After unbolting the 4 shock tower mount bolts, which are different from the 3 bolts that connect the shock to the upper mount, the entire shock and upper control arm assembly was easily removed from the car. We can clearly see from this image the seam where the steel ball joint housing attaches to the hybrid plastic/steel upper control arm. It’s this seam where water seeps into the ball joint itself.
We then unbolted the upper control arm from the shock tower/upper control arm mount.
Up close, we can see the hybrid upper control arm design, made from plastic and steel that are sandwiched together. This design and how the ball joint attaches to the arm is where water is able to seep into the ball joint and fail it prematurely.
The stock Tesla hybrid upper control arm has this vibration damping weight on the rear control arm that’s zip tied into place.
The MEYLE HD “High Durability” Forged Aluminum Upper Control Arms are works of art. I really like that MEYLE engineers this product line specifically to fix known factory problems rather than just copying the original part. It’s also impressive that they offer a 4-year unlimited mileage warranty on MEYLE HD products, which shows they’re confident in their solutions.
Compared to the stock hybrid plastic and steel upper control arm, the MEYLE HD Forged Aluminum Upper Control Arm is a serious upgrade with far more engineering and technology in it than just making the arm out of aluminum.
MEYLE also redesigned the bushings for better durability and performance than the original bushings. Their engineers often use larger rubber sections and a contoured, wave-shaped inner sleeve (the one the bolt runs through), which increases the surface area for bonding rubber to metal. MEYLE develops and produces its own rubber compound in-house to extend bushing life even further. The goal of their engineers is a longer-lasting bushing without a harsher ride.
The outer ball joint on the factory upper control arm is the source of the Model 3’s infamous front suspension clunk. Water pools at the seam where the ball joint meets the hybrid plastic-and-steel arm, then slowly seeps in, displacing grease and causing corrosion. Over time, that wear opens up the joint’s internal tolerances until it clunks.
MEYLE solved the problem with a one-piece forged aluminum arm and a ball joint that installs from the underside, leaving no seam for water to get in. The ball joint itself is upgraded as well. The ball stud sits in a cup made from a Teflon-type polymer, and on its HD joints MEYLE typically increases the ball diameter to spread the load over more surface area, which further extends the joint’s life.
5 comments
For some reason I cannot see any photos using multiple browsers.
Are the photo links broken?
Seems fine to me
BTW, is there no “tesla,” section under projects?
The stock upper control arm design is the real story here, and it is good to see it called out. A plastic and steel hybrid arm with a water-trapping ball joint is a failure waiting to happen, especially on a car that sees rain and road salt. Replacing it with a one-piece forged aluminum arm is the right fix, not just a performance upgrade. My tip for Model 3 owners hearing a clunk over bumps is to check that arm first and not let a shop replace the whole strut assembly when the arm alone is the problem, because the cost difference is large and the arm is a known weak point on these cars.
The new Tesla Y-L seems to have a magnetic damper in the rear. It would be interesting to see what the aftermarket brings out for that, that still works with the dash settings, but offers better valving or perhaps an aftermarket controller that offers even more settings than comfort and standard.