Rear Arms For Tesla Model S Plaid Installation Guide

Thank you for purchasing rear control arms for your Model S! Please read the instructions below carefully as these arms are not adjusted in the typical way.

NOTE: It is CRITICAL that your alignment shop be aware of these instructions and understand how to adjust your rear suspension. Don’t let them get it wrong!

THE REAR TRAILING ARM SHOULD NEVER BE LONGER THAN THE OEM REAR LOWER LINK. IT ALSO SHOULD NOT BE MORE THAN 6MM SHORTER THAN THE OEM REAR LINK.

 

Theory And Setup:

Toe Arm:

The rear toe arm is used as normal to adjust the toe. The adjuster can be easily accessed from both the top and bottom. Extending the arm will toe-out the wheels.

Rear Lower Control Arms:

Camber is more complicated. The Model S uses a semi-multi link design, where the two rear arms create what is effectively a traditional lower control arm. Both arms can be adjusted evenly, or the trailing arm may be shortened up to 6mm relative to the rear lower control arm, to reduce toe-out bumpsteer caused by the OEM suspension geometry at very low ride heights.

It is critical that the offset not be adjusted excessively, and this is the primary point that your alignment shop must understand. The bumpsteer with the factory link lengths will TOE OUT significantly under maximum compression, so if you are using lowering links at a low ride height, it is advisable to have the forward lower link (Trailing Arm) 3-5mm shorter than the rear lower link (Rear Lower Control Arm), this will reduce/remove the toe-out in compression at very low ride heights.

DO NOT SHORTEN THE TRAILING ARM MORE THAN 6MM SHORTER THAN THE REAR LOWER CONTROL ARM

DO NOT EXTEND THE TRAILING ARM LONGER THAN THE REAR LOWER CONTROL ARM

Toe-out bumpsteer in the rear of the car under compression is never advisable, as it creates an unstable platform when the vehicle is heavily loaded. Almost all production cars are designed to toe in during suspension compression, which adds traction and stability when accelerating or hitting large bumps. As the Model S is a very long vehicle, having zero bumpsteer, or even a slight toe-out in bump may be of benefit for advanced drivers. However, when running at a lower than OEM ride height, the toe-out in compression is in our opinion excessive and should be addressed.

Tesla Model S Plaid Rear Suspension 3D Layout

 

 

Select the arms that you are replacing from the tabs above.

Installation Instructions:

Time Required: 1 hour plus alignment.
Tools Required: 10mm hex socket (for M12 cap screws), 14, 19, 21mm sockets and wrenches, and common metric socket/wrenches.
Difficulty Level: 3/10

 

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 rear of the vehicle either with two jacks or with a hoist
  • Remove the rear wheels

Step 2 – Remove OEM Toe Arms:

  • Remove one arm at a time. Removing a number of arms at once will make it more difficult to re-install new arms.
  • Start by removing the bolt through the knuckle (21mm), followed by the two bolts at the chassis (16mm).
  • Use a few long extensions to make it easier to access the inboard bolts.

Step 3 – Prepare And Install The MPP Arm

  • Ensure the pinch bolts are tight on the MPP arm
  • Install the arm with the M6 pinch bolts facing downwards or upwards, as you prefer.
  • Using the supplied cap screws, torque the inboard bolts to 58lb-ft.
  • Raise the rear suspension with a jack and torque the outboard bolts to 105lb-ft using the supplied MPP nut if required.

 

Step 4 – Reassembly & Align

  • Double-check the torque, paint mark your bolts
  • Install the wheels and lower the car on the ground (torque the wheels!)
  • Take the car for an alignment
  • Extending the toe arm will cause it to toe out

Setup Guide (Camber Adjustable Rear Trailing Arms): 

Install the supplied 6mm spacers according to your desired goals based on the table below:

Ride Height Street Camber ~(-0.8-1.2) Sport Camber ~(-1.5-2.0) Track Camber ~(2.5-3.0)
OEM Medium No Shims Shim RLCA Shim RLCA
OEM Low No Shims Shim RLCA Shim RLCA
Lowering Links Low Shim RUCA No Shims Shim RLCA

 

Tesla Model S Plaid Rear Lower Arm Adjusting

Installation Instructions:

 

Time Required: 1.5 hours plus alignment.
Tools Required: 10mm hex socket (for M12 cap screws), 14, 19, 21mm sockets and wrenches, and common metric socket/wrenches.
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 rear of the vehicle either with two jacks or with a hoist
  • Remove the rear wheels

 

Step 2 – Remove OEM Arms:

  • Remove one arm at a time. Removing a number of arms at once will make it more difficult to re-install new arms.
  • Start by removing the bolt through the knuckle (21mm), followed by the two bolts at the chassis (16mm).
  • Use a few long extensions to make it easier to access the inboard bolts.

 

 

Step 3 – Prepare And Install The MPP Arm

  • Ensure the pinch bolts are tight on the MPP arm
  • Install the arm with the M6 pinch bolts facing downwards or upwards, as you prefer.
  • Using the supplied cap screws, torque the inboard bolts to 58lb-ft (NOTE: Rear lower control arm uses the OEM bolts)
  • Raise the rear suspension with a jack and torque the outboard bolts to 105lb-ft using the supplied MPP nut if required.

 

Step 4A – Install Spacers Onto Rear Upper Fore Link (Street Use/Improve Tire Wear)

  • NOTE: If you are ALSO installing our Adjustable Rear Lower Control Arms DO NOT install the spacers.
  • If removing negative camber and adding shims to RUCA as per the table above:
  • Loosen the rear upper fore link outboard bolt (21mm)
  • Remove the bolts on the chassis side (16mm)
  • Rotate the knuckle away from the chassis
  • Insert the supplied spacers
  • Re-install the OEM bolts and torque to 58lb-ft
  • Compress the rear suspension with a jack and torque the outboard bolt to 105lb-ft

OR

Step 4B – Install Spacers Onto Rear Lower Control Arm (Track/Race Use)

  • NOTE: If you are ALSO installing our Adjustable Rear Lower Control Arms DO NOT install the spacers.
  • If adding additional negative camber based on the table above:
  • Loosen the rear lower control arm outboard bolt (21mm)
  • Remove the bolts on the chassis side (16mm)
  • Use a breaker bar as pictured below to rotate the knuckle which will pull the arm away from the chassis
  • Insert the supplied spacers while a helper holds the breaker bar
  • Re-install the OEM bolts and torque to 58lb-ft
  • Compress the rear suspension with a jack and torque the outboard bolt to 105lb-ft

 

 

Step 5 – Reassembly & Align

  • Double-check the torque, paint mark your bolts
  • Install the wheels and lower the car on the ground (torque the wheels!)
  • Take the car for an alignment
  • Extending either lower arm will cause it to add camber
  • Do not adjust outside of the arm lengths listed above. 

NOTE: DO NOT INSTALL THESE ARMS WITHOUT OR BEFORE THE CAMBER ADJUSTABLE REAR TRAILING ARMS

Installation Instructions:

Time Required: 1.5 hours plus alignment.
Tools Required: 10mm hex socket (for M12 cap screws), 14, 19, 21mm sockets and wrenches, and common metric socket/wrenches.
Difficulty Level: 4/10

 

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 rear of the vehicle either with two jacks or with a hoist
  • Remove the rear wheels

 

Step 2 – Remove OEM Arms:

  • Remove one arm at a time. Removing a number of arms at once will make it more difficult to re-install new arms.
  • Start by removing the bolt through the knuckle (21mm), followed by the two bolts at the chassis (16mm).
  • Use a few long extensions to make it easier to access the inboard bolts.

Tesla Model S aluminum rear suspension arms

 

Step 3 – Prepare And Install The MPP Arm

  • Ensure the pinch bolts are tight on the MPP arm
  • Install the arm with the M6 pinch bolts facing downwards.
  • Using the supplied cap screws, torque the inboard bolts to 58lb-ft (NOTE: Rear lower control arm uses the OEM bolts)
  • Raise the rear suspension with a jack and torque the outboard bolts to 105lb-ft using the supplied MPP nut.

 

Step 4 – Reassembly & Alignment

  • Double-check the torque, paint mark your bolts
  • Install the wheels and lower the car on the ground (torque the wheels!)
  • Take the car for an alignment
  • Extending the toe arm will cause it to toe out
  • Extending either lower arm will cause it to add camber
  • The arms are OEM length when they have a 24mm gap between the outer and inner part of the arm