Tereflex Quick Disconnect Install
11-30-2007, 04:09 AM
#1
JK Jedi Master
Thread Starter
Teraflex Quick Disconnect Install
Teraflex has redesigned their JK quick disconnect kit to support multiple models of Jeeps. Because of that, there has been some confusion as to which parts to use, and exactly how to do the install. Based on info provided by Teraflex here on JK-Forum, and based on my own changes to their instructions, here's how I did the install. YMMV.
A COUPLE NOTES FIRST:
1. All images here are of the driver's side, but you will need to repeat the procedures on each side as you do the install.
2. The air dam gets in the way. I decided that permanent removal would be good, so just used my drill and a 1/4-inch bit to drill out them screws that don't unscrew. It was necessary to jam a screwdriver under some of them because they started spinning with the drill. Removal took about two minutes this way, but if I wished to reinstall I'd have to replace the plastic screws and plastic nut plates. BTW: If you do this, pick up the remnants of the plastic before doing the quick disconnect install. I had them all tangled up in my hair (it's long, I have a ponytail) before I was done with the rest of the mod! LOL.
3. Before beginning the install you'll need to remove one of the bushings from one end of each quick disconnect. I used a 3/8-inch ratchet extension as a drive punch and gently tapped with a hammer on the bushing. It came out very easily--you won't have to use that Craftsman lifetime tool warranty for this job!
4. I have a pretty extensive workshop, and was surprised to find that several of my socket sets didn't have the required 18-mm socket. Neither did my combination wrench set. However, I did find one socket, and I have a set of open end wrenches with one. and I also have one on the GearWrench four-size ratcheting wrenches. Bottom line: You will want an assortment of 18 and 19-mm tools. And you will really love an 18-mm ratcheting wrench if you have one: Beg, borrow or . . well, don't steal it, but you really will wish you had one. Attempting this with adjustable wrenches could result in rounded nuts because some of this hardware is very tight.
STEP--BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS
1. Remove the old sway bar link from both sides. In removing the old sway bar link, be aware that the nuts for the bolt (on the bottom) and the stud (on the top) are not the same size. And these nuts are self-locking, so they will stay tight until almost completely removed from the threaded shaft. The TF kit requires that you reuse the bolt on the bottom after repositioning it to the top. They provide a new nut for that purpose, but more on that in a moment. For now, just don't get the two old nuts mixed up--you will damage hardware if you happen to mix them up while trying to follow my instructions.
Here are the nuts for removing the old sway bar link:
They look the same size, don't they? They are not, though they are very close. Because they are self-locking, you expect them to get pretty hard to turn as you thread them on. I didn't bother to measure them with a thread gauge, but I think one is coarse and the other is fine thread. That means that either will thread on either bolt/shaft, but will get hard after a turn or two. Which is almost exactly what you expect of self-locking hardware (more like four or five turns before it should get hard to turn). Be sure to not get the two nuts mixed up if you plan to follow my instructions!
2. TF provides a bracket and a small pin which are used to secure the quick disconnect when it's disconnected. You will need to assemble the small pin to that bracket. It won't seat all the way very easily. I recommend you place the bracket in a vice, then use a 9/16" wrench to tighten the pin into it (see image). I really cranked on that pin, but was unable to completely close the gap between the shoulder on the pin and the bracket. Just be sure that you're satisfied the pin won't back out on its own--you wouldn't want to have it fall off while tooling down the highway.
3. The bracket attaches to an existing stud coming through the body below the radiator. Remove the old nut (shown removed in the image), then install the bracket re-using the old nut. To help you properly align the storage pin and bracket, loosely attach the quick disconnect to the sway bar and its storage location on both sides (as if disconnected) before tightening up the hardware.
4. Install the quick disconnect to the sway bar. You will use the bolt which you removed from the bottom of the original sway bar link. TF provides a new nut for this bolt, but I found that it was extremely hard to turn. Plus, the bolt is about 1/2-inch longer than it needs to be. After fussing with that for about five minutes and still not being half-way down the shaft all the while thinking to myself that I had to repeat this for the other side as well, I decided to retry the old nut. It went on a lot easier. JUST BE CERTAIN TO REUSE THE CORRECT NUT! And, if the nut isn't somewhat hard to turn (the self-locking action is worn out), then you will need to use new TF hardware. Also, it has been mentioned here on JK-Forum that this bolt can cause damage to a tire during aggressive driving. So be certain to install it such that the bolt faces away from the tire (study the image). Even this way, I'm not real happy with the additional length of the bolt--It is very close (about 1/16") to the body sheet metal when the sway bar is connected. I'm toying with the idea of cutting it shorter (more on doing that below).
5. Install the lower quick disconnect pin (the large pin in the kit) where the original sway bar link was attached. TF instructions use just a nut and split ring washer for this install, but the kit includes a flat washer that fits properly. So I used the nut, flat washer and split ring washer. Be certain that you turn the pin such that you'll have the modified hitch pin oriented to conveniently pull and install it. Unlike the top pin (which has two holes at 90 degrees), this pin has only one hole.
6. Apply grease at the Zerk fittings and you're ready to disconnect and crawl. I found that it takes about one minute to do the disconnect--lots quicker than getting out the tools and fussing with that self-locking hardware!
7. Now that you're completely finished, take stock of what parts you have left. It should look something like this (including what you removed, as well as what TF provided that you didn't need):
8. What's left to do: I'm toying with the idea of shortening those two bolts, as I mentioned before. I don't like how close they ride to the metal. Rule of thumb is to have two complete threads past a tightened nut. And there are at least six or seven threads. So, I will probably remove them, put them in a vice, thread a nut down over them, use a cut-off wheel to shorten the bolts, then remove the nuts (to restore the threads).
A COUPLE NOTES FIRST:
1. All images here are of the driver's side, but you will need to repeat the procedures on each side as you do the install.
2. The air dam gets in the way. I decided that permanent removal would be good, so just used my drill and a 1/4-inch bit to drill out them screws that don't unscrew. It was necessary to jam a screwdriver under some of them because they started spinning with the drill. Removal took about two minutes this way, but if I wished to reinstall I'd have to replace the plastic screws and plastic nut plates. BTW: If you do this, pick up the remnants of the plastic before doing the quick disconnect install. I had them all tangled up in my hair (it's long, I have a ponytail) before I was done with the rest of the mod! LOL.
3. Before beginning the install you'll need to remove one of the bushings from one end of each quick disconnect. I used a 3/8-inch ratchet extension as a drive punch and gently tapped with a hammer on the bushing. It came out very easily--you won't have to use that Craftsman lifetime tool warranty for this job!
4. I have a pretty extensive workshop, and was surprised to find that several of my socket sets didn't have the required 18-mm socket. Neither did my combination wrench set. However, I did find one socket, and I have a set of open end wrenches with one. and I also have one on the GearWrench four-size ratcheting wrenches. Bottom line: You will want an assortment of 18 and 19-mm tools. And you will really love an 18-mm ratcheting wrench if you have one: Beg, borrow or . . well, don't steal it, but you really will wish you had one. Attempting this with adjustable wrenches could result in rounded nuts because some of this hardware is very tight.
STEP--BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS
1. Remove the old sway bar link from both sides. In removing the old sway bar link, be aware that the nuts for the bolt (on the bottom) and the stud (on the top) are not the same size. And these nuts are self-locking, so they will stay tight until almost completely removed from the threaded shaft. The TF kit requires that you reuse the bolt on the bottom after repositioning it to the top. They provide a new nut for that purpose, but more on that in a moment. For now, just don't get the two old nuts mixed up--you will damage hardware if you happen to mix them up while trying to follow my instructions.
Here are the nuts for removing the old sway bar link:
They look the same size, don't they? They are not, though they are very close. Because they are self-locking, you expect them to get pretty hard to turn as you thread them on. I didn't bother to measure them with a thread gauge, but I think one is coarse and the other is fine thread. That means that either will thread on either bolt/shaft, but will get hard after a turn or two. Which is almost exactly what you expect of self-locking hardware (more like four or five turns before it should get hard to turn). Be sure to not get the two nuts mixed up if you plan to follow my instructions!
2. TF provides a bracket and a small pin which are used to secure the quick disconnect when it's disconnected. You will need to assemble the small pin to that bracket. It won't seat all the way very easily. I recommend you place the bracket in a vice, then use a 9/16" wrench to tighten the pin into it (see image). I really cranked on that pin, but was unable to completely close the gap between the shoulder on the pin and the bracket. Just be sure that you're satisfied the pin won't back out on its own--you wouldn't want to have it fall off while tooling down the highway.
3. The bracket attaches to an existing stud coming through the body below the radiator. Remove the old nut (shown removed in the image), then install the bracket re-using the old nut. To help you properly align the storage pin and bracket, loosely attach the quick disconnect to the sway bar and its storage location on both sides (as if disconnected) before tightening up the hardware.
4. Install the quick disconnect to the sway bar. You will use the bolt which you removed from the bottom of the original sway bar link. TF provides a new nut for this bolt, but I found that it was extremely hard to turn. Plus, the bolt is about 1/2-inch longer than it needs to be. After fussing with that for about five minutes and still not being half-way down the shaft all the while thinking to myself that I had to repeat this for the other side as well, I decided to retry the old nut. It went on a lot easier. JUST BE CERTAIN TO REUSE THE CORRECT NUT! And, if the nut isn't somewhat hard to turn (the self-locking action is worn out), then you will need to use new TF hardware. Also, it has been mentioned here on JK-Forum that this bolt can cause damage to a tire during aggressive driving. So be certain to install it such that the bolt faces away from the tire (study the image). Even this way, I'm not real happy with the additional length of the bolt--It is very close (about 1/16") to the body sheet metal when the sway bar is connected. I'm toying with the idea of cutting it shorter (more on doing that below).
5. Install the lower quick disconnect pin (the large pin in the kit) where the original sway bar link was attached. TF instructions use just a nut and split ring washer for this install, but the kit includes a flat washer that fits properly. So I used the nut, flat washer and split ring washer. Be certain that you turn the pin such that you'll have the modified hitch pin oriented to conveniently pull and install it. Unlike the top pin (which has two holes at 90 degrees), this pin has only one hole.
6. Apply grease at the Zerk fittings and you're ready to disconnect and crawl. I found that it takes about one minute to do the disconnect--lots quicker than getting out the tools and fussing with that self-locking hardware!
7. Now that you're completely finished, take stock of what parts you have left. It should look something like this (including what you removed, as well as what TF provided that you didn't need):
8. What's left to do: I'm toying with the idea of shortening those two bolts, as I mentioned before. I don't like how close they ride to the metal. Rule of thumb is to have two complete threads past a tightened nut. And there are at least six or seven threads. So, I will probably remove them, put them in a vice, thread a nut down over them, use a cut-off wheel to shorten the bolts, then remove the nuts (to restore the threads).
Last edited by Mark Doiron; 04-13-2010 at 10:44 AM. Reason: Corrected spelling on Teraflex (wasn't searching!)
12-01-2007, 12:30 AM
#2
JK Super Freak
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Great write up!
My wife is looking for a good jeep related Christmas gift for me this year and I'm thinking of the Teraflex disco's. Just curious though, since I've been comparing them to the JKS ones, it appears the TF disco's have a built in way to secure the sway bar once disconnected, where as the JKS ones do not. Is this true, or am I making a false observation. I've heard great things about both, but the built in securing method could make me lean toward the TF disco's. Thanks!
My wife is looking for a good jeep related Christmas gift for me this year and I'm thinking of the Teraflex disco's. Just curious though, since I've been comparing them to the JKS ones, it appears the TF disco's have a built in way to secure the sway bar once disconnected, where as the JKS ones do not. Is this true, or am I making a false observation. I've heard great things about both, but the built in securing method could make me lean toward the TF disco's. Thanks!
12-04-2007, 10:03 AM
#3
JK Jedi Master
Thread Starter
I can't speak for the JKS, but the TF disco's definitely do. You swing the disco's up (they're still connected to the sway bar, so you'll be pulling that up, too) to that bracket that you placed on the bottom of the radiator tower. That holds the sway bar up. Secure them using the modified hitch pin that you removed from the lower link mounting location. You can see that in the fifth picture down in my write-up. A word of caution, however: There have been comments that with the swaybar stowed raised, it may interfere with wheel travel in aggressive driving situations. That's why I reversed those bolts. But, I don't know if that simple step is sufficient to prevent tire damage.
12-04-2007, 02:09 PM
#6
JK Super Freak
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Thanks for the info guys! I would imagine that I'll be checking this thread out again on... oh.... I'd say the afternoon of December 25th after I unwrap my disco's.
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02-07-2008, 12:12 PM
#8
JK Super Freak
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It depends on which disco's you get, but Teraflex makes them to work on stock rigs. They do ones that are for 0"-2" of lift, and then a 2"-4" lift (I believe) version.
As long as you get the 0"-2" version, they will work on a stock JK no problem. They are longer than the links that are on there now, but that doesn't cause a problem.
As long as you get the 0"-2" version, they will work on a stock JK no problem. They are longer than the links that are on there now, but that doesn't cause a problem.
08-24-2008, 04:26 PM
#9
JK Super Freak
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I like these ok but the bottom bolt with the Cocker pin on mine busted today! Didn't notice until i was driving and I got a couple good leans in! Hopefully it was just a fluke.....
