Comfort Suspension Not Much of an Improvement

[Midnightsun]

IMHO I chose a great option going with the MYLR and adding Acceleration boost for a little more oomph. You end up with a better ride when it comes to comfort. The difference in power definitely goes to the MYP however there is really not that great of a difference as can be seen here. The 19" stock wheels are more comfortable which I use for winter tires and bought myself a set of 18" wheels for summer use to further improve the ride. Don't have to deal with MYP staggered tires that one cannot rotate which will wear out much faster and cost more to replace each time around.

 

[GoVols!]

IMHO I chose a great option going with the MYLR and adding Acceleration boost for a little more oomph. You end up with a better ride when it comes to comfort. The difference in power definitely goes to the MYP however there is really not that great of a difference as can be seen here. The 19" stock wheels are more comfortable which I use for winter tires and bought myself a set of 18" wheels for summer use to further improve the ride. Don't have to deal with MYP staggered tires that one cannot rotate which will wear out much faster and cost more to replace each time around.

Do you notice a dog with the 18” vs 19”? I test drove the LR with 20” and is was definitely harsh over imperfections. As daily run around car, it might get old. Granted based on others here; the tire pressure was probably at the recommended psi which doesn’t help matters.

 

[jcanoe]

Well, according to Chinese owner's manual of the MY, the ground clearance is 15 mm (almost 2/3") lower on the MYP. The "ride" or "coil" height are 17mm front and 16mm rear lower for MYP.

Kinda splitting hairs here I guess.

For the rear, the suspension parts themselves is actually even shorter, because the factory rear tires are bigger than the front, adding almost 7mm of sidewall. So, 16 + 7 is 23mm, or just about an inch. Can't say I know how it plays into all the dynamics of spirited driving, but I'd guess at the very least, the rear is gonna be stiffer.

That makes for odd changes to the "rake" of the car. From LR to P with factory wheels/tires, it gains slightly more positive rake. The front points down more, because the rear didn't drop as much (-17 front vs -16 mm rear height, so miniscule difference). But if you then put on a square wheel/tire setup it actually becomes less positively raked than the LR as the rear will drop an additional 7mm (-17 vs -23, does it become negatively raked?).

Wait, going square means the motors now spin 1:1 (front:rear) while it was different with the staggered wheels. Hum... what does that do to the computer?

On a side note, the China version of the manual is more informative than the US version. It has some motor specs (outdated?) and alignment values.

Early on there was sparse information available re the Performance Model Y ride height. One source stated the PMY was 1.1 inch lower than the LRMY. Someone later pointed out in a post on TMC that a full 1 inch lowering would be a huge amount to lower a vehicle, suspected the original reference was actually in cm, not inches. 1.1cm (0.43 inch)would be a respectable lowering for improved handling. I don't know anything about any of the Model Y made in China.

 

[HonchoNI]

Maybe a loose suspension part?

I had an issue with my 2010 Honda Fit at one point... it turned out to be a loose nut on top of the strut. Wouldn't feel anything, but definitely hear a clunk on bumps.

I've checked so many things and it could be what you have suggested. I can not see any play in any of the other suspension components. The other possibilities are loose drive shafts where they go into the diff, too much backlash in the differential or headlight internals rattling.

It seems not many others are hearing this noise on a MYP? I tested another one in my local SC built at nearly the exact same time and it was the same. Just trying to figure out if I have a car that was built during a bad batch of components. Any insight from other owners would be appreciated.

 

[GoVols!]

Test drive UPDATE! I was fortunate to test drive the MYP and the MYLR-(20" wheel option only) back to back taking them on the exact same route for almost 40mins each. I went in with low exceptions the 21" wheels on the MYP would cut it for daily driving. I was expecting harsh, bumpy and overly stiff suspension. Well, I was 100% wrong. I looked for every little pothole, broken and patched pavement I could find on my normal day to day drive and was stunned. We even took it to my kids school over the annoying speed bumps and "believe or not" was a slight improvement over my wife's X3 non-adaptive suspension "spring only". The throttle response felt slightly smoother "more responsive" compared to the MYLR as well. The biggest difference is how much more planted the MYP is. We felt much less body roll 'almost none' anytime we went over bumps or any other road imperfections. The LR seems to wallow much more making us feel a little sick. We did not experience this in the MYP.

I have read on here that the suspension is different but apparently after talking to one of the Tesla service guys, Tesla is using comfort suspension in all the new MYP's. Please only counter this if you know for absolute certainty this is untrue. Regardless, I went in hoping for the opposite outcome and now I have no reservations about ordering the MYP and will eventually either square up the tires to 275/35-21 or 265/40-21 front and 295/40-21 rear. I was a little disappointed to be honest here, I really wanted to order the LR but I just can't get over how much nicer the MYP drives.

Now, we are debating between grey or red exterior and most likely getting the black interior even though we live in the dang south and a bit worried the black seats will be heat conductors that never cool down enough. My kids Volks Tiguan has the black pleather seats and I won't even get in it during the summer. She uses a beach towel to cover them. Nice bonus about the black seats vs. white, it won't look destroyed after a few years from all our sweaty clothes coming back from hiking, mtn biking and most of all, hot yoga from my wife. lol!

FYI: both of them were very quiet and we thought the stereo sounded great, better than my wife's HK in the bimmer.

 

[Eto Demerzel]

I just test drove a new MYLR with the 21” wheels. My biggest concerns are the rear collision and lack of blind spot. In fast busy traffic “i40” looking down at the screen takes your eyes off the road and by the time you look again, a motorcycle,etc. could be in your blind spot as it only takes a split second for this to happen. The rear glass is very small and tough to see the corners even with the mirrors properly adjusted. Something else was unusual I haven’t experienced with my my wife’s car, is that the MY AP would move me the car to the right or slow down anytime I came up to a vehicle on my left side and the wheel makes you turn the steering wheel to the right slightly so it knows you’re paying attention, while every other car just has you put your hands on the wheel. Not sure I like turning my wheel every 5mins. to keep AP active. The ride is great on smooth roads. Very quiet and relaxing, however it’s absolutely horrible over small road patches, potholes,etc at slower speeds. I find it tosses your head around when making turns over road edges, patches as well. The seat bottoms seem pretty narrow as well unless you’re built like a thin mint. This was not a deal breaker as it wasn’t so bad and the seat overall was pretty comfortable. Now that Elon just raised up the price $2k because of the Govt rebate price restriction that we don’t qualify for, it puts a bad taste in our mouth.

It took us a good week of regular use to get used to the Y. It really is distracting at first because it's so different than other cars and the lack of familiarity can get frustrating.
Once you get over that, and get comfortable with the UI, I far prefer it. It's really easy to live with and I really like how clean and, oddly, not distracted I am. Using voice for some features is nice too.
The rear glass is the worst view, but you can have the cameras on all the time if you want. Gives a good view all around the back and blind spots while driving.
I'm on 19s so can't comment on the 21s.

 

[cab]

Test drive UPDATE! I was fortunate to test drive the MYP and the MYLR-(20" wheel option only) back to back taking them on the exact same route for almost 40mins each. I went in with low exceptions the 21" wheels on the MYP would cut it for daily driving. I was expecting harsh, bumpy and overly stiff suspension. Well, I was 100% wrong. I looked for every little pothole, broken and patched pavement I could find on my normal day to day drive and was stunned. We even took it to my kids school over the annoying speed bumps and "believe or not" was a slight improvement over my wife's X3 non-adaptive suspension "spring only". The throttle response felt slightly smoother "more responsive" compared to the MYLR as well. The biggest difference is how much more planted the MYP is. We felt much less body roll 'almost none' anytime we went over bumps or any other road imperfections. The LR seems to wallow much more making us feel a little sick. We did not experience this in the MYP.

I have read on here that the suspension is different but apparently after talking to one of the Tesla service guys, Tesla is using comfort suspension in all the new MYP's. Please only counter this if you know for absolute certainty this is untrue. Regardless, I went in hoping for the opposite outcome and now I have no reservations about ordering the MYP and will eventually either square up the tires to 275/35-21 or 265/40-21 front and 295/40-21 rear. I was a little disappointed to be honest here, I really wanted to order the LR but I just can't get over how much nicer the MYP drives.

Now, we are debating between grey or red exterior and most likely getting the black interior even though we live in the dang south and a bit worried the black seats will be heat conductors that never cool down enough. My kids Volks Tiguan has the black pleather seats and I won't even get in it during the summer. She uses a beach towel to cover them. Nice bonus about the black seats vs. white, it won't look destroyed after a few years from all our sweaty clothes coming back from hiking, mtn biking and most of all, hot yoga from my wife. lol!

FYI: both of them were very quiet and we thought the stereo sounded great, better than my wife's HK in the bimmer.

Great observations and test drive.. Just a little clarification on the suspension(s). The performance is definitely a different suspension than the regular cars (and accounts for the majority of the delta you observed) - note: the part numbers ARE different. However, the latest versions of BOTH the regular and performance suspensions are softer than their predecessors as best I can tell. As you can see from my second performance comments, our observations mirror yours to a great degree...and pushed us to change our order to the MYP.

Oh and yeah, get the red. I agonized over getting the red for our older Model S back in 2016 (you can even find my threads on here about it). Zero regrets getting it then. Almost went for the blue this time, but red won out again!

 

[Pianewman]

1)ratch posted, Monday Feb. 3, 2023: "So I’m literally in a Tesla Center now and gave a tech (not a sales cat) the gist of this thread and the whole old v new suspension etc. He said they’ve not changed the springs or dampers on the Y ever - the ‘comfort’ update they made was a control arm tweak."

2)Go Vols says," ...I have read on here that the suspension is different but apparently after talking to one of the Tesla service guys, Tesla is using comfort suspension in all the new MYP's. Please only counter this if you know for absolute certainty this is untrue. Regardless, I went in hoping for the opposite outcome and now I have no reservations about ordering the MYP and will eventually either square up the tires to 275/35-21 or 265/40-21 front and 295/40-21 rear. I was a little disappointed to be honest here, I really wanted to order the LR but I just can't get over how much nicer the MYP drives."


Interesting. I'm NOT dismissing your post, GoVols, just pointing out that, until someone is able to post part numbers, we still don't have a definitive answer.

 

[GoVols!]

1)ratch posted, Monday Feb. 3, 2023: "So I’m literally in a Tesla Center now and gave a tech (not a sales cat) the gist of this thread and the whole old v new suspension etc. He said they’ve not changed the springs or dampers on the Y ever - the ‘comfort’ update they made was a control arm tweak."

2)Go Vols says," ...I have read on here that the suspension is different but apparently after talking to one of the Tesla service guys, Tesla is using comfort suspension in all the new MYP's. Please only counter this if you know for absolute certainty this is untrue. Regardless, I went in hoping for the opposite outcome and now I have no reservations about ordering the MYP and will eventually either square up the tires to 275/35-21 or 265/40-21 front and 295/40-21 rear. I was a little disappointed to be honest here, I really wanted to order the LR but I just can't get over how much nicer the MYP drives."


Interesting. I'm NOT dismissing your post, GoVols, just pointing out that, until someone is able to post part numbers, we still don't have a definitive answer.

No worries at all, I have zero idea what to look for in these “updated” suspension systems to compare them until they are pulled apart or like you said getting “part numbers”. If all they did was put in better control arms to increase ride quality, well it worked. I would be just as curious to see what exactly was changed.

I will say again, the MYP vs MYLR was a noticeable difference realized by me and my passengers. The lack of body roll is the most obvious from the MYP and oddly enough it just felt slightly more comfortable over road imperfections. On the highway is also felt smoother. I can only imagine 19” would be much better at absorbing road imperfections but worried it would increase body roll with more sidewall flex. Granted, the 20 and 21” shouldn’t significant enough difference for me to notice how much better it the MYP is.

 

[cab]

1)ratch posted, Monday Feb. 3, 2023: "So I’m literally in a Tesla Center now and gave a tech (not a sales cat) the gist of this thread and the whole old v new suspension etc. He said they’ve not changed the springs or dampers on the Y ever - the ‘comfort’ update they made was a control arm tweak."

2)Go Vols says," ...I have read on here that the suspension is different but apparently after talking to one of the Tesla service guys, Tesla is using comfort suspension in all the new MYP's. Please only counter this if you know for absolute certainty this is untrue. Regardless, I went in hoping for the opposite outcome and now I have no reservations about ordering the MYP and will eventually either square up the tires to 275/35-21 or 265/40-21 front and 295/40-21 rear. I was a little disappointed to be honest here, I really wanted to order the LR but I just can't get over how much nicer the MYP drives."


Interesting. I'm NOT dismissing your post, GoVols, just pointing out that, until someone is able to post part numbers, we still don't have a definitive answer.

Hmmm, given that there are MULTIPLE dampers listed in the online catalog - epc.tesla.com - it seems they have changed something. Admittedly, they could have changed numbers for some other reason, but it seems unlikely. As an example, here are the rear damper (aka shock) part #s:

Regular Dual Motor:
1188463-00-D
1188463-00-E <== the 2023 MYLR I drove had either this or a "-F" version which I don't see in the catalog...my pic is a little blurry...I think it is "E"

Performance:
1188465-00-D
1188465-00-E
1188465-00-F <== the 2023 MYP I drove had this rear shock (took a picture)

(note: there are also dampers listed for the RWD and what I presume is the standard range car as well). The front struts have similar part number progressions. My recommendation to folks is simple: poke your head under there and see what part number your shocks and struts have on the sticker now. At least you have a data point if nothing else.

There are a couple of different lower link versions listed (front suspension) but only one upper control arm (although it is a "-J" version).

 

[cab]

To be clear, the standard comfort suspension is still "smoother" overall with less impact harshness than the performance suspension , but the rebound of the standard comfort suspension is less controlled which accounts for the "wallow" GoVols! experienced over bumps and I noted in my post above as "The MYP had constant movement because of the “too stiff” compression, whereas the MYLR kept moving because the rebound is underdamped. On the freeway that translated to a bit too much uuuuupppp/dooooown....sure to be appreciated by parents of kids subject to motion sickness. Not terrible, but still a flaw."

Please note the REAR SEAT experience is worse than the front in both cars...worth test-riding back there if you will regularly have folks there.

 

[Wattsisname]

Yeah that's why most of us put up with the shortcomings of Teslas...because the positives carry more weight. Ohlin makes a kit, then you have other vendors like unplugged performance, mountain pass performance, and redwood. Only problem is Tesla SC is known to deny warranty if aftermarket parts are even remotely related to the issue.

See Ryan Shaw Tech Youtube channel. Very good Tesla/EV's in general reporting. Ryan had a warranty issue over a change to coil-overs even though the warranty claim was quite remote from and not caused by the suspension change.

Warranty claiming is the only part of the Tesla owning process where I might miss the dealer; in my experience (particularly with BMW) the dealer principal has been a good customer advocate for getting things fixed under warranty or goodwill.

I guess if we want our warranty to be honoured without quibble, we have to be audibly squeaky clean, otherwise, "computer says no!"

 

[nate704]

If any aftermarket parts are related to the problems, Tesla doesn't have to honor that specific parts warranty. For example, Tesla will not deny the warranty claim for the screen issues with the aftermarket suspension kit. However, Tesla will/should deny the warranty claim for your ball joints if you have the aftermarket coil overs.

 

[Gideon9028]

This is what I have been hearing more lately.

 

[Goobers]

See Ryan Shaw Tech Youtube channel. Very good Tesla/EV's in general reporting. Ryan had a warranty issue over a change to coil-overs even though the warranty claim was quite remote from and not caused by the suspension change.

Warranty claiming is the only part of the Tesla owning process where I might miss the dealer; in my experience (particularly with BMW) the dealer principal has been a good customer advocate for getting things fixed under warranty or goodwill.

I guess if we want our warranty to be honoured without quibble, we have to be audibly squeaky clean, otherwise, "computer says no!"

The problem with that video is that he rented out his Tesla. Sometime during one of the rentals, some one decided to have some fun with it, or conversely had an accident and information wasn’t passed back to him. The fault fully was on the customer. And if Tesla knew that, they would for sure deny warranty. And they should.

But as far as Tesla was concerned, they had no idea of such a thing occurring (since they have no basis of suspecting a customer of lying) and coilovers were spotted. Were they the actual “cause?” No, but it is a suspension part and related enough. He said installation is impossible to mess up, but people do mess up, by doing unnecessary things sometimes.

Hopefully, he really has learned his lesson and inspects the vehicle every time he rents it out.

TL;DR Ryan messed up.

 

[cab]

Speaking of Ryan Shaw, he put the Unplugged Performance dampers on his older Model Y and while it was improved, I got the impression it wasn't as much of an improvement as he hoped for. Conversely, he indicates he latest Model Y (on the Geminis) rides much better and he now has no real complaints. He was an October delivery I think and I wonder if he actually does have the latest suspension. Can one of you guys drive over to his house and check? Fun story, after I test drove the Model Y I stayed outside a bit and got down on the ground to try to take a pic of the suspension stickers...One of the Tesla employees was coming back from lunch and saw me and was like "Um Hello. Are you OK, can I help you?!". These are the challenges my wife lives with being married to a "car guy".

 

[arbitrage000]

Speaking of Ryan Shaw, he put the Unplugged Performance dampers on his older Model Y and while it was improved, I got the impression it wasn't as much of an improvement as he hoped for. Conversely, he indicates he latest Model Y (on the Geminis) rides much better and he now has no real complaints. He was an October delivery I think and I wonder if he actually does have the latest suspension. Can one of you guys drive over to his house and check? Fun story, after I test drove the Model Y I stayed outside a bit and got down on the ground to try to take a pic of the suspension stickers...One of the Tesla employees was coming back from lunch and saw me and was like "Um Hello. Are you OK, can I help you?!". These are the challenges my wife lives with being married to a "car guy".

His was before October. His video about getting it was posted September 22nd. So he doesn't have this latest "comfort suspension" which started Oct 7th. Just goes to show there have been more than one suspension change to MY over the years. In the delivery video for his 2022 MY Ryan even says his insider contact at Tesla told him the MY has had 4-5 suspension changes since it first came out.

 

[GBMaryland]

For what it’s worth:

I just pulled out my 20 inch Uber turbine M3P wheels which were at 42 psi and the difference between the 21 inch wheels in these wheels is day and night.

I can actually hit imperfections in the road and not get my head smashed by the nonadjustable head cushion.

while I still think I might want to put the MPP suspension on the car… With the 20 inch wheels there’s really no good reason to do it.

 

[enemji]

For what it’s worth:

I just pulled out my 20 inch Uber turbine M3P wheels which were at 42 psi and the difference between the 21 inch wheels in these wheels is day and night.

I can actually hit imperfections in the road and not get my head smashed by the nonadjustable head cushion.

while I still think I might want to put the MPP suspension on the car… With the 20 inch wheels there’s really no good reason to do it.

Nothing beats a 18” with Performance suspension.

 

[vickh]

Any TSLA Insiders confirm "Tesla's rush to build a ton of cars from the price drop, they could be mixing in old parts."

I'm still debating a used X over new Y and air suspension would be a major + with X, if Y comfort is similar to my 3