Mr_Roboto
Full Access Member
Depends. 4.11 with overdrive is fine. 4.11 with direct drive is miserable.
I have a automatic, I pull the tractor twice a month during the summerWith that kind of weight behind it, you really do want the 4.10 if you are going to be pulling all the time. However, I see you are in Nebraska , if you do all of your pulling there, you could probably get away with a taller rear and still be able to pull, but keep in mind that your fuel mileage when loaded will most likely go down unless you can find a sweet spot in a lower gear. You don't mention what tranny you have, but on mine with a 5 speed and 4.10, pulling a 10k 5er even on flat ground, I get better fuel mileage running in 4th and slowing down, it;ll pull 5th just fine with power to spare, but having to keep it floored to do it, just inhales fuel, it does much better dropping a gear and letting it wind up a bit.
Obviously your empty mileage will go up with a taller rear. It's just a matter of what you need to do with it. If you plan on heading out across the Rockies with that load on, you'd probably kick yourself with a taller rear, unless you put some kind of auxilliary box on there ( Brownie, Gear Vendors, US Gear ) to be able to split the gears.
I have a auto,pull it about twice a month [summer] 75mph on the highwayThe only time you notice the difference between different gear ratios is starting off. After that, the upshift happens later on relative to vehicle speed, so actuall pulling power is unchanged once you are rolling. I went from 4.10 all the way down to 3.08s and never regreted it. I pulled a load of hay on a 20' flatbead plus whatever we could heap up on the truck. Maybe that was 7000lbs, I don't know.
Steep inclines when pulling a heavy trailer and starting off are the only time I felt a difference after my swap.
3.08s have the advantage of having a similar final drive ratio in 2nd gear (C6) as 3rd gear with 4.10s. So in reality, once rolling, I had more flexibility for towing or running empty. Even at 50 MPH I can drop to 2nd gear if I want.
The question is, how often do you pull that load and at what speed? If you are at 50-55 MPH 4.10s are already ideal for a N/A IDI.
While looking for parts to rebuild my transmission, I came across a new set of planetary gears that lower 1st by 10% and 2nd by 5%. THey keep 3rd the same. Since it appears that starting off is the only real bad thing of the 3.55 gear ratio, would it be better to change the gears in the transmission? That way you get the acceleration benefits with the better gas mileage of having the 3.55's? I currently have the 4.10's and like the acceleration, but since I have to rebuild my transmission, I was thinking of installing the gear set, and changing the axle gears to the 3.55's.
Any thought on this?
Tim
Turbo and a IC is what you need
I have no problems running I80 to Reno passing traffic loaded at GVW. Bad thing is I'm usually the fastest one in the pack