Teraflex LA upgrade kit, EVO coilovers, and 37's on my Unlimited Rubi
10-10-2008, 08:11 PM
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JK Super Freak
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EVO coilovers, TF long arms, and 37's on the Rubi
Early this week I dropped my Jeep off with Mel at Off Road Evolution so they could install a Teraflex long arm upgrade kit, teraflex front track bar relocation bracket/high steer kit, his Evolution front coilover kit, axle gussets/skids, and some new 37's. I had to stop there because I ran out of money, but will be back for more in the near future. When I went to pick it up I was shocked not only how great the Jeep looks, but how great the installed parts look! In fact, I spent more time under the Jeep looking and touching than I did looking at the outside of it. Mel gave me a thorough walk around/through of it before I drove it home and explained how the coilovers work. He explained I had so many inches of soft travel then the stiffer springs of the coilover would kick in, and that the adjustability possibilities are pretty much endless with it, especially when I get the rear EVO coilover setup. I was impressed with the quality of work on the install from Mel's shop! Those guys can lay down a serious weld! I have been involved with and around welding my whole life, and the welding they do is right up there with a very high skilled welders, even on aerospace stuff, and this is on a Jeep! I am very impressed.
I was really impressed when I got behind the wheel and drove it home. I didn't get a chance to drive it on the freeway as it is a straight 10 mile shot from Mel's shop to my house, but this road is a bumpy one that would cause many Jeeps, especially lifted ones to be all over the road, causing what many here know to be a white knuckle drive. I can honestly say that this was the most relaxed I have been driving the Jeep since I lifted it with its first lift which was a small budget boost. It drives very smooth! I am sure the coilovers in the front also have a lot to do with this as they are very smooth. My wife wanted to drive it, and we had to pick up our other Jeep, so I drove next to her and watched the suspension soaking up all the little road imperfections. The suspension works very well and it makes the Jeep appear to be riding on a cloud! I am very pleased with it! If the rear EVO coilovers make it even better then I will be even happier!
I did not put the Jeep on Mel's ramp because I am planning on going to the forums Ramp Meet and Greet this Sunday. I am looking forward to seeing how it does! When I got home from picking it up and running around it was getting dark but I did manage to grab a few pictures of it. I also took a couple pictures of the brackets and welds on the kit. I will post up pics of it on the ramp when I get them. I also want to comment on the Teraflex front track bar bracket/high steer kit. This is included in the 6" long arm kit, but can be bought separate by anyone needing this solution. It is a very nice bracket that comes with a brace for the bracket which gets welded to the opposite frame rail. Then there is basically a second track bar which is mounted to the bracket and the welded on bracket on the opposite frame rail. It appears to be very well thought out and tough. I recently saw pictures of Eddie's broken track bar bracket, which if I remember right broke because he never installed a bolt which came with it and would have prevented the breakage. However after looking at this Teraflex relocation bracket, I am confident it is the way to go over any other track bar relocation brackets I have seen.
I do not know how much lift this kit provided, but Mel told me with the coilover setup I can adjust it anywhere from 3.5" to 6". I currently have Currie Rock Jock rear springs, which are 4" springs, so the front is set to the rear height since the rear is not adjustable at this point. He did a great job setting the ride height, it is exactly where I would have asked him to put it if I had the choice. Anyways, here are the pictures, enjoy and let me know what you think!
A ramp shot at JK-Forum's Ramp Meet and Greet at Off Road Evolution. Keep in mind this is only the front coilover setup and I need to either move my brake lines or get some longer ones, plus I have 35 psi in all four tires.
Here is the Teraflex front track bar relocation bracket. Notice above the track bar the brace which looks like a second track bar. this brace goes to the opposite frame rail.
Here is the track bar brace connected to the opposite frame rail.
A closer shot of the brace welded to the frame rail. Notice the kick ass welds!
This is the left rear Teraflex control arm mount. I looked pretty hard for the location of the stock control arm mounts and could not find them. They did an excellent job of taking them off and grinding them down! I could not find where they were exactly until I looked at my wife's Jeep to see where they were supposed to be.
Closeup of the same mount. Look at the welds!
High steer mount pic.
Picture of how the track bar and the drag link line up nicely.
A general shot of what the suspension looks like. The sway bar links are custom made by Mel and look like they would last through WWIII.
EDIT:
Just got back from picking the Jeep up from Off Road Evolution. It now has Mel's 14" coilover setup front and rear, as well as Mel's rock sliders. I still need longer sway bar links in front as we ran out of time (I had to get going) and didn't switch them out prior to putting it on the ramp. We put it on their ramp (30 degree ramp) and Andrew, Off Road Evolution's engineer scored it at 1150. That is with short sway bar links preventing full droop as well as having 35 psi in all four tires. So it should do a little better once new links are installed and the tires are aired down. I will honestly say that this Jeep drives better than my wife's Jeep which has the stock suspension on it. For anyone who has doubts that these coilovers work on the street as well as they do the dirt, set those concerns aside. On surface streets they soak up all the little road imperfections better than the stock suspension does. At freeway speed this Jeep rides unbelievably well and tracks straight as an arrow. And get this, I went out this evening and tried to get the ESP to activate and it wont, even on the freeway cloverleafs where it normally would! This Jeep kicks serious ass thanks to Mel and his guys!
EDIT 12/26/08: I got a little better shot of the Jeep today.
I had the opportunity to take the Jeep out to the desert on the JK run this last saturday. I am very very happy with the Jeep and this suspension. It was mostly just desert driving but the roads ranged from smooth to not smooth at all and this suspension kicked serious ass. It soaked up the bad roads like they were not even there and made the ride very comfortable for my daughter and I. I can't recommend this suspension enough to others, if you are considering this go for it and dont look back!
EDIT: I also need to add that this suspension kicks serious ass on the freeways too. Before I had Mel install this stuff I had a standard 3" lift on it. I did not have problems with the ESP, except on the freeway cloverleafs that seems to activate most of our ESP systems on lifted Jeeps. Well, since getting this suspension put on, I cannot get the ESP to activate on it. I have tried many times, in fact went out today and hit a few of the freeway off ramps and on ramps as fast as I could safely drive them without crashing into the guard rails. I was not able to get the ESP to activate. I am beginning to wonder if Mel didn't somehow tune it down. These coilovers are very street driveable. Has improved my Jeep in many ways, can't say enough good things about it! I have no other reason to say this stuff other than the fact I want people to know how well it works and how happy I am with it. I am just a regular customer with no obligation to post this stuff.
Just for fun here is a picture of it dirty.....
A couple flex shots on Mel's ramp, with 35 lbs in all four tires! Too lazy to air down just for pictures.
I was really impressed when I got behind the wheel and drove it home. I didn't get a chance to drive it on the freeway as it is a straight 10 mile shot from Mel's shop to my house, but this road is a bumpy one that would cause many Jeeps, especially lifted ones to be all over the road, causing what many here know to be a white knuckle drive. I can honestly say that this was the most relaxed I have been driving the Jeep since I lifted it with its first lift which was a small budget boost. It drives very smooth! I am sure the coilovers in the front also have a lot to do with this as they are very smooth. My wife wanted to drive it, and we had to pick up our other Jeep, so I drove next to her and watched the suspension soaking up all the little road imperfections. The suspension works very well and it makes the Jeep appear to be riding on a cloud! I am very pleased with it! If the rear EVO coilovers make it even better then I will be even happier!
I did not put the Jeep on Mel's ramp because I am planning on going to the forums Ramp Meet and Greet this Sunday. I am looking forward to seeing how it does! When I got home from picking it up and running around it was getting dark but I did manage to grab a few pictures of it. I also took a couple pictures of the brackets and welds on the kit. I will post up pics of it on the ramp when I get them. I also want to comment on the Teraflex front track bar bracket/high steer kit. This is included in the 6" long arm kit, but can be bought separate by anyone needing this solution. It is a very nice bracket that comes with a brace for the bracket which gets welded to the opposite frame rail. Then there is basically a second track bar which is mounted to the bracket and the welded on bracket on the opposite frame rail. It appears to be very well thought out and tough. I recently saw pictures of Eddie's broken track bar bracket, which if I remember right broke because he never installed a bolt which came with it and would have prevented the breakage. However after looking at this Teraflex relocation bracket, I am confident it is the way to go over any other track bar relocation brackets I have seen.
I do not know how much lift this kit provided, but Mel told me with the coilover setup I can adjust it anywhere from 3.5" to 6". I currently have Currie Rock Jock rear springs, which are 4" springs, so the front is set to the rear height since the rear is not adjustable at this point. He did a great job setting the ride height, it is exactly where I would have asked him to put it if I had the choice. Anyways, here are the pictures, enjoy and let me know what you think!
A ramp shot at JK-Forum's Ramp Meet and Greet at Off Road Evolution. Keep in mind this is only the front coilover setup and I need to either move my brake lines or get some longer ones, plus I have 35 psi in all four tires.
Here is the Teraflex front track bar relocation bracket. Notice above the track bar the brace which looks like a second track bar. this brace goes to the opposite frame rail.
Here is the track bar brace connected to the opposite frame rail.
A closer shot of the brace welded to the frame rail. Notice the kick ass welds!
This is the left rear Teraflex control arm mount. I looked pretty hard for the location of the stock control arm mounts and could not find them. They did an excellent job of taking them off and grinding them down! I could not find where they were exactly until I looked at my wife's Jeep to see where they were supposed to be.
Closeup of the same mount. Look at the welds!
High steer mount pic.
Picture of how the track bar and the drag link line up nicely.
A general shot of what the suspension looks like. The sway bar links are custom made by Mel and look like they would last through WWIII.
EDIT:
Just got back from picking the Jeep up from Off Road Evolution. It now has Mel's 14" coilover setup front and rear, as well as Mel's rock sliders. I still need longer sway bar links in front as we ran out of time (I had to get going) and didn't switch them out prior to putting it on the ramp. We put it on their ramp (30 degree ramp) and Andrew, Off Road Evolution's engineer scored it at 1150. That is with short sway bar links preventing full droop as well as having 35 psi in all four tires. So it should do a little better once new links are installed and the tires are aired down. I will honestly say that this Jeep drives better than my wife's Jeep which has the stock suspension on it. For anyone who has doubts that these coilovers work on the street as well as they do the dirt, set those concerns aside. On surface streets they soak up all the little road imperfections better than the stock suspension does. At freeway speed this Jeep rides unbelievably well and tracks straight as an arrow. And get this, I went out this evening and tried to get the ESP to activate and it wont, even on the freeway cloverleafs where it normally would! This Jeep kicks serious ass thanks to Mel and his guys!
EDIT 12/26/08: I got a little better shot of the Jeep today.
I had the opportunity to take the Jeep out to the desert on the JK run this last saturday. I am very very happy with the Jeep and this suspension. It was mostly just desert driving but the roads ranged from smooth to not smooth at all and this suspension kicked serious ass. It soaked up the bad roads like they were not even there and made the ride very comfortable for my daughter and I. I can't recommend this suspension enough to others, if you are considering this go for it and dont look back!
EDIT: I also need to add that this suspension kicks serious ass on the freeways too. Before I had Mel install this stuff I had a standard 3" lift on it. I did not have problems with the ESP, except on the freeway cloverleafs that seems to activate most of our ESP systems on lifted Jeeps. Well, since getting this suspension put on, I cannot get the ESP to activate on it. I have tried many times, in fact went out today and hit a few of the freeway off ramps and on ramps as fast as I could safely drive them without crashing into the guard rails. I was not able to get the ESP to activate. I am beginning to wonder if Mel didn't somehow tune it down. These coilovers are very street driveable. Has improved my Jeep in many ways, can't say enough good things about it! I have no other reason to say this stuff other than the fact I want people to know how well it works and how happy I am with it. I am just a regular customer with no obligation to post this stuff.
Just for fun here is a picture of it dirty.....
A couple flex shots on Mel's ramp, with 35 lbs in all four tires! Too lazy to air down just for pictures.
Last edited by Ctimrun; 01-09-2009 at 12:06 PM.
his eyes must be going crazy after that!!!!
10-10-2008, 09:41 PM
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JK Enthusiast
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Beautiful. Love the color of the springs with the beadlocks you've got. It's so... in your face/ride roads flirty, offroad dirty. That's my take... if it even makes any sense. All in all, you give a lotta guys who think they've got THE perfect rig, a run for their money.
Have a nice day.
Have a nice day.
10-10-2008, 10:18 PM
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JK Super Freak
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I just did some measuring compared to my wife's stock Sahara with Rubicon suspension, wheels, and tires on it. Looks like the lift is approximately 5", measured from the top of the front axle tube to the frame on each Jeep. With the lift and tires it appears that it is approximately 7.5" higher than a stock one. The highest point besides the antenna tip is the soft top which is 78 1/4" high. My garage opening is 84" high, HMMMM. 
EDIT: I forgot to update this, but the ride height changed when Mel put the 14" coilovers up front and adjusted everything for them. The highest point of the soft top is now at 83 inches high, so it barely fits in my garage.
EDIT: I forgot to update this, but the ride height changed when Mel put the 14" coilovers up front and adjusted everything for them. The highest point of the soft top is now at 83 inches high, so it barely fits in my garage.
Last edited by Ctimrun; 12-17-2008 at 12:37 AM.
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10-10-2008, 11:17 PM
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JK Super Freak
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10-10-2008, 11:20 PM
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JK Super Freak
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No kidding, I have been working so much to pay for it I don't have any time to enjoy it! Things are winding down for the winter though, so I am hoping to get it dirty sooner than later! I have been living vicariously through all of you in the mean time, all those pics you post keep me plugging along!
I keep trying to convince my wife to let me quit my job so I can have more play time but she's not going for it. I only have about 15 years left to go.
I keep trying to convince my wife to let me quit my job so I can have more play time but she's not going for it. I only have about 15 years left to go.
10-10-2008, 11:21 PM
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No kidding, I have been working so much to pay for it I don't have any time to enjoy it! Things are winding down for the winter though, so I am hoping to get it dirty sooner than later!
I keep trying to convince my wife to let me quit my job so I can have more play time but she's not going for it. I only have about 15 years left to go.
I keep trying to convince my wife to let me quit my job so I can have more play time but she's not going for it. I only have about 15 years left to go.