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So many mixed thoughts on gear ratios

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Old 12-19-2012, 10:29 PM
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So many mixed thoughts on gear ratios

After a bunch of searching I have come to the conclusion that Engine to gear ratio to tire size is more of a personal opinions to most.

I've seen threads saying a 22re with 31's and 4.10 is lame and "be ready to take a hill in 3rd gear"

Then other threads saying "I use a 22re with 37's and 4.10 and go just fine..70 on the freeway is a breeze!"

Can we just clear it up once and for all?

What can one expect to get *On average* (MPG and Top speed)...

With a 22re and 31's with a 4.10 gear ratio 5spd
22re 37's 4.10 5spd
22re 31's 4.88 5spd

Add more from experience please
Old 12-19-2012, 11:36 PM
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You have to remember that with our engines being fairly low horsepower it all comes down to how fresh and healthy your engine is. Regardless if you have 900 hp you should still gear accordingly.

Last edited by Mitchell12; 12-19-2012 at 11:48 PM.
Old 12-19-2012, 11:48 PM
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Originally Posted by Cthulhu

Then other threads saying "I use a 22re with 37's and 4.10 and go just fine..70 on the freeway is a breeze!"
Show me who says this.

I had 4.10's and 33's, and it sucked. I now have a 3.4, 37's, and 4.88 gears. Juuuust right!
Old 12-20-2012, 06:42 AM
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Yeah I had 4.10's with my 33's and it was aweful. I couldn't imagine running 35+ tires with them. I regeared to 4.88's which made the biggest difference. I can actually pass people now without slowly creeping up on the side only to figure out I have to back off and get back behind them.. Climbing hills in 5th really isnt a problem either. 0-60 easily shaved off like 5 seconds plus as well.

4.10's with 31's wasn't too bad either. Worked just fine for me.

Last edited by A2theK; 12-20-2012 at 06:44 AM.
Old 12-20-2012, 07:23 AM
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I run Super Swamper Tsl SX tires. They are 38.5"x14.5" R15's in size. I have 15x10 rock crawler steel wheels. My gears are 5.29 in Toyota housings with lockers and Chromo Shafts. When I drive down the highway at 60mph on my speedometer I am actually going 63mph according to my gps. My 4runner can go 80 mph on flat ground if I floor it in 5th gear. I have no problem taking off in second and usually run mid 70's on the highway. My engine has around 4k miles because I built it this summer. According to several charts and by my own observations, my truck feels like it did when it was stock with stock tires.

Last edited by Stu Pidasso; 12-20-2012 at 07:25 AM.
Old 12-20-2012, 07:24 AM
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I had 31's and 4.10's for a time. Never really noticed a difference. I had the bfg at's which really measure out to 30.5".

I went to 35's and 4.88's and felt better than stock when I was running the factory 225's.

Now, I have 4.88's still and on new 35's powered by a 3.4. On the interstate now I wish I had 4.56's :/
Old 12-20-2012, 07:31 AM
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it really depends on motor condition and weight of the truck. my 85 4runner with 34s and 410s was the slowest thing around, 230k with steel rims and swampers, 88 22re single cab p/u with 33s on aluminumrms that were bigger than the 34s. was a lot quicker and i could use 5th on the freeway, in that the the motor was rebuilt.
Old 12-20-2012, 08:05 AM
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depends on engine really.
my 3.0 had 4.56's with 31's and 33's. not much problem. 4.88's with 33's ran great. 35's was not bad. Did have to down shift on a few hills.

Now I have a 22R in my 81 and was running 35's with 4.88s. wasen't horrible but not great. Now I'm running 4.88's and 37's with a few mods to the engine and it's ok around town and the highway but its not winning any race's. I should really be at 5.29 or even lower on the gears with 37's but I like the fact that 4.88's have a stronger pinion than the 5.29's. Im just making up the diffence on the trail with 4.7's in the t-case.

rule of thumb for most 4 and 6 cylinder toyota engines. Also depends on the trans.

31's= 4.10-4.30's
33's=4.56-4.88's
35's=4.88-5.29's
37's=5.29 or even lower like a 5.71

Hope this helps.
Old 12-20-2012, 08:06 AM
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I had an 88 with 4.10's and I put some 31" tsl's on it and they killed the truck. I needed to re-gear with those tires. They made 4 hi virtually useless. I have owned 3 Toyota trucks with 22re's now. I can say from my personal experiences running 5.29's with tires 35" and up is best for me. My speedometer is also most accurate in this configuration.
Old 12-20-2012, 06:27 PM
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Back when I had my 91, I had stock 4.10's and 31x10.5's on it. When the motor had 280k plus miles on it and was tired, pulling out in traffic quickly or holding 5th gear even over small hills or overpasses was something that would NEVER happen... would hardly get to 65-70mph on flat ground... HOWEVER, after the engine rebuild and "modifications", she could break the tires loose, chirp 2nd gear, climb (and even accelerate!) up inclines, and I actually pushed her to 95mph once! was a little scary but it did it, lol. So yeah, matching gears to tire size does make a huge difference, but so does the motor turning everything. It's a fine balance.

Last edited by iamsuperbleeder; 12-20-2012 at 06:28 PM.
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