Tesla has silently lowered cars with coil suspension.

[zentage]

Been itching on the trigger for a new 75D to replace my 2014 S60.

My S60 had about 6.1 inches ground clearance (I was very worried about this when I bought the car, having a tesla salesman drive one up my parking lot just to make sure - no problems then and no problems ever since).

Now I see new 75D has been lowered to a wopping 5.3 inches. Thats quite a drop for a car with such a long wheelbase. Without the smart air option its making me very nervous about hitting the trigger on a new tesla

what are peoples thoughts about this?

 

[NikeWings]

Take a test drive home and try it out again.
I enter/exit my driveway with the wheels sharply cut to avoid scraping the bottom.

 

[zentage]

Take a test drive home and try it out again.
I enter/exit my driveway with the wheels sharply cut to avoid scraping the bottom.

Im sure the tesla will perform fine on my driveway. I am however seeing many fellow norwegian report that newer 75D's are hitting the road floor on humps and curvy roads etc. here in Norway.
Perhaps tesla should consider upping the car a little for us euro customers who drive on more rough roads.

 

[Electroman]

Guessing this is done to help CD and increase range?

Another downside of low height is the difficulty of ingress and egress. I drove a Leaf and an i3 the other day and they both feel like SUVs compared to my S. Feels lot more comfortable.

 

[Sir Guacamolaf]

I see they have updated their site too.
Air suspension is 4.6” – 6.3”, and coils are right in the middle at 5.3.

I have coils, but older 70D. I haven't had any issues really, but I don't go off roading with the car either.

I thought the clearance used to be 5.7, not 6.1. Either way, air suspension moves the car by a grand total of 1.7 inches.

Does that little movement really matter?

 

[SabrToothSqrl]

Haxter beat me to it...

Yes, it can make a difference. even a 2" lift kit makes a huge difference off road. I just want HIGH on Park so it's easier to get in/out of the car... why is that so hard?

 

[chillaban]

I thought the clearance used to be 5.7, not 6.1. Either way, air suspension moves the car by a grand total of 1.7 inches.

Does that little movement really matter?

It really does make a difference and I agree it doesn't sound like much. But comparing a coil 70D and my new air 100D with the exact same tires over a parking lot entrance near work, the critical max speed before bottoming out went from 5mph to over 20mph, which is a really meaningful difference.

I guess it's the geometry of car clearance or maybe partly an auto-leveling effect, but on paper the air suspension sounds like it wouldn't do much but in practice it makes a world of difference for clearing humps/dips and parking near high curbs.

 

[animorph]

I have 5.65" Model S ground clearance entered in my spreadsheet, which was probably 2 years ago. I hadn't realized it's been dropping.

Our old BMW 540i that I was driving at the time was 4.7", so Tesla is still not that bad. In suburban driving the 540i was fine as long as I hit any elevation changes diagonally instead of head on. Only bottomed out once, in a grass field being used as a parking lot with wooden ramps covering some temporary wiring. And I was already adept at avoiding parking curbs. Plenty of speed bumps around here, and we did OK with those.

 

[mdevp]

Does someone have a before and after side pic? My brother wants to get coils but felt it didn't look good, too high, and I want to show him the change.

 

[zentage]

Does someone have a before and after side pic? My brother wants to get coils but felt it didn't look good, too high, and I want to show him the change.

Heres a recent norwegian review, they even commented that the car was a bit low.

many pics - Test av Tesla Model S 75D: Aldri hatt lavere strømforbruk

 

[MDR SEA]

Amen!
Ground clearance is my only complaint with my 2015 85D.
I done an exhaustive search trying to find an aftermarket solution but no luck.
I can add spacers but I don't want a permanent lift,
Has anyone had better luck?

 

[smilepak]

I do hate the fact I keep scraping the 70D bottom when going in and out of certain parking structures to street. The 70D is a bit too low for the length it is. Soft suspension too, over small bumps and it hit the bottom

 

[wwu123]

My Nov 2016 production car must've been built right during the cutover - as just the left front wheel well is 3/4" lower than the other three wheels ;-)

 

[Lzervrrd]

I’m still struggling with this low suspension on my ‘15 70D coil suspension. I feel like I’m only getting 4”!

Seeing as the thread is 4 yes old, has anyone found a solution since? Thx!

 

[Lzervrrd]

Spaccer says they now have a kit for Model S. Has anyone tried these?

Suspension lift kit / body lift kit for Tesla Model S - SPACCER

www.spaccer.com