What did Tesla do with all the early suspension they took off of cars of people that complained that it was too stiff? Seems like they could at least offer that suspension to you even if you had to pay for labor to switch it out. It's probably sitting in a warehouse somewhere gathering dust. I feel that mine is perfect for day to day use, but yours may be a different version or defective or you just have a different preference. Curious to hear how you like the coilovers.
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I’m sure those old dampers from the early models are in a dumpster somewhere.
I got a little inside info on the stock suspension. So the rear springs are rated somewhere around 1000 in/lbs and the dampers are stiffer than the non performance versions. I shouldn’t be able to compress and extend the damper within 0.5 seconds with one arm. My dampers are definitely defective. I’m not that strong of a dude either.
The least Tesla can do is take me on a ride on a similar vehicle. Instead they tell me that every single car is different and there is no point to compare cars. Come on! I do think Tesla is just trying to avoid fixing an obvious problem to avoid losing money on a warranty item.
I’ll update you later.
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Part number on the damper shows 1044461-01-E and AQY182272A02380. Not sure on the springs but there is a tag with the letter "P" on it.
lbowroom
Plaid, white on black, CF, 8/27/21, Track Pack
lbowroom
Plaid, white on black, CF, 8/27/21, Track Pack
Jigglypuff
Member
Still waiting on the front forks to install them. After getting the dampers dyno’d, I will send the info to Tesla and see if they’ll do anything.
lbowroom
Plaid, white on black, CF, 8/27/21, Track Pack
I've measured the springs from a Model 3 RWD and the rears were 475 lbs/in.
I ran 800 lb rear springs on a race car for a while.
I'm not sure what 1000 lb springs would feel like, but I don't think the word "stiff" would cover it.
Jigglypuff
Member
1000 lbs of spring rate is for slammed cars with owners who don't know any better, for track dogs with serious downforce, and for autocrossers who have specific class needs. Even 475lbs seems very high. The performance model rolled plenty when I test drove it. Unless there's some obscenely high motion ratio, which I doubt.
I've measured the springs from a Model 3 RWD and the rears were 475 lbs/in.
I ran 800 lb rear springs on a race car for a while.
I'm not sure what 1000 lb springs would feel like, but I don't think the word "stiff" would cover it.
Assuming it was not another Tesla M3, the measured rate has very little to do what the wheel rate is, which is what you care about... Well, you would care more about things like ride frequency, but thats a bit beyond this discussion
For example, if you had your 1000lb spring on a car with a .8 motion ratio(spring travels .8" for every 1" of travel), that would equal a 640lbs(you must square .8 to get your calculated motion ratio) wheel rate, or spring rate at the wheel.
If your motion ratio was .6, your effective spring/wheel rate, would be 360lbs using that same 1000lb spring. Small changes in suspension geometry and design make a big difference with things like spring rates and sway bar rates as well. The actual spring rate of the springs itself means virtually nothing to how it will work on the car.
Suspension geometry and handling dynamics are very complex on cars like Teslas. They are tuned with the on board stability control, ABS etc. Trust only the very best companies who understand these things.
While I dont own any of their parts or know them personally, Sasha at Mountain Pass Performance seems like he has a good grasp of this stuff. I was exposed to him through a youtube channel not related to Teslas before owning a Tesla. The dude is smart.
My background is in amateur road racing and autocross where I went down the rabbit hole on suspension design and theory to make our cars faster on the track.
David
1000lbs/in is just what someone who works at tesla told me. 1000lbs/in does seem high but not when considering the leverage or fulcrum the rear suspension arm has on the springs.
Yes, I’m still waiting on the forks from MPP. I’m not in a rush though. I still want to test the oem dampers before I throw it at Tesla.
Yes, I’m still waiting on the forks from MPP. I’m not in a rush though. I still want to test the oem dampers before I throw it at Tesla.
This is one of your rear Model 3 Performace dampers (red line) and a new Model 3 Performance damper obtained from Tesla (black line)?
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