Gear Ratios

Hey Guys. My Ranger runs about 3,000 rpm going 65 mph in fifth gear. I was wondering if there was a way to bring those freeway rpms down to get better gas mileage and less wear on the engine. I know that the three gear reductions are the transmission, the differential, and the rear wheels. I was just wondering which of those three would be the most feesable to adjust to bring the gear ratios up. Thanks :icon_cheesygrin:

 

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Ok, I think I made a signature, but I'm not sure.

 

My Ranger runs about 3,000 rpm going 65 mph in fifth gear. I was wondering if there was a way to bring those freeway rpms down to get better gas mileage and less wear on the engine. I know that the three gear reductions are the transmission, the differential, and the rear wheels. I was just wondering which of those three would be the most feesable to adjust to bring the gear ratios up. Thanks :icon_cheesygrin:

 

Re-gear it.4:10s should do the trick. It will wake your truck up and be a little quicker also.

 

Putting a 4.10 differential on will bring the freeway rpm's down and make it quicker?

 

Yeah

 

I guess making the gearing higher would take better advantage of the engine's torque, and since this particular engine has more torque than horsepower that would make it quicker. How involved would swapping out for a 4.10 be?

 

You could take a rear axle out of an explorer. Just make sure it has 4:10s and is the right width. The width changed somewhere along the years on our trucks. If its the right size it will bolt on with no problem. A lot of guys do this swap. What's nice is that your truck is its 2wd so you only have to change the rear. With 4wd you have to change the front and rear. You can get an axle from a junk yard for anywhere from $100 to $300. 95+ explorers have disc brakes in the rear so that's a plus. Just make sure its the right width and has the right gears before you pull it.

 

Swapping out the entire axle sounds like a lot of work. Is there any way I could just swap out the gears inside the differential? Would that work?

 

Yeah but the explorer axle is 8.8inches in diameter where as your axle is a mere 7.5inches in diameter. It's not as much work as it sounds. I think it would be harder to just change the diff than just swap out the axle and you will be getting disc brakes in the rear as well as a way stronger axle. And you will spend about $100 at the yard for a diff and it will be way harder to get because the only ford 7.5 axle with 4:10s would be a late model fx4 level II Ranger, while there will probably dozens of explorers.

 

Thanks for the advice Hurley.

 

Has anyone out there ever tried a transmission swap for a 1989 Ford Ranger 5 speed? I just think the 5 speed is geared too low and would like some lower engine revs on the freeway with a possible higher-geared 5 speed or a 6 speed.

 

What gear ratio do you have in your ranger now? There should be a tag on the rear axle. If you can read the tag, post what it says, and we can tell you.

Lets say you have 4.10s, then if you want highway rpms lower, then you could re-gear to 3.73's. The only problem with this would be that you will have lower torque when starting off in first.

If you have a higer gear ratio, then your highway rpms will be higher.

 

I believe I have a 3.73 in my truck.

 

Not to be rude, but there was some pretty backwards stuff posted in here.

1: The explorer 8.8 is definitely not a bolt in deal. The Ranger 8.8 will bolt up, but he will have to drill and tap the yoke in order for the drive shaft to match up, otherwise, he would have to pick up a 1990 and up drive shaft from a 4.0. The 83-89 had #1210 u-joints. After that they uses 1310 or 1330, depending on how the original owner ordered it. The 1210 will not fit the 8.8 yoke, however some 7.5's had the #1310, which had the larger yoke, that will bolt up.

2: If he wants lower RPM on the hwy, 4.10's are certainly not the way to go. Since he has 3.73's he would want to go with 3.55's.

3: The 2.9 is a very small V-6, and small v6's like higher RPM's. If you're doing 65 @3500 RPM and you hit a long hill, you're probably okay. If you're doing 65MPH, and hit a long hill at 2600RPM, you'll be downshifting before you know it.

4: Being that it's a smaller V-6, and likes/needs the higher RPM to move it's self, you will lose gas millage due to bogging the engine, and more down shifting. When engines bog, they're not running at their maximum efficiency, and is VERY hard on them.

Just some of my thoughts. Take them for what you will. Always remember: Lower RPM doesn't always mean more MPG!

Regards~

-Denny

 

Thanks Denny. Its just that the high RPM's have been bugging me. 65 comes at right below 3000 rpm, and 70 is at around 3100 RPM. I guess that's ok. I'd rather have higher RPM's than have the engine bog down all the time.

 

Yeah, you're right where your supposed to be man. Hate to see you change it, and realize it was a huge mistake.

 

Yeah that's true. I won't change it, I was just curious to get some opinions on it.

 

Ha ha, honestly, the cheapest (not necessarily easiest) mod, is a lighter right foot. Unfortunately, these trucks don't really get the best gas millage. It's just part of owning a 20 some odd year old rig.

Happy motoring:thumbsup:

Regards

-Denny