extra 1/10 of a degree shouldn't hurt anything or cause wear and should help more under acceleration.

And this is on an S. Not sure what differences there would be for an X.

Most shops aren't going to spend the time to dial in anything less than 1/8. When I do my own alignments I target 1/16, but that takes time.
 
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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?
 
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?

It's already aligned to Tesla's specs, so you want to get it aligned somewhere where you can request tighter specs that will wear the tires less.

The red and silver shims come from the Tesla Plaid Facebook channel.