Feature > Manufacturer Profiles
Performance Accessories
Growing With the Industry
story by Steve Temple
Jerry Presley, Steve Rezek and Butch Madigan
Avid off-roaders list all sorts of reasons for lifting a 4x4: Better clearance so your engine vitals won’t be disemboweled by can-opener rocks; more space for larger, tires; improved approach and departure angles. Not only that, even when you aren’t off-road, you can see over traffic on the freeway, and the stance looks really cool. These are just a representative handful.
One really good source for lifts can be found at Performance Accessories Group, a leading company in the body-lift industry. And now, with the company’s recent acquisition of Trail Master, it’s staking its claim as a leader in the suspension lift industry as well.
But, back to the beginning. Like most entrepreneurial leaps, Performance Accessories started with one man realizing a distinct need and filling it. Jerry Presley owned a retail tire and wheel store in Oxnard, California in the late ’70s. With an eye to keeping his 4x4 customers happy, Presley could see the advantages of rugged, custom-designed body lifts. The extra clearance would not only serve his customers well over rock-strewn terrain, but also would open up those cramped wheel wells for the over-sized wheel/tire packages that he offered. He started developing body lift kits for Chevy, Dodge and Ford pick-ups in the back of his tire shop.
Just four years later, Presley sold his tire/wheel shop and re-located to the resort area of Lake Havasu City, Arizona in order to concentrate on the off-road industry. The new business included an off-road shop and facilities for body lift kits.
In these early days, a lot of the component production was outsourced to other manufacturers. Presley recognized that the long-term success of Performance Accessories rested on the highest possible quality control. So, the next step was to assume total responsibility for the product, from concept through the design and manufacturing stages.
In addition, the business was growing out of the Lake Havasu location. The next, and final, change of address was in 1991 to Chino Valley, Arizona to a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility. Performance Accessories has kept growing, requiring new building construction every year for the past five years.
Quality control remains the benchmark of Performance Accessories. Every lift kit is prototyped in-house to guarantee a custom fit and the highest degree of safety. The manufacturing facility produces all of the components, except the nuts and bolts. From the high-grade reinforced nylon used in the company’s injection molding department to the steel in the custom-machined steering shaft extensions, the company’s standing rule is to use only quality materials.
The facility includes state-of-the-art equipment, like laser turrets, robotic welders and metal benders. They mass-produce lift kit components that fit with the same precision as the original one-at-a-time kits Presley machined more than 25 years ago.
While Presley still serves as Performance Accessories’ CEO, his daughter Heather Shell is now company president. Keeping with the sense of a family and familiarity, long-time friend Steven Rezek holds down the vice president position. Rezek was instrumental in working with Presley during the transition from outsourcing to in-house manufacturing.
“From the beginning,” Shell notes, “my Dad told us the company had to take care of its customers and put out a great product. We’ve always done whatever had to be done to satisfy our customers.”
For instance, zinc plating is done in-house to protect the components against rust. A urethane pouring line is manufacturing gap guards that further protect the vehicle and enhance its appearance. Next year, a powder-coating facility will be added, the final step in production, but not the last improvement in the company’s product line.
In recent news, Performance Accessories purchased Trail Master Suspension in April of this year, and then moved the operation from Corona, California to Chino Valley, near Prescott. What prompted the transaction?
“Ever since I was a child, my Dad always preached how Trail Master was the top in the industry,” explained Heather.
“The new slogan for Trail Master is ‘Back with Attitude,’” says Shell. “The plan is to bring the same customer service and quality control to the Trail Master product line.”
So now, in addition to a full range of body lift kits, Performance Accessories also manufactures Smooth-Ride suspension lifts, the popular O-R Fab line of protective accessories for Jeeps, shock absorbers, leveling kits and shackle sets.
For the uninitiated, with a body lift, the frame is lifted two to three inches with no alteration of the stock suspension, an important safety aspect. The factory suspension remains on the vehicle and the ride characteristics are not changed.
If all you really need to do is smooth your ride, Performance Accessories makes a line of Stability Series shock absorbers designed to flatten out the roughest road. The shocks incorporate an oversized double-wall cylinder with expanded fluid capacity to minimize the internal temperature of the unit. This, along with a 5/8-inch diameter double chrome rod, 1-3/8-inch piston, polyurethane bushings, black polyurethane boot and ten-stage valving, provides a smooth and stable ride.
The growing line of O-R Fab Jeep products includes a sport cage that fits both hard and soft top Jeeps with door surrounds. The black powder-coated cage provides safety for the truly hard-core off-roaders with a cage that doesn’t block air conditioning/heater vents or widow cracks. The package includes all the necessary hardware for bolt-on/no-drill installation and offers an optional overhead streamer bar and floor support kit. For the ideal finishing touch, Performance Accessories offers a fitted, padded sport cage cover to match Jeep soft-tops.
The O-R Fab front bumpers allow for extreme approach and departure angles and can also be used as a Hi-Lift jacking point. The bumper protects the Jeep’s front fenders without “blicking” oversized tires and can accommodate up to four off-road auxiliary lights and most aftermarket winches. The rear bumper has a close, body-wrapping fit that protects the lower rear quarters and accepts a 2-inch clevis hook. Both bumpers are made of extra heavy-duty 0.140-wall steel.
Jeep TJ owners know that this model pretty much leads with its steering box. So Performance Accessories has a custom steering box skid plate made from 3/16-inch steel. For additional protection, the O-R Fab line includes bolt-on rock slider sidebars and rocker panels specifically designed and manufactured with rock crawlers in mind. The ORF tire/can carriers hold two Jerry cans plus a spare tire up to 39-inches in size, includes a CB antenna mount and, has a load rating of 175 pounds. The carrier’s heavy-duty hinge and internal mount brackets close with a 50-pound lockable draw latch.
One of Performance Accessories’ most innovative additions is the Step-On-It Jeep Rocker Protection, combining stem-to-stern ding protection and retractable step. Once the driver or passenger is in the Jeep, the step automatically returns to its original position. Step-On-It works with 2-inch body lifts and all Performance Accessories suspension lifts.
So, whether you’ve got a Jeep that needs extra protection as well as a little dressing up, a 4x4 that needs clearance to accommodate a new set of mudders, or a pick-up that needs sturdy shocks or leveling, look to Performance Accessories Group. You’ll be getting the kind of quality required by hard-core off-road enthusiasts.
Source: Performance Accessories • 3651 N Highway 89 • Chino Valley, AZ 86323 • 928-636-7080.
Buy Performance Accessories from www.4wheelparts.com.