Thanks for purchasing MPP Front Upper Control Arms for your Model S! For those of you who don’t like to read, skip to the bottom for a ride height and camber shim cheat sheat.
NOTE: It is critical to ensure you use the correct length bolt for the shim stack thickness selected
Installation Instructions:
Time Required: 1.5 hours
Tools Required: 15mm ratcheting wrench, 15mm socket, T50 torx socket, metric allen keys, and typical hand tools / lifting tools / wheel removal tools.
Difficulty Level: 5/10
Step 1 – Raise Car & Remove Trim
- Put the car into Jack Mode (Controls > Service > Jack mode)
- Turn the car off (Controls >Safety & Security > Power Off)
- Lift the front of the vehicle either with two jacks or with a hoist
- Remove the front wheels
- Remove the frunk trim starting with the rear center cover, followed by the two side panels. They unclip easily.
Step 2 – Remove OEM Front Upper Control Arms:
- Remove the M6 bolt that holds the wheel speed sensor
- Remove the M6 nut that holds the ride height sensor in place
- Remove the bolt and nut that clamps the knuckle to the front upper control arm, while supporting the knuckle (T50 + 15mm)
- Remove the inboard bolts using a 15mm wrench, ideally a ratcheting wrench, and remove the FUCA. The rear bolts are hard to get to, but you’ll get it! If you have an MPP MC brace, you will likely have to remove it to gain access to the area on the driver’s side.
Step 3 – Prepare And Install The MPP FUCA
- Install the balljoint carrier to the FUCA with the desired number of shims. See the table at the bottom for a guide. CRITICAL: Ensure you use the correct length bolt to match the shim stack thickness. Torque the 12 point bolts to 20lb-ft
- Ensure the balljoint sleeve is on the balljoint carrier and positioned correctly
- Install the ride height sensor bracket with supplied M4 screws
- Install the FUCA, due to variances in the chassis and the stiffness of the MPP arm and bearings, some force may be required. Install the arm as straight as possible to ease insertion
- Torque the inboard bolts to approximately 50lb-ft (a torque wrench will not fit here)
- Ensure the sleeve window is facing outwards to allow the bolt to go through the knuckle. Torque to 44lb-ft (60Nm)
Step 4 – Air Ride Height Adjustment
If you’d like to use our kit to also adjust the ride height of your air suspension equipped S, follow the directions here. Otherwise, set the front ride height sensor at the topmost position on the bracket (this matches the OEM location).
Front:
Each line on the supplied ride height bracket indicates 0.5mm. Each wide line indicates 1mm of adjustment.
Holding the flat on the endlink horizontal, use the supplied M6 flange nut to easily hand lock the end link in the desired position. Tighten with a wrench.
As a general rule of thumb, 1mm of adjustment here is approximately 4mm of lowering.
Rear:
In the rear, we have provided shims to allow you to offset the end link in a similar manner. The end link is bolted to the OEM arm with an M6 bolt.
The supplied fork-shaped shims are installed between the OEM forward upper arm and the sensor mount. As with the front, 1mm of shim results in approximately 4mm of lowering.
Shims in thicknesses of 0.5, 1.0, 2.0 4.0, and 8.0 are supplied. Use them in combination up to a recommended max of 8mm (for approximately 32mm of lowering).
After removing the wheels they install by simply sliding in place between the sensor and arm, and changes can be made very easily and quickly. A longer M6 bolt is provided that can be used when there is insufficient thread engagement on the OEM bolt.
Camber Shim Table
Shim Stack Thickness | Approx Camber Change Relative To OEM | Bolt Length |
18mm | 0 (OEM) | LONG |
14mm | -0.4 | LONG |
10mm | -0.8 | LONG |
8mm | -1.0 | SHORT |
4mm | -1.4 | SHORT |
0mm | -1.9 | SHORT |
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