4.10 vs 3.55

[Mr_Roboto]

Depends. 4.11 with overdrive is fine. 4.11 with direct drive is miserable.

 

[In2Fords]

I just picked up a 86 F350 with a 4 speed and 4.10's

I just know Im going to be hating life on long trips!!

 

[lgettler]

I have a 1990 ford IDI 7.3, E4OD with 3.55 and I pull a 10k 5er and have for the past 2 years (even in those puny Colorado Rockies)a bunch of miles and the old ford is still running as good as ever. what you are saying that is a mistake. I should not pull more than 3000 lbs. I seen a ford F150 gasser, pulling a 5er the other day Maybe I need to trade the f250 Diesel for a gasser.

 

[92F350CC]

Not saying you shouldn't, just saying that 4.10's are nicer. It's like saying a small-block gasser will pull a trailer, but a diesel will do it longer and better.

 

[RKOCH]

I have never had an overdrive in anything they have all had C-6's and 4.10's or lower and it has never bothered me.

 

[ne buckeye]

With 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 automatic, I pull the tractor twice a month during the summer

 

[ne buckeye]

The 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.

I have a auto,pull it about twice a month [summer] 75mph on the highway

 

[schoelta]

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

 

[trackspeeder]

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

This is the gear set from the E4OD. The gear set will make the C6 shift nicer with a load on it.

 

[NJGearhead666]

I have 3:55 in my rig and drag my car trailer behind it. its great on the highway but getting going is a slug especially when on a hill. Does anyone know what is the first gear ration in a E4OD?

 

[icanfixall]

Why yes... Yes i do... With the 4.10 gear and an E4OD first is 11.11. Second is 6.31. Third is 4.10 and in OD its 2.91. With 3.55 its first, 9.62 second is5.47 third is3.55 and OD is 2.52. Now a C6 with 4.10 is first 10.09 second is5.99 third is 4.10. With a C6 and 3.55 first is 8.73 second is5.18 and third is 3.55. All this gear info and more can be found on the Gear Vendors web site. They have it for the T-19 M6hd 6 speed the zf 5 speed and the 5R110W 5 speed auto overdrive.

 

[Mont91]

I think you would like the 3.55s and probably the 3.05s doing what you're doing. I would be careful about towing in overdrive at low RPMs due to low pressure/volume. My rig seems to like about 2500rpms when pulling hard.

 

[supervert]

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

turbo is on the list of stuff to do, it will be done before i waist money on gears.

 

[schoelta]

Well I Think I've figured out what I am going to do. I am going to install the lower gears in the transmission, and then install new gears in the axles. However, instead of going all the way down to 3.55's, I will install 3.73's. Here is then what the gear ratios will be:

Old 4.10's New 3.55's with lower trans gears
--------- -------------------------------
1st 10.09 10.11
2nd 7.87 7.89
3rd 4.10 3.73

I figure this way I can still keep the acceleration of the 4.10, actually slightly better, but get a little better gas mileage with the 3.73's. Pricing things out, the over drive unit is almost $2600. I can change the gears in both axles and add a posi in the read for just over $1000. Granted I won't get the full benefits of having a full OD unit, but I think this is a great compromise.

 

[Greg Pettit]

I am running a low gearset in the C6 in my Torino. The gearset is the first and second gears from an E4OD. They do not simply drop into a C6 case, there is some machining and some work involved.

The E4OD first gear ratio is 2.72 IIRC, and the C6 is 2.45 IIRC. It makes a difference, but probably not enough in your case.

I ran 4.10's in my great running turbo IDI with a 5 speed, and it didn't take long to realize that the 4.10's were in there for a reason.

My powerstroke runs 3.55's with no trouble, though, pulling the same loads as the IDI....just at a little lower RPM.

A gear swap is a LOT of work for little gain IMHO. Going up to a taller tire can net the same results, and if you don't like it you can always go mack to a shorter tire.

Good luck,

Greg