OK, here come the new guy with a long post....


Truck is a Mazda B3000 (3.0 obviously) 5M with stock 4.10s and 8.8"


In the next few months I'm going to be saving a little bit of money, but I am undecided about what i want to do to the Mazda. I have read and reread all about always wanting bigger so I may just save a little more and do it all at once. I def plan on getting a Powertraxx No-Slip, really because I think it would be the most practical for mostly around town/highway driving while giving me some locking ability when I do swamp. Plus I can do the install myself and not have to pay someone to do it.


I planned on sticking to the stock rims (I actually like the b3000 DS rims) but I want to go with a 12.5 inch width so I need to get 8 inch wide rims anyway. I really like the MT Classic IIs 15x10 matched up with either 33 or 35x12.5R15 BFG ATs. Heres where the fun begins.


I am def getting spindles, aals, and shackles but here lies my first problem. Which kit? I know its either Fabtech or Doestch/Springtech/ProComp, but what is the main preference? I originally planned Doestch/Springtech/ProComp for my stock rims, but now that I'm getting new rims I can do fabtech. Which is the easier install? And better price?

Now I was just going to do a suspension lift, but while im at it why not do a 3" PA BL? How much of a PITA is a BL, I hear they can be tricky for Mazdas because of the shifter. Here in lies another problem. If i get the suspension lift AND the BL, i should def go with 35s correct? Im afraid 33s wont fill it out if I do both.

Which brings me to the 3rd ? and the topic which I above posted. If I go with 35s do I need to regear to 4.56? I would really like to avoid regearing, and I can avoid that with 33s but can I with 35s? Or will it not move out of its own way? Now when I do the math it pretty much adds up that I need 4.56 for 33s and 4.88 for 35s. I am just asking to see if anyone has done 35s with stock 4.10s and if it was a dog.


Which then brings me to the original paragraph. Can the Powertrax No-Slip handle 35s with 4.10s and a 3" spindle and 3" BL? Or do I need to look into a heavier piece like the Elocker?


Thanks for being so patient with this post, but I'd rather do everything once at once price than do it 4xs over



Thanks guys for all ur help

JerZDevil

 

i have 35in buckshot's with stock 4.10's and a 3.0.. its no speed demon.. but its not a snail either.. ull be ok but maybe after a while u'll want to upgrade.. and u wont be seeing no 16mpg with 35's and 4.10's either like some of the other guys with the 4.56's.. as far as i kno the powertrax should hold up well.. just from what i read.. i really dont kno much bout l/s-lockers

 

I would deffinetly regear soon i have a 3.0 with a 5 speed and i hated it. Going down the highway i had no 5th gear. If your already putting a LS you mite as well do gears. I have yukon 4.88s and a LS and it was well worth it. O and the fabtech spindles do work with stock rims i think they say they dont but i did it with stock rims and road around for like 2 months with the fabtech spindles and my stock rims just fine.

 

i have a 4.0 with 4.10's and 34" tires

 

ya and the 4.0 has alot more power i have a friend with a 4.0 and a 5 speed and he doesnt need to regear that back except his 4 HI kinda sux.

 

sure you can keep the 4.10's with 35's but personally i would regear to 4.56 or even 4.88

 

x2

 

Yea but im trying to do a lot of this stuff on my own and I'm not to sure about the difficulty of regearing. This is something I would prob need a shop to do right? Especially if I need to grind down the pin to fit it in and what not. I guess I'd need to see a How-To.

I wouldnt want 4.88s (gas mileage) Id prob go with 4.56s if I did. I'm not worried about the price of the gears, but more of the price to have someone install them.



One of the reasons I was going with the No-Slip is because they pretty much said its a drop in unit and takes about 3 hours to install. The No-Slip will be happening pretty soon, so I'd like to make a decision on the gearing.

 

I have the 4.0 and there is no power with 4.10's and 35's. You will need at least 4.56's for 35's

If you have stock 4.10's and 31" tires and you go to 35's the perfect gear ratio is 4.67 which is not availble and the closest ones are 4.56 and 4.88 so even with 4.56's the performance is less then stock. That plus the towing i do I went with 4.88's and i love it.

 

Ya the gears you kinda need to know what your doin and need the right tools to do it to. My 4.88s arent really that bad on gas mileage but i drive alot of city and i usally drive easty and i get about 310 to 330 miles to a tank.

I know most people with the 3.0 go with 4.88s and 4.0 guys go with 4.56s just cuz of the power difference. But i would put the 35s on and see how much different it is. I did it for a couple of months and it wasnt to bad city but high sucked and when i was off road it was pretty bad to no power.

 

like the rest have said 4.56's or 4.88 would be a better choice

 

OK this answered a lot of my ?s. Thanks guys. I mostly figured out what I'm going to do and it seems like the spindle lift and 33x12.5s seem the right way to go for me, for for now at least. I then can crank the T-Bars if I want a little more height. I dont do all that much off roading (I would love to do more) but it seems as if I may be going a little overkill for a 3.sl0w 2wd. This way I can stick to the stock 4.10s and still have a nice DD truck that can hang with most of the 4xs in the pits while having decent power and a decent MPG.



Just seems as if going to 35s over 33s brings this from like a $1750 self install project to more of a $3000+ labor & time intensive project.








LOL then again, I know I'm going to buy all this stuff, get it on, then realize I want one of 2 things.

1. A PA BL, 4.88s, an Elocker and 35s.

or 2. A new truck (Edge 4x4, prefereably zabeards )



Thanks for all the help.

JerZDevil

 

All this sounds awesome and should look sweet when you are done but why the Jersey Devil name and you live in Texas?

 

Born and raised in Ocean County, NJ. Lived in Glassboro for the past 3 years (worked in the Cherry Hill Mall) Moved down to TX about 4 months ago to help my pops recover from a stroke. Will be back in Jersey (prob Edison area) around X-Mas.

God, do I miss it!!!

 

definitely re-gear when you do the differential, you will save a ton on labor costs. I think with either 33's or 35's you'll probably want the 4.56's anyways. and to do some wheeling you'll want a new differential. so you might as well bite the bullitt on the rear.

edit: I forgot the good news, you can sell your 4.10's to some mustang folk

edit 2: i just saw you're in cibolo...thats where I live. small world.

 

Here is my $0.02:
Dont do the body lift. Put on a decent suspension kit, get 33's and a lunchbox locker, like the no slip. No need to regear with 33's. Body lifts arent all they are cracked up to be. Speaking of body lifts, they are a pita to install, not because of the shifter though. THe shifter is one of the easier parts. None of the job is very hard, just long and tedious. You have to unbolt your entire body, lift it three inches, put hockey pucks on the frame and then bolt it back up. Meanwhile you need to lengthen things-wires, hoses etc.. Dealing with the bumper was the hardest part for me. THe brackets that come in the PA kit made my bumper sag big time, so I had to make my own and it still sags, just not as much.
For 2wd suspension, you might want to do some research on DezertRangers.com.
http://www.camburg.com/suspensionprod.html
Camburg makes very nice kits.

 

yea, regear if you care that much, and are going to use them

my truck moves perty damn good with just a 3.0 and 4.10s, Altho ive done a little work to the 3.0 to get some power back...and its faster than my truck was stock. just some small loss of accel for like 30 feet and then it takes off. in the rain i can be going 20-30 and stomp on it and start going sideways. im sure its the XT's tho haha

 

hell, before i go to 35s im gonna be puttin 5.13s in to deal with not only the size of the tires, but the extra weight of them. an aftermarket 30 pound aluminum rim with a 40 pound 35 inch interco tire makes for a lot of extra weight to move...

 

^ yep.. my XT's and the steel cragars are heavy SOB's..

 

Werd!

Were you goin to Rowan? I graduated there in 03.

Back on track... I ran 33's on my Edge, 3.0 Auto w/ 4.10s was gettin ~16mpg (95% hwy) and the power was so-so. I did have the Tuner (hey you want a tuner haha) an intake, exhaust, efan, etc to help. I had been thinkin of goin to 4.56s with the 33s... And maybe down the road goin to 35s (I started gettin that BL itch... actually I had it once I got the spindles on, it went away for a bit and then it was back) Oh I also had the No-Slip and it handled that combo like a champ! And made it quite capable.

The spindles (I had the Doestch btw) and 33s w/4.10s and a 3.0 isn't a bad way to go. You'll be happy... but yeah you'll eventually get that itch to go bigger... then you'll buy a Ram hahaha

 

my truck feel just fine with the 3.0, 4.10's and the big ol 35's, i dont have any engine mods besides an exhaust and a drop in filter and i can still turn them off the line......without using the brake lol

 

and by the way i just got 14mpg with this last tank, i was driving like a complete ******* to whole time as well just to get a feel for my truck after putting on bigger tires...

 

I have 3.73's and 33's, it's fine. Same ratio as 4.10's and 35's. It's slow, but I can still hold my own when I get on it.

I need a tuner though.