Cruising Gears
I ♥ Acer
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 17,565
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RE: Cruising Gears
The manual tranny in high gear, whether it be a 3 speed or a 4 speed is still one to one ratio. Those 325's are not that much more than the 278's. So, changing down to a 278 won't save you much money, and the cost of making the switch will be a lot, and hard to make up with saving a little gas. Just drive what you have, and hope gas prices come down.
Thread Starter
2nd Gear Member
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 415
From:
RE: Cruising Gears
The 3.25's are worn to hell, i have to replace them anyways. Its time for a rebuild, so i might as well find sometin that will save me money cuz i'ma have to buy new ones anyways.
I ♥ Acer
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 17,565
From:
RE: Cruising Gears
OK, if all you want is top end and gas saving gears, then go with the 280's. However, if you are really wanting to save moolah for gas, and have a highway cruising gear, then you really need to add the AOD. Otherwise, you won't see much difference in the gas saving economy from the 280 to the 325, and your launch will be a little less. The 325's are a good compromise. The cost of the AOD can be made up in a little over a year with gas savings if you drive on the freeway a lot. We have a chart in the FAQ that explains that.
Thread Starter
2nd Gear Member
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 415
From:
RE: Cruising Gears
Yeah i've seen the chart. But in my situation i want to just go with something that will help me now, and wont be to high when i go with a 351. I'm not worried about performance right now, that will be compensated for later.
PS, i did the math and the change will give me a 16% gain. Therfore at 60mph i will be running at 70mph instead and at 3000rpm. So yes small gains, but it helps and wont hinder me later on.
PS, i did the math and the change will give me a 16% gain. Therfore at 60mph i will be running at 70mph instead and at 3000rpm. So yes small gains, but it helps and wont hinder me later on.
5th Gear Member
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 2,634
From: SC
RE: Cruising Gears
That's why I installed 3:55's and doing the AOD conversion..
ORIGINAL: Soaring
OK, if all you want is top end and gas saving gears, then go with the 280's. However, if you are really wanting to save moolah for gas, and have a highway cruising gear, then you really need to add the AOD. Otherwise, you won't see much difference in the gas saving economy from the 280 to the 325, and your launch will be a little less. The 325's are a good compromise. The cost of the AOD can be made up in a little over a year with gas savings if you drive on the freeway a lot. We have a chart in the FAQ that explains that.
OK, if all you want is top end and gas saving gears, then go with the 280's. However, if you are really wanting to save moolah for gas, and have a highway cruising gear, then you really need to add the AOD. Otherwise, you won't see much difference in the gas saving economy from the 280 to the 325, and your launch will be a little less. The 325's are a good compromise. The cost of the AOD can be made up in a little over a year with gas savings if you drive on the freeway a lot. We have a chart in the FAQ that explains that.
2nd Gear Member
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 477
From: 03246
RE: Cruising Gears
He clearly isn't into a auto swap so perhaps it's more appropriate to steer him into a 5-speed lol. You would have to be a crazy fool to swap the 4-speed for an auto of any kind. If all you wanna do is lower your revs at speed, put in a set of 2.80's. If the car is not a trac-loc, now is the time to make that upgrade. Every day for 20 years I wished my car was a stick, this AOD talk is nutty to me. 
5th Gear Member
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 2,634
From: SC
RE: Cruising Gears
Nothing wrong with an AOD.. If he has a 4 speed, he would need to swap over to a 5 or 6 speed to get the RPM's down. That would be the only way if he sticks with a 3:00, 3:23 or 3:55's.. That in my mind is a more expensive way then going with an AOD for getting the RPM's down. If it were me, I would stick with some 3:00 or 3:23's and be done with it. Unless you plan on doing ALLOT of highway driving, then think about a 5 or 6 speed swap. Just be prepared to spend some BIG money doing it.