Well I have some ?s I'm hoping you guy's can help me out with. I bought a 98 ford ranger 2WD 4 banger. It has the aftermarket rims on it. !5 inch rims(235/75R/15 they look bigger than stock rims I see on Rangers. The truck is running fine, but has no power to move it, it seems. It's a 5 speed manual tranny. On the highway I can't get out of my own way let alone others lol. Would regearing make a world of difference, if so what's recommended. And what gears do I probably have now? I'm really clueless.

 

maybe 3.73's look on your rearend for the tab with the numbers on it i bet youll have a 7.5 rearend but i dunno what ratio gears you might have.. but if you have 3.73's maybe upgrade to 4.10's give it a little more acceleration i think we need to call for a second opinion from someone first..

 

regearing doesnt necessarily give you more power... from what Ive gathered and seen in buddys trucks it basically lightens the load on the engine which in a sense does regain some power but not add and hp. you know? I have 33's and am gettin ready to order a 4.36 set or something around there. The only problem with higher ratios is that you lose power in higher RPMs, but you get the off the line speed up. The way I see it is that my truck and probably a lot of others dont rev past 3 or 4k anyways... but yea the more people to give advice the better...

Re gearing is one of those things that ive been dancing around for quite some time now

 

bigger gearing = more acceleration + higher rpms on highway.

lower gearing = slower acceleration + lower rpms on highway.


That tire size is only 1 size bigger than stock(at least in 01 2wd XL's). Those 2.5L's are well....slow. Let's face it....119hp at the crank. You don't need to regear...that's how the trucks are. lol. But i'd go ahead and throw in 4.10's, because we all know how L4's LOVE Rpms!

 

You may be able to tell what your gearing is by checking the sticker on your driver's side door and comparing it to the chart here: http://www.therangerstation.com/tech_library/Axles.html. The sticker will also tell you your stock tire size.

I have a 98 2.5L with a 3.45. Stock tire size was 205/75r14 (26.1"). I recently upgraded to 225/70r15 (27.4") and I've already noticed a difference in that small change. For example there are some hills on a highway near here I could go up in 5th gear at 65mph that I now have to shift down to 4th to maintain that speed on.

The 235/75r15 you're running calculates out to be a 28.9" tire, and from my experience on the small increase from 26.1" to 27.4" I would imagine the 28.9" tire on my truck would feel very slow...about borderline to get some new gears (if not 4.10 then at least a 3.73 or so).

New gears are definitely on the horizon for me when I get my next set of tires (which will be larger than the ones I currently have).

 

Thanx guy's this is what I wanted to know. Very helpful. And Jeff I know what you mean about OD, no power in that gear. Maybe a 302ci would be beneficial lol

 

Am I right in saying 4.36s for my 33s and would that be decent if i wanted 35s in the future? Theyre goin to help on MPGs too right?

 

jax depends on auto or 5 spd..a auto most of the time needs more gear then a 5 spd...i have a 2.3 and it had 215/75/14s on it stock (think its a 26.6 or so tall tire) and had 3.73s stock, then i got my 4.10s with stock size tires and could not stop spinning, got pulled over so much it was not funny plus ran 3000+ rpm at 65, gas sucked, lost about 6 miles a gallon. Then got my 31s and its kinda slow but still gets 24 mpg with steel wheels and my shifting at 3 grand, runs 2200 rpm at 60

 

Jax, with the 3.0L you will want RPMs to get best power and mileage. For 33s you would want at least a 4.56 if not a 4.88, and if planning to go to 35s definitly at least go with a 4.88 now or wait and get the 35s and go to a 5.13 with them. On the GFs '03 4.0L I'm goin with 4.88s and 35s for the best mileage and that has tons more power and likes lower RPMs than your 3.0L. There are quite a few people who run 4.88s with 33s on the 3.0L comfortably.

For kris I would suggest getting an axle from a junkyard with 4.10s in it (either a 7.5 or an 8.8) from a '93 or newer ranger and just bolting it into your truck. With tires around 28-31 inches and a 4 cyl 4.10s are about perfect. Actually with 31s to 33s 4.56s work pretty good also but for the tires you have now I think going to 4.10s would get you the best power and mileage. You should be cruising around 2800-3000 RPMs for the best mileage and life of the engine.

 

So lemme get this straight, you lost 6 mpg with 4.10s on stock tire size, but got back to normal when you put bigger tires on?

Ive got 33's now and really want to get 4.10s or 4.56 but i guess im just not sure about the gas mileage. i thought it would lower the mileage no matter what.

 

08XLT, with the 4.0L and 33s you're ideal ratio would be 4.56s for best power and mileage, it would get you back to a virtually stock ratio. But because you are 4wd remember that you will need to do both front and rear gears so be sure you are not going to go larger with your tires just after regearing, or plan and regear for the tire size you are going to be with. If you are planning to stick with 33s then I would definitly suggest going to 4.56s to gian mileage and also to extend the life of your transmission some by not having it have to slip as much to get the truck moving.

If you plan to go to 35s anytime soon though then you should think about going to a 4.88 gear instead because it cost good money to regear both front and rear and you dont want to have to pay for it to be done twice within a year or two.

 

well i have reconsidered... I get about 13 right now mpg... I plan on staying with my 33s what is the bessst gear ratio . I cant lose MPGs I drive for work.. i want power and mileage...

 

Yup i lost 6mpg with stock tires and 4.10s, but thats because of my 30 mile highway trip at over 3 grand everyday...it sucked some fuel, but i loved the power...and jax 4.56...Im going 4.30s for some extra umph but you will probably get the power and economy you want from 4.56s

 

ok cool cus I couldnt stand to lose any more miles... i would die... but today on the way to my girlfriends house i saw an F150 spin their tires at a green light and i want that... i want the power off the line too will 4 56s gimme off the line power?

 

k this thread has somewhat confused me, before going into it i thought that when i move up to 33's that my 4.10 ratio would be good? i have 30's stock and 4.10's stock, whats with that? im lost.