MSD Atomic EFI Throttle-Body Carburetor Replacement
More than two years of development means consumers have little to do beyond bolting on MSD’s carburetor-eliminating awesomeness to be able to stop apologizing to their friends for stalling on every incline and climb-out. Atomic EFI fits virtually any four-barrel intake that was Holley or spread-bore-equipped with something like a Quadrabog, and it’s designed with as few connectors and wires as possible. Atomic EFI flows up to 1000cfm, and its 80-pound injectors support a broad power curve up to approximately 525 hp. It is also tunable – timing, air/fuel, etc. – and you don’t need a laptop to do it. It’s very “old-guy” friendly, with most of the prompts straightforward Yes-No answerable. Atomic EFI self-adjusts as necessary, and it’s preset for boost and the sauce. More at www.msdperformance.com/AtomicEFI.

WARN Zeon Winch
The new line of Zeon winches from Warn has a stealthy design with modern looks. Part of that appeal comes from the housing that hides wires from sight and the new motor, which is much more quieter than previous models. Improved sealing with IP68 rating keeps water, muck and dirt and mud out of important areas of the winch. The stainless-steel hardware provides corrosion resistance, while the new three-stage planetary gear train is much faster and reliable. A new aluminum drum design with larger diameter provides less wear on the winch rope and is lighter overall. The ZEON's fast line speed and low amp draw help with recovery while minimizing power strain on the electrical system. The ZEON is finished in a satin-black powder-coat finish for years of rugged good looks and durability. Learn more about WARN’s ZEON line of recovery winches at www.warn.com.

Factor 55 FlatLink E Winch Shackle Mount
We were told the “E” stands for “Expert” – folks who’ve done a lot of winching and recovery have found themselves needing additional ways to connect their shackle mount to a D-ring. With the ovoid opening in the Flatlink E, you can hook (little winching pun there) directly to the loop of a D-ring, increasing approach angles for weird pulls. Like all FlatLinks, the “E” pulls flat to your fairlead and works with steel and synthetic winch ropes. Factor 55 manufactures a lot of products for the military in Boise (Ida-Ho!), and they use the same specifications for their consumer products: the FlatLinkE uses Kaiser billet 60-61 aluminum, titanium shear pin, mil-spec hardware, and it’s designed, hard-anodized and machined in the U.S. by folks who off-road, just like us. More at www.factor55.com.

Holley HydraMat
This next item really sucks—honest. Holley’s patent pending HydraMat is solves the problems associated with traditional fuel pickups in stock fuel tanks as well as racing fuel cells. During hard cornering, acceleration, stopping, inclines, and low fuel conditions fuel runs away from the fuel pickup, which introduces air into the system resulting in poor engine performance and even stalling. HydraMat solves that. Surface tension and fluid wicking are the secrets of the HydraMat, giving it the amazing ability to draw from nearly any area that has contact with fuel and then store it in its internal reservoir. As an area of the HydraMat is uncovered, the tiny pores of the media seal off through surface tension, forcing fuel to be contained in the reservoir and drawn from other areas of the mat where fuel continues to be available. The HydraMat can pull fuel from virtually any area in the tank or fuel cell, eliminating the need for specialty reservoirs and pickup pumps, saving cost and greatly reducing complexity. HydraMats are available in various sizes and shapes to fit a variety of stock fuel tanks and/or race fuel cells.  More at www.holley.com.

The Fab School: Education in Fabrication
It’s not always about the parts – you need to know what you’re doing with ‘em.  We chatted with the folks from this Rancho Cucamonga-based fabrication and welding school because they really dig what they do and love talking about it.  Fabrication is only about 30% welding – the rest is planning, cutting, forming and fitting, all of which require learning. The Fab School has six instructors, 16 full-time staff, and more than 1000 former students who work as fabricators and welders in American business (with an estimated 70% in the off-road industry in some fashion or another), and the school specializes in training students up to the needs of modern fabrication. The Fab School offers job-placement assistance, financial aid, and accepts the GI Bill, Title IV and VA benefits. More at www.thefabschool.com. 

Smittybilt Overland Gear
Smittybilt keeps adding to their line of Overland Gear, making camping on the go more appealing for Jeep and 4x4 owners. They offer luxo items ranging from rooftop tents (RTT) that deploys into comfortable shelter in a matter of seconds to the cool Arctic Fridge/Freezer that ensures your tasty beverages stay cold the entire trip (with temperatures as low as -22°F). Smittybilt also has a number of other overloading products, such as awnings, cargo and gear storage solutions for Jeep, truck and SUV. Taking an extended trip into the wild may be the best thing you do, especially if prepared with some of these nifty items. You can find the entire Smittybilt Overland Gear collection at http://www.smittybilt.com/.
 

sPOD SourceSE
Hooking up off-road electrical accessories such as a recovery winch, off-road lights, CB, Ham Radio, fridge/freeze, GPS navigation, on-board compressor, and video equipment (to name a few) should not be difficult. The new sPOD SourceSE (Special Edition) for 2007-2016 Jeep Wrangler JK offers an eight-circuit system for controlling power to accessories on your vehicle, all from one place. The sPOD SourceSE is a fully programmable digital CAN-Bus controlled system that utilizes state-of-the-art Pulse-width modulation (PWM) technologies and features a fully programmable digital controlled system with touchscreen. Each circuit is rated @ 30 amps @ 12.5vdc and are user friendly for attaching accessories. The sPOD SourceSE is expandable and scalable up to 10 touchscreen and 32 circuits, with simple plug-n-play features (the wheels in our head are spinning at the possibilities). The sPOD SourceSE housing is made of billet aluminum and comes with OEM vehicle specific installation hardware. The best part: it’s engineered and 100% manufactured in the United States. More at www.4x4spod.com. 

SPC Performance Forged Upper A-Arm for Full-Size Nissan Trucks
You might know SPC as Light Racing; same company, different title. They consolidated to cut down on the effort of chasing two corporate names. The 100% forged upper arm sitting in the SPC booth initially drew our attention because its adjustable high-angle ball-joint got a lot of play with Tacoma/4Runner crowd. That sealed and serviceable ball-joint is now in this full-size Nissan truck part, providing the same adjustability (three-degrees camber and caster), and its flexibility helps cure the OE arm-versus-coil bucket interference problem on lifted Armadas and Titans. The SPC forged upper’s arced arms permit increased articulation as well. SPC’s arms are ideal when swapping full-size parts to pint-sized Nissans like the Frontier, XTerra and Pathfinders (back when they were still trucks). More at www.specprod.com.

DragonFire Bumpers for Can-Am’s X DS Turbo
The license-plated truck set often has a hard time getting into side-by-sides, but the stunning list of accessories made for them by U.S.-based manufacturers like DragonFire make them hard to resist – who doesn’t like a buggy that goes together like LEGOs? Straight out of Chandler, Arizona, DragonFire has released a host of new armor, bumpers, doors and bar-based-bits for the 2016 X DS Turbo in a new color of Octane Blue. It’s no good powdercoating crummy parts, however; thank goodness these U.S.-made bumpers are all ERW DOM steel, with anodized billet end caps and grade-8 stainless fasteners. The front bumper can be ordered “winch capable” and comes with integrated light tabs, and their rear bumper for the same buggy reinforces the dainty factory plastic. Parts like the front bumper only add six pounds. More at www.dragonfireracing.com.

HPS Performance Silicone Tubing for Toyota (and Most Other) Trucks
You know your pals, and you know how they maintain their rigs (or don’t...).  Some guys fix things as soon as possible, and others like to wait until hoses burst in Guatemala to replace them. Why not get ahead of a radiator or cooling fail and have a reinforced silicone tubing kit ready to go? Better yet, incorporate an R&R in your next underhood adventure. We were having that exact argument with Off-Road.com’s Jaime Hernandez when we ran across City of Industry-based HPS’s FJ-80/Cruiser parts display, but HPS doesn’t just do FJs or Toyotas. HPS’s parts list is a mile long (including XJs, TJs, JKs and a load of other trucks without a “J” in their chassis code), and all will replace one-ply rubber with three-ply silicone that resists pressure spikes, and can withstand higher temperatures and the overall effects of being under the hood of your trail beater better than OE-style rubber. More at www.hps-siliconehoses.com.

What was your favorite piece from the Off-Road Expo? We want to know.

2015 Off-Road Expo Highlights