If Tesla made air suspension a premium, separately priced, option on the Model Y it will be a money maker. Tesla could continue to offer the standard suspension on the Model Y.
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Ride Quality of Tesla Model Y
- Thread starter Itzdpk
- Start date
so why bother with laminated windows, auto dimming side mirrors, USB stick and ports, upcoming upgrade headlights. Hell, why even bother making software updates?
isn’t this the whole reason why we love Tesla?
why would it be non trivial tasks? Sandy already confirmed the space is there. The tech and parts already exist in ms and my. In other manufacturers, upgrading to adaptive suspension is a $1000-1500 option. I would gladly pay for that price for ride comfort.
akballow
Member
It is pretty nontrival. All the suspension needs to be replaced, metal braided air cable and tanks need to be installed. All the electronics as well. trival would be like replacing a headlight or external speaker. Even the tow hitch is considered above trivial.
I don't think those add a significant increase in cost to the car. I would have ticked the option box if it was available but I just don't think Tesla can do it at this point in time. Maybe once Giga Texas opens? Enough people have to tick the box for it to be worth it for Tesla to offer it. I know many are just getting the base car with the 19s and no autopilot.
As someone already pointed out Tesla might have made some improvements on the suspension since the Y first came out. Most folks who commented on the stiff ride also didn't give us info on whether their experiences were based on the original Y or one of the newer ones. The CR car above was purchased a while ago.
A lot more than that. You need to also carry stock to repair cars with this option for a decade or more, add systems to the assembly line to install them, train workers and repair personal on the systems, etc. All of this costs money that could be used elsewhere.
And Tesla is all about reducing production costs with things like stamping out frames at once, Installing the batteries in the chassis. reducing the amount of wiring, etc. Goes back to the Alien Dreadnought concept that Elon is pushing, where cars are standardized and assembly is largely automated. As Elon has said, they are building the machine that builds the machines.
My guess is if Tesla does add hydraulic suspension of some sort it will be for every car as part of the standard equipment.
I still don't know if I truly believe this yet. I don't see superseded replacement suspension part numbers in the Tesla parts catalog. If the suspension has been updated, any replacements to early VINs due to defect, wear or accident, would mean Tesla would have to either keep the original spec suspension available indefinitely in warehouse stock, or would have to wholesale replace all the suspension components on early VINs when any single component on an individual wheel needed to be replaced, since you can't have a "softer" damper/spring rate on one wheel, and a different rate on another.
Can we once and for all determine if there is truly a later production suspension difference? Honestly, I'd rather change out my early VIN with factory suspension components to improve the ride vs. aftermarket.
akballow
Member
same
Member
I ordered the coil overs from Unplugged.....can't wait, but I'm 4 weeks in to a 7 week lead time.
I test drove the MYP and didn't notice an overly firm ride, but I prefer handling over cushiness. Now I'm concerned that the MY with the 19" tires might be too soft for my liking.... Hopefully I can drive one of those before I order next month. My current ride is a 2014 Maxda CX-5 with 19" tires that I generally keep at 36 psi as I like the handling. They appear to be lower profile than the 19" tires on the MY.
Regarding the air suspension - it seems to me that Tesla is going to prioritize getting a new S/X out with the new battery pack design before making any major changes to the 3/Y. Sales of S/X are pretty low right now as I think folks are anticipating a redesign with the new architecture. Not sure why they would upgrade their mass market cars with features that would potentially cannibalize sales of their more luxurious (and assumedly higher-profit) cars. This goes for the new battery architecture as well. S/X first (and CT) then trickle-down to 3/Y. And I think that the question about double-pane windows, scroll wheels etc go under the category of relatively minor changes compared to adding an air suspension. All of this is IMHO, of course.
Regarding the air suspension - it seems to me that Tesla is going to prioritize getting a new S/X out with the new battery pack design before making any major changes to the 3/Y. Sales of S/X are pretty low right now as I think folks are anticipating a redesign with the new architecture. Not sure why they would upgrade their mass market cars with features that would potentially cannibalize sales of their more luxurious (and assumedly higher-profit) cars. This goes for the new battery architecture as well. S/X first (and CT) then trickle-down to 3/Y. And I think that the question about double-pane windows, scroll wheels etc go under the category of relatively minor changes compared to adding an air suspension. All of this is IMHO, of course.
bpon89
Member
For about $3k you can switch to the luxury coilovers from Unplugged Performance or Mountain Pass Performance. Considering they dropped the price on the Model Y, you can add the suspension upgrade to it. I've already driven about 11k miles on my MY, I think mainly the passengers will complain more than the driver. Luckily my kid falls asleep to the bumpiness for now, but for sure I'll upgrade the suspension next year. Here are the links, and installation probably about $500-$600. Check out the video from Ryan Shaw which I found to be really helpful, and he says cornering/body roll was the biggest thing he noticed.
Anyone have these already and comment on their experience?
Tesla Model Y Luxury Coilover Suspension Kit by Unplugged Performance
MPP Model Y Comfort Adjustable Coilovers | Mountain Pass Performance
Anyone have these already and comment on their experience?
Tesla Model Y Luxury Coilover Suspension Kit by Unplugged Performance
MPP Model Y Comfort Adjustable Coilovers | Mountain Pass Performance
I think you might not be aware that Tesla already has this in Model S and X. None of your concern for parts and skilled labor matters. If standardization to optimize production assembly is of a concern, then why give us different interior/paint color or performance vs LR? I don’t think you are overthinking a simple suspension change.
If it’s really an issue, then offer that as a standard. Problem solved.
I test drove in August and then another overnight drive in Nov. (it has double pane windows). Drove on the same highway and local streets (the Nov overnight even more on local streets).
Same stiff ride to me, felt every bumps. I have no reason to believe they made improvements. Maybe NYC roads are just overbearing.
We are talking about factor install, not aftermarket change. Go watch Sandy’s video. He pretty much called out room for better/larger suspension system. There is no reason to make that much room if there is no intention for future upgrade. (Paraphrasing)
Just think. Tesla gave M3 a heat pump. No increase in cost, no fuss about whether they should do it or not, no big announcement or big reveal. I'm sure this would be something you guys would call "non-trivial" I think we need to give Tesla more credit here.
I think you might not be aware that Tesla already has this in Model S and X. None of your concern for parts and skilled labor matters. If standardization to optimize production assembly is of a concern, then why give us different interior/paint color or performance vs LR? I don’t think you are overthinking a simple suspension change.
If it’s really an issue, then offer that as a standard. Problem solved.
I own a Model X and like ALL Model Xs it has hydraulic adaptive suspension, unlike our Model 3. Again, Tesla's places a focus on reducing variants. There used to be 7 colors for S and X. Now we are down to 5, and one of those, White Metallic, used to be an option and is the standard. It is cheaper for Tesla to use more expensive paint over and over then put it on only when someone pays extra.
This is something Honda brought to the market with the 1st Accords. They threw all sorts of things like A/C, power windows, etc in as standard, because it is cheaper to build them in that build some cars without and some without. Until then you might have 5-6 pages of options you could mix and match on a Detriot-built car.
As far as making adaptive suspension standard, my guess is if it gets cheap enough to do that they will. Unless they view Adaptive suspension as something that differentiates the X and S from the 3 and Y.
