1997 Jeep Wrangler TJ - Project Teal-J II, Part 18

By now, some of you are probably wondering how a magazine's project Jeep can last 10 full years and still provide valid tech information to the readers. We'll admit it; we've squeezed a lot from our Teal Princess over the last decade. Changes are evident as we've left no part of the chassis or drivetrain untouched. Now, with its 18th segment, we're looking ahead, realizing that Teal's existence as a testbed for new products isn't going to change anytime soon. And as long as we can keep from destroying her on the trail, Teal-J will remain in our stables for decades to come. Savvy readers will remember our last visit with Teal ("Part 17," Jan. '07), where we tested Fabtech's newest TJ suspension kit. Unfortunately, we couldn't live with some of the quirky wheel-lifting characteristics that the kit caused on the street, so we hit up our friends at TeraFlex to see if they had anything new in store for TJ owners. Fortunately, they did, and they were quite pleased with the opportunity to showcase it on our beloved Teal-J. So arrangements were made to move the Teal-J to TeraFlex Plus-Jeep Adventure Outfitters in Salt Lake City, after the 2006 Easter Jeep Safari in Moab. Check out what they did.

This is the complete system that TeraFlex calls the PRO LCG. "LCG" stands for Low Center of Gravity, something that we at Four Wheeler love to promote. A lower center of gravity allows for greater stability during off-camber maneuvers and high-speed driving. The PRO LCG was developed specifically for TJ Wranglers with aftermarket high-pinion front axles.	1. First, all the existing aftermarket components were removed from Teal-J. Next, the framerails were prepped so that the new LCG brackets could be located on the frame.	2. Here you can see the new passenger-side rear upper-link mount as the mechanic from TeraFlex Plus took critical measurements just prior to tack-welding it in place. Note the extra holes provided in this bracket. This allows end users the ability to adjust and fine-tune antisquat for improved handling. We love this aspect of the PRO LCG kit.
3. Here again you can see the rear upper-link bracket prior to being welded to the framerail. We recommend that a skilled and experienced welder perform these welds because the rear suspension could easily fail if they are not done correctly.	4. The PRO kit utilizes the OE front lower axle brackets but moves the frame bracket on the front upper control arms back 9 inches and down 5 inches to correct geometry on lifted Wranglers. This is where TeraFlex's extensive R&D time with the LCG PRO kit pays off and differs from other aftermarket suspension systems. An inch or 2 here changes driving dynamics significantly.	5. TeraFlex's technician laid down some decent beads for us. This particular weld is critical because it's what triangulates the passenger-side front upper-link mount on the framerail.
6. This shot shows TeraFlex's heavy-duty spherical urethane rod ends. These joints are massive and provide an excellent range of movement while damping a fair amount of road noise and vibration at the same time. Each uses a 9/16-inch bolt and is completely rebuildable. Notice the zerk fitting in the center of the bolt, which helps ensure a long working life and noise-free operation.	7. Here you can see which hole TeraFlex set the rear upper-link arms to during assembly. We haven't felt the need to alter this setting yet, though we plan to play around with it in the near future to see how each hole affects handling.	8. A custom rear triangulated axle bracket was made specifically for the rear Dynatrac axle to maintain the antisquat technology the LCG kit is known for. TeraFlex has additional options for customers with other aftermarket rear axles as well.