I was told that its better to use ford gears when I re-gear but when I called my dealer they said they don't have a 4:56 for my truck. I have found superior and richmond which i here is good but not sure. I don't want any whine. Any input is greatly appreciated. Thanks

 

I thought ford racing had 4.56 gears

Really any of the gear manufactures has good gears. You shouldnt hear any whine out of any of them if they are installed correctly.

 

You're correct, there are only 3.55 and 3.73 ratio gear sets available from ford for our axles . Pro gear here in San Diego made two attempts at installing aftermarket 4.10 gears with no success. "Both gear sets whined/howled". I ended up having them install Ford 3.73 gears which were quiet. That's the best we can do until the aftermarket solves this problem.

 

I know for a fact ford racing has 4.10 gears. I got quoted on some last week.

 

Ford does make a 4.10 for the 9.75, even though it's not in the 04 Ford Racing catalog. They also make a 4.10 for the reverse rotation 8.8 up front. I have seen some Lightning guys who have upgraded to 4.10s in their 9.75s.

As for aftermarkets...it's tough! Some are bad, others are okay. I got a reply on Fordtrucks.com from a guy with a set of 4.56s who claims they are not noticably noisier than stock. He said the shop used Precision up front and Strange in the rear.

 

I would definitely recommend Ford Racing or Richmond...had good luck with both in the past. Most definitely stay away from "Bargains"...they will only cause grief in the long run. Cheap gears are just that...cheap.

Good luck with your swap!

 

Noob when it comes to gears here, so forgive the stupid questions. I went to the fordracingparts.com website to see what gear options they offered. It appears that with the 9.75" axle (which I think all the new F150's have?) they only offer up to the 3.73. Am I wrong in this?

Also, I am currently pulling 35" tires with the 3.55 and was looking to possibly upgrade to maybe 4.10's. My questions are:

1. How much should I expect to pay for this upgrade? Couple hundred? Couple thousand?
2. Do I have to upgrade the front gearing as well since it is a 4x4?
3. Will I still be able to travel at highway speeds (70-80mph) after the upgrade?
4. My gas mileage right now is somewhere around the 11-12mpg range because the tires seem to bog the engine down. I drive around with overdrive off because of the better performance and notice no loss in mpg as compared to using overdrive. Should I notice an increase in mpg if I do the upgrade?


Thanks everyone for your help. Love the forum so far.

 

dirtworm,

Even though it's not in the catalog, I know ford racing has a 4.10 gear set. Just do a search for the 3.73 part number by changing the "373" number with "410". You'll find people with this gear. Ford Racing does list a 8.8 reverse rotation IFS front gear set as well. You MUST replace your front gears as well, unless you never EVER plan on using 4WD. Maybe if you only used your 4WD in the sand, you could get away with it, but I wouldn't do that.

Expect to pay $900-1200. Just like the gears themselves, if you get a bargain basement quote on labor, don't expect a quality install. Gears are one install that cannot be done wrong, even in the slightest bit.

I have heard recommendations on Yukon gears as well as Precision and Strange. If you only plan on doing 4.10s, get Ford if possible.

You will actually GAIN MPG in the city because you will be putting less load on the engine for the same rate of acceleration. As for the highway, you could still do 90 mph if you want. 35" tires with 4.10s will be very close to stock with 3.55s, so you won't be any different on the highway from bone stock to 35s and 4.10s. I am planning on going to 4.10s or 4.56s on STOCK tires. It will turn just over 2500 RPM at 75 mph. This is no big deal for the 5.4...and it will make towing a dream on the highway.

 

If I go with the Ford brand gears, will a Ford dealership install them and therefor warranty the parts/labor with the factory warranty? If not, do places that install this stuff typically warranty the labor if you bring them Ford gears?

 

Go with Superior Gears..............They have worked great in our racetruck, and we do have the 4.56's.......front and rear...No problem with them at all.......no noise/whining.........Great company to support also. Really nice guys that are dedicated to the rockcrawler and off road guys.

We are trying to talk them into making 5.12's or thereabouts...........we shall see how that goes.......

Shrek

 

Desert Racer,

Thank you for the reply! I never thought about superior and they have both 4.10 and 4.56 gears for the 9.75 and IFS 8.8. I think you've helped sell me on a set of their 4.56s.

dirtworm,

Most Ford dealerships will install them, but they may charge you and arm and a leg for the work. I am not sure if they would still provide a factory warranty on ring and pinion related issues even if they do the work with Ford brand gears. You're not going to have any problems with the Ford gears as long as they are installed right.

 

I put precision in the front, strange in the read. Running 4.56 with 35s. About 500 miles now with the new gears.

On the up side, accelaration is much better, and the truck feels great! Also, I used a reputable shop for the install, and there's NO new noise.

On the down side, no increase in MPG. Maybe even a .25 MPG drop (but that could be driving style).

Bottom line is if you want better performance, go with 4.56; if you want better milage, save a grand, and go back to stock tires.

 

I have a set of Superior 4.56s for the rear and precision 4.56s for the front on order now. I am hoping to get them installed middle to end of next week. I'll report back on the install. I'm going to be a little cautious and break these gears in, unlike what I do with all of my mustangs (drag strip within 50-100 miles), so I won't have much to say about performance increases until a few weeks or so.

 

My friend went with PRecision gears in the rear and had no problem with whine. At least if he did we couldnt hear it with his Flowmaster 40's!