Gears, gears and more gears
 

Hello everyone, I have a question about gears that I am hoping some of you can help me with. I have a 2004 F150 Screw Lariat 5.4L 3V. It is dropped with a DJM setup 3.5/5 on 285/40/22's, Troyer UD pulleys, cat back setup, Edge Evo setup with level 3, AFE CAI. My question is, I am replacing the gears in the rear end (3.55 LS stock), they are making the dreaded howling sound and it's getting louder and louder everyday. I am thinking about 4.10's, 4.11's or 4.30's. Does anyone have any advice they can throw my way, or any real experience with any of these gears and a similar setup to what I have at least with tire size..... I have about two weeks until I am going to get this done, so I wanted to do some more research just to make myself feel better about what I am about to do. After I have them installed I will leave more feedback in this thread about how they feel and what not. I just want to get some input from some of you out there that have done this to your truck and what kind of mileage you are getting, what rpm's you are pulling and any other information you have regarding this topic.

Thanks in advance for any advice.

4.10 could be a little much. Those tires are only 31" in diameter which is the same as stock tires. If you want a lot of low end power with high rpms on the interstate then 4.10 will do it. But 3.73 would be a more balanced option. 3.73 would give you a little more low end power than your current 3.55, but they would till allow pretty low rpms on the interstate. I gues it just depends on how you drive the truck. If you drive 90% city and stop/go a lot then 4.10 would do fine. If you drive a lot of highway then 3.73 would probably be better

It depends on what you are after. If you are looking for a lot of low end torque go 4.10. You will wind out a little much on the highway but if you are ok with the little higher than normal RPM's I would go 4.10.

I just put 4.56 with 35" tires and kind of wish that I had gone to 4.88. I am not to concerned about a little high RPM or a little less MPG, it is a truck not a mercedes. 3.55 to a 3.73 in my personnel opinion is not worth the extra money for gearing...

GO LOW... 4.10's....

Well I kind of drive both hwy and city. My drive to work is a combined 25 miles, 11 miles of city, and the other 14 miles are hwy. I know that I should get better gas mileage in the city, but the hwy I bet is going to go down. Now what I have been reading on these forums are that if I am going to dig into the rear end and change the gears, then 3.73's should not even be considered, at least going from 3.55's. I won't get much of a difference in the way it feels. I personally agree with that opinion, and I do not mind a little more rpm in my drive, I think that it would probably be better for the motor to run at a smooth 2100 rpm rather than what has always felt like a lack of power at 1800 rpm, this is running at 65-70 mph of course. Mossy, are you running aftermarket gears in your truck? If so what size and what are your tire sizes you are running.... Thanks for the reply and your opinion.

Jerhelo, that is exactly what I am talking about. I do not mind a little extra rpm. I don't think that it is going to hurt these motors at all. They are turds out of the hole, and I think that we can all agree on that. I just want to get a little pickup in the get go, if you know what I mean....... What rpm do you think that I will be at running at 70 mph with 4.10's, or 4.11's? And does anyone know the difference between these two gear sets? They sure seem very close to each other.

4.10s would be the best, but if you can do the install yourself, then you can get a set of stock 3.73s cheap from someone who has already regeared and try them out. If you don't like them, then you can sell them and get 4.10s.

I am probably not going to do the install. There is a race shop near my residence, and I am going to use them. They have had a lot of positive reviews at least by word of mouth. Anyways, I really don't want to tear into it twice, but it's not a bad idea atr04.

I have a 6 inch lift and 35" tires on my truck. It's a 2006 4x4 with the 5.4 engine. I have 4.56 gears front and back. They are a perfect match for the 35s. They have just the right amount of low end power to easily accelerate and go uphill without having to downshift. I could have gotten 4.88s, but that seems like too much for highway. It seems to me like having too much gear would kill your highway mileage

4.10 gets my vote...

Maxwell881: Are you satisfied with how your truck drives and accelerates now, with 3.55s? Or do you wish it had more low end power for quicker acceleration? If so, how underpowered do you feel like it is, very or slightly?

I feel that it is underpowered even with the tuner set to level 3. I would like to take the truck to the track every so often. I want it to feel like its got some torque, if you know what I mean.

Sounds like you want 4.10s. They should do just what you're looking for. You'll feel the low end power for sure

So what is the difference between 4.10's and 4.11's. do the 4.11gears have just a little bit more torque?

I wasn't aware that you could get both 4.10 and 4.11. There's no difference besides the manufacturer. 4.11 technically would give you more torque, but as you can see there is .01 difference. I would choose between 4.10 and 4.11 based on price and manufacturer because there will be no difference in performance. Get whichever you can get a better deal on. Since you want to feel increased torque and take it to the track from time to time, you should be happy with either one

Yeah, believe it or not, Yukon makes a 4.11 setup for these rear ends. I myself have been looking at the Motive gears, they just seem to be more priced in my range. Also I will be buying a master install kit, and I am looking for the Timkin bearings, again that is what I have been told are the best by more than one source. If I am not mistaken, any of the master install kits that are sold for this specific rear end should work with any of the ring and pinion mfg's right?