Question on street gears

[Fly Boy]

I know that this topic probably has been beaten to death but here it is again. I would like some input on a good gear for the street. I have 3.23 gears in the Cuda but I am replacing the complete rear end with a shorter one and thought it would be a good time to upgrade. The car has a 440 Six-Pack engine, Hughes 3038 Cam, 9.7 Compression Ratio, Dynamic 2800 stall converter, TTi Headers and 28" Tires. I was thinking of a 3.55 or 3.91 ratio. Any comments will be appreciated.

[bbaspense]

I run 3.91 with a 26 inch tire and it is a little much. That gave me a 3000 at 60mph cruising.

I would go with the 3.55.

Jason

[karfixer]

With 28" tires I'd lean toward the 3.91's, but to get a better idea of what RPM you'll be turning go to www.ring-pinion.com and there is a calculator to play with.

[383-man]

I also use 3.91,s with 26 inch tires and I like em but I dont do alot of highway cruisin and if you have 28 inch tire it wont be as bad but if you like driving the highway alot the 3.55,s might be your choice but if you want more out of the hole and dont do much highway driving then go with the 3.91,s !

[Larry]

Fly Boy If I was just going to play with it, not take it out on trips I would have to go with the 3.91's. but if I even thought I might take it on the road I would stay with the 3.55's. Or you could do what I did years ago and have a couple of different rears set up and swap them as needed. It really wasn't that much work. Went through a lot of gear oil though. Good Luck, Larry

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71 Charger SE 440 4spd
71 charger 383
71 Charger SE 383

[Mr. Belve]

I run 3.55's and I can drive on the freeway. You have enough torque that it won't matter that much. I also had to make that choice last year and I'm glad I went with them. If you are gonna go run at the track throw in a set of 4.10's for the weekend.

[PRO]

I like 3,91s,with a 28" tire your corrected ratio is 3.66 for daily duty,when you go to the strip bolt on some 26" slicks for a true 3.91 ratio,all mopar car gear ratios are based on 26"..........PRO........

[GP Hemi]

Go with the 3.55. You won't like the 3.91; too low unless you run a 29" tire. I ran 3.91's on my '63 Max Wedge and it made freeway travel difficult. I now run 3.55s in my '65 Race Hemi and I love them. But my Hemi makes over 700 ft. lbs. of torque so the "tall" gears don't hinder performance. Your motor will easily handle the taller gear.
Enjoy!

[rumblefish360]

Typeing from been there done that land....I'd do what PRO said. A nice wide slick for the strip will get ya goin.
A 60 series street tire for daily duty.

[Dart]

I second PRO's response.

[Chargerchuck]

I would base the gear choice on how much fwy driving you're doing. I would also question whether switching from 3.23 to 3.55 would make that much of a difference in performance to justify the expense. I currently have 3.91s and think they are a mixed blessing. They are great on the street. But if you want to cruise on the fwy be prepared to do around 3000 rpms at 60mph. With everyone else doing 70-80, that can be nerve wracking.

[Fly Boy]

Thanks for all of the great replies. I think I will Replace the 3.23 gears in my pig with a set of new 3.91 gears to play with, and look for a 3.55 pig at the Nationals this summer incase I plan a trip. I think it will be Easier to find a 3.55 set up than a 3.91 in the swap area. Plus I drive maybe 100 miles at the most on the Highway all summer. Most of my driving is in town because I live 3 miles from work and 1 mile from the main cruse area. Back in 1973-76 I ran 4.56 gears in my first 440 Cuda and thought nothing about it. It sure is funny how things change when we get older, Or is it our cars?

[Chargerchuck]

Fly Boy, I did 160 miles on the fwy round trip yesterday, and I didn't think it was that big of a deal either. It would be great to have a 3:55 unit sitting around in case you want to swap it out for some higher speeds. Good luck.

[NitroMethane]

I don't know about you guys, but I run 3.23s in my net, and I'm looking for an overdrive. 3 grand at 60? I thought 3 grand at 75 was a little high...Maybe I just drive too fast.