What shocks are you running? The stock Bilsteins, the 7-way Bilsteins, or an aftermarket? I'm running aftermarket Nitrons and have no lifting of the front that's really noticeable. Yes the car will tuck a bit, but that's pretty normal. My stock Bilsteins before that lifted and tucked more, but nothing crazy or out of the ordinary. What your describing sounds like a shock that's set too soft/rebound fast or possibly a blown shock seal. The Bilstein 7-way adjustable shocks that came with sports by default and was an option for others are known to have their seals fail prematurely.

delavandaag said:

As most - if not all - of you will have experienced, the nose of the Roadster comes up quite a bit upon hard accelerating. I just noticed that the right side of the nose lifts noticeably more than the left side. The car also tries to steer a bit to the right. Not much or dangerously, but nevertheless. Does any of you have experienced this? Is my suspension failing (I have the non-adjustable suspension)? Any ideas on this?

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We had an issue with the right upper ball joint boot go bad (twice). Try pulling the tire and take a look at the boots and check for any leakage.

Nvbob said:

We had an issue with the right upper ball joint boot go bad (twice). Try pulling the tire and take a look at the boots and check for any leakage.

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True. And with that check your swaybar connections and both front and rear.

delavandaag said:

@wiztecy: My Roadster is a 2.5 non-sport. I have the non-adjustable stock shocks. So that must be the Bilsteins.

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The 7-way adjustable shocks on the sports are also Bilsteins as well as the stock non-adjustable. I haven't heard of the non-adjustables failing and even the service centers say that those hold up better in terms of seals / leaks compared to the 7-way. The stock ones are loose on the road and my opinion, the front will have some lift since its not really a stiff shock / spring.

If you enthusiastically drive the Roadster, especially around corners, I'd suggest pulling out the stock shocks and put in an adjustable set. The 7-way Bilsteins, Nitron adjustable or equivalent. Reason being is that the stock ones unload the weight of the rear too fast which can be rather dangerous since its taking traction off your rear tires around a turn. That was one of my important primary upgrades to the Roadster that I felt necessary. That along with the HID lights and Carbotech brakes. My upgrades surrounded priorities of putting my Roadster and myself in a safer position on the road.

wiztecy said:

That along with the HID lights and Carbotech brakes. My upgrades surrounded priorities of putting my Roadster and myself in a safer position on the road.

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did you replace the brake calliper S or just the pad types?

as a new(ish) Roadster owner I see the brakes as the main part of my car which don't match the rest of the specification.

simonog said:

did you replace the brake calliper S or just the pad types?

as a new(ish) Roadster owner I see the brakes as the main part of my car which don't match the rest of the specification.

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I replaced just the pad types to the CarboTech AX6 compound which is a pad designed for autocross due to its aggressive bite. I then had a set of custom two piece slotted rotors created which the inner hat is aluminum treated in nickel plating and the outer cast disc was metal treated twice, one with a process called FNC which binds carbon with the use of nitrogen and heat to the steel surface. This creates a very hard and corrosion resistant surface. If you haven't known by now the stock rotors rust like crazy and that's one reason why it sucks braking right after its been sitting after a rain. Total rust buckets. Anyways... Also had a second metal treatment called Black Oxide that is not as Durable as FNC, but adds a nice black finish and adds an extra layer of protection on non friction contact surfaces. Went with a slotted design on the rotor disc to help remove dust, dirt, heat and water. The drilled ones with the Roadster would fill up with brake-dust and crud making them useless. In the rain that dust all turns to slippery slime that the pad has to fight and clean off the disc in order to stop. I created a group buy for these rotors and its almost a year now they've been on the Roadster, happy I had them made. I'm very pleased and confident with the braking performance of the car all together now. But huge gains are to be had with CarboTech upgrade alone.

Yes, the Roadster came with SuperCar acceleration but also with subpar braking that somehow was missed or overlooked by Tesla.

Wiztecy-
what model of Nitrons are you running? I have the stock Bilsteins and am looking at options... thanks

rdstr said:

Wiztecy-
what model of Nitrons are you running? I have the stock Bilsteins and am looking at options... thanks

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Here's what I'm running, I can pull the part numbers if you're serious in making the purchase so you get the correct ones:

Lotus Elise S2 (K-Series) (02-05) NTR Track Day 40mm Suspension Kit

Nitron Racing Shocks,Store,(02-05),Lotus Elise S2 (K-Series) (02-05) NTR Track Day 40mm Suspension Kit

Track Day is a heavier spring rate. I went with even heavier than the Track day one of 450 lbs front, 525 lbs rear to 550 lbs front, 700 lbs rear to help with the extra weight from the Roadster's battery. Also you'll need to have custom made the ABS/Shock mount so the Nitrons will work on the driver's side. Otherwise bolt up and go. Asgard had these on his Roadster, he just sold them and may have that bracket to sell you.

Here's my link of when I had the shocks put on my Roadster:
Alignment knocked out of whack... - Page 2

I was so conviced you had the 46mm 1 way version instead of the 40mm.. Asgard had 46mm's too.

m0rph said:

I was so convinced you had the 46mm 1 way version instead of the 40mm.. Asgard had 46mm's too.

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Let me double check m0rph, I'll have to read the data sheet I picked up with it fully verify. I may have gotten mixed up/ flip-flopped by mistake on the 40mm/46mm spec after reading a post in the Lotus forum in response to Asguard's Nitron classified ad.

What I don know is that they are a Non-Toyota engine Elise/Exige model for the S2 chassis. The paperwork from Nitron does not specify the mm. but they have a shock-id. I'll try to call Nitron and see if they can trace it to a model.