JRichard

Thinking of replacing stock gears, what gear ratio would you recommend? Also approx. cost for gears and installation. 4:10 or 3:73?

JimC

You will be money ahead just finding a take off 8.8 rear end and swapping it for the 7.5. By the time you buy the gears - and might as well put the tlok in while it is apart - and the installation cost you will be spending almost as much, if not more, than swapping rear ends. When I tried to build the 7.5 I found, after breaking it anyway with a tune, CAI and drag radials, that the take off 8.8 rear end was less than I had spent trying to build the 7.5

Nuke

+1 on replacing the stock rear.

Depending on how you use your car is the biggest factor in gear selection. If you do much highway driving, you won't like winding out the engine with the higher RPM's and lower fuel economy with 4.10's. 3.73's would certainly still be noticeable performance-wise assuming you have the stock 3.31's, with a minor "hit" to fuel economy. If you track, you need to look at where your shift points are. No sense adding an additional shift.

JRichard

Thanks Nuke, I believe I will pursue the 3:73 gears!

Stang-aholic

depends what you want to do with your car... also if you plan on running a larger rear tire diameter (for the drag car look i.e ~28" dia) then get the 4.10s other wise you will be very happy with 3.73s on a DD. I run 3.73s in my 8.8 as a DD and its great, fuel economy of course takes a lil dip, but its still manageable if you can keep your foot out off the floor! hahaha

JRichard

Thanks, think I'll go with the 3.73's

157dB

3.73s will make yor 5th gear look like your 4th gear.
I was going to do the swap and did the math.
I have put the stang into 5th gear ONCE since I
bought her new. I drive in 4th most of the time
so this 3.73 swap would have been great for me.
4.10s and you loose the ability to drive the
interstates without sucking some serious gas
and turning everything (alt. A/C water pump,
steering pump, belt, tensioner, idler pullys)
faster and that wears them out faster.
Now that you have more torque to the rear
wheels with 4.10s this means wider tires
and maybe a 7.5" T-Loc to get that new
found torque to the ground.
It will be a one tire frier if not.
3.73s would not so bad with 275s in the traction dept.

This is all based on stock tire diameter or
roughly 750 revs/mile.

215/65R16 STOCK
747 REVS / MILE

235/55ZR17 STOCK
742 REVS / MILE

235/50R18 STOCK
740 REVS / MILE

275/40R18
756 REVS / MILE