In late 1995, Advance Adapters, Inc., sought to venture into the ultra low 4WD gear business to satisfy the high demand that 4WD enthusiasts were looking for. With various low gear units out on the market already, we wanted to design a product that was unique - something we felt would command a market of its own. We heard of tooling and some components that were available from the early Ford Courier 4WD conversions. We felt that buying the tooling and the engineering would be a fast start for developing a low gear ratio transfer case.

With the original reworked tooling, we had produced 5 prototype units that we shipped out to chosen candidates for testing. Reports back from one prime candidate, who has a well know early Bronco, warranted the demand for a totally new design and tooling. After his first few trails we were not surprised to hear of a broken prototype. We immediately received this unit back for analyzing and found that the gear design was marginal.

To quickly get our candidate back on the trails, we shipped out another prototype unit. In the meantime, we began redesigning the Atlas to withstand the abuse that these units would be subjected to. This meant redesigning the case of the Atlas to accommodate larger gears and eliminating the original reworked tooling. Just about the time we had the Atlas I completed, we were assured of being on the right track when the second prototype failed in the burly Bronco. (He had now cracked two "peanuts"!). Fortunately, we were ready to ship the first totally new Atlas I to rescue the "peanut". Continuing close contacts with our Bronco test pilot, we are pleased to report no failures. Now, he says he is breaking other weak links like Dana 60, 35 spline axles!

With the Atlas I in production, Advance Adapters purchased a prototype vehicle of their own to aid in the further refinement of the Atlas I transfer case. This was a 1989 Jeep YJ with a 6 cylinder and Torqueflite automatic transmission. As we started installing the Atlas I into the vehicle, we realized our next set of challenges to overcome. In trying to produce the Atlas I for a wide range of vehicles, we overlooked the front driveline clearance on this particular vehicle. We lacked about a 1/2" of clearance on the Torqueflite transmission pan and had some problems with the shifter linkage serving this vehicle. To remedy these problems, we opted to retrofit a GM TH350 automatic replacing the Torqueflite to allow the Atlas I to be installed in this vehicle.

Knowing that we had to make provisions for front driveline clearance and shifter linkage, we opted once again to do some fine tuning on the Atlas I. We found that the Jeep automatics were going to be a popular application, so we decided to stretch the case 1" from centerline to add clearance for the front driveline. At the same time, we redesigned the shifter linkage to accept a modular twin stick design for the Atlas consumer. As we stretched the unit, we utilized the added space by enlarging the gears, creating a super strong transfer case.

With the Atlas II now in production, we were presented with some new applications. The Jeep Wrangler TJ series seemed to be a popular application. We were concerned with the shifting mechanisms fitting into the new TJ consoles, so Advance Adapters purchased a 1998 TJ for prototyping the Atlas II and to obtain the proper shift linkage configuration. This application and installation is previewed in the Jeep TJ Installation section of the Atlas Manual.

The Atlas II has proven to answer the gearing requests that the 4WD enthusiast was looking for. Although the unit was originally designed around the Jeeps and early Broncos, now the universal design of Atlas II enables it to fit a wide range of vehicles. Offered are two new super strong ratios of 3.8:1 low range and a 4.3:1 extreme trail ratio.

Since then, numerous upgrades have been incorporated and a wide variety of ratio options have been designed to accommodate any type of drivetrain combination. The Atlas 2 speed ratios include: 2.0, 3.0, 3.8, 4.3, 5.0 & 6.0.

Along with these 6 different ratio options, we are now producing our new 4 speed Atlas Transfer Case. Atlas 4 speed ratios include: (1.0:1 / 2.0:1 / 2.72:1 / 5.44:1) OR (1.0:1 / 2.72:1 / 3.8:1 / 10:34:1)