Originally Posted by
FL390
... I think my new strategy will be to hold off on applying an instrument until upgrade space is open, then applying the upgrade on the website.
IMO a bad decision. While sometimes the upgrades will not autoclear, they can and do many times. So waiting to apply will definitely lower your chances of clearing. If R does open and you do not clear, you can still call to clear. If for some reason the agent refuses, then remove the upgrade and manually apply. You are no worse off doing this and most probably IME better off since upgrades do autoclear.