Thanks for the info - would you mind sharing pictures?
The big problem with the stock suspension is not the springs or even the ride height which of course isn't really great from a number of perspectives it's the stock shocks. Older years had particularly problematic valving with high compression and flaccid rebound. Plus the bump stops were prematurely recruited so you got essentially jacking of the inside wheel. All of those issues are impossible to rectify with just springs. I understand the compelling cost logic, but almost everybody that's done Springs and compared that with a good coilover set has pretty much said these are not comparable and their results are far better when they did the full coilover kit. The MPP kits literally transformed our cars.
The big surprise for us was how much particularly the Comfort adjustable coilovers on my wife's car improved it as a daily driver. Far more comfortable ride. And with significant Improvement in handling too. That's the thing - a properly done coilover kit can give you much better ride, with somewhat better handling or much better handling with somewhat better ride. In any case the car is a whole lot more enjoyable. And also ended my wife complaining about any tweaking of the cars. Her new position is "keep pimping out the car"!
I've never had those issues you mentioned with my shocks so maybe I lucked out. I also have never felt my bump stops prematurely recruited. I guess it also depends on the roads one drives on plus individual driving styles. Bottomline for me after years with springs only is that I've never felt any need to pull them out and replace with coilovers as they perfectly suit my needs. My guess is that the MPP comforts would be better than my stock shock + Eibach springs set up but since I am perfectly happy with what I have I am glad I didn't spend the extra money out of the gate on coilovers. With respect to the stock shocks, I cannot pinpoint it right now but seem to recall that MPP once mentioned they are not bad. Maybe there's inconsistency and some are delivered by the factory as horrible and some good, not sure. So to answer the question of whether coilovers are a good idea - absolutely yes but at the same time many have stated they are perfectly happy with their spring only setups.
For sure if you're happy with your car there is absolutely no reason to change anything. Most of the difficulties with the shocks and with the recruitment of the bump stops under high loads are not seen unless you're tracking your car or you're going over extremely bad road surfaces. Tesla has improved the stock shock performance in the new cars, the Highland models, apparently have gotten some additional improvements in control over low frequency versus high frequency oscillation.
It's also a case of you don't know what you don't know. I'd guess that if you went with MPP comforts you'd notice it a little bit, but after a month or two, if you went back to stock, you'd instantly know just how crappy the stock setup is.
My bet is on your front upper control arm ball joints. Common issue in all Model 3s.
Another thing that might be a possibility to consider is after you lower the car, will you be able to dial in the proper alignment that won't accelerate unnecessary or abnormal tire wear. I believe I read some people felt additional camber-related parts were required to get that dialed in correctly. Something to consider that might add to the cost of springs.
Aligning a Tesla is like aligning any other car...take your car else where like a performance shop that likes to work on modified cars...once you have a proper alignment tire wear isn't an issue.
I understand that but many shops don't. You found one that didn't. I'm relaying my personal experience living in a fairly large city. A few shops turned me away. I finally found a shop to do it. They opened it up and then put it back together and sent me home. I took it to an expensive Mercedes dealer who claimed they could do it. They couldn't get it right. This thread is about informing people on what to expect and I fully expect that more people than not will have trouble getting a lowered model 3 aligned. It's doable but it's a hassle. Just one more headache to add to the list of things when trying to lower this car. It may be different in places like SoCal.
I empathize with your headaches around alignment but we've been able to find a couple of really first-rate shops in our area. I suspect Mountain Pass performance knows installers and alignment shops in a lot of area so if you reach out to Jesse you might get a recommendation. And their coilover kits are for sure the cure for the stock suspension. Isn't Western PA also the home of the Killer pothole? I bent a couple of rims coming back from Florida through pennsylvania, hitting a pothole about the size of milwaukee. I have PTSD like experiences now driving in PA after that!
Very true about you don't know what you don't know. I'm guessing you are right about noticing some improvement with MPP Comfort coilovers but the question each person needs to ask themselves is whether the ride quality difference is worth the money. For sure some say yes and some may say no depending on very individual circumstances. Having come from owning quite a few different cars and always modifying their suspensions, I can't justify paying more for a coilover set-up under my current contentment with the setup I have. The other thing is that QC on these cars is not the best so I am fairly sure some people will get factory shocks that are crap from the start and some might get better ones. The ones getting the crap will notice way more of a difference for any coilover upgrade as they are replacing a poor QC's shock.
Completely agree. If someone is not tracking their car and street use only but want a cosmetic upgrade without ruining the stock ride, then springs could be a good solution. Why pay $2k when springs will meet your needs.
