" From: "Swygert, Francis G MSgt 436 CES/CECM" <Francis.Swygert3@xxxxxxxxxxxx> " " From: andrew hay <adh@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> " " " From: "Swygert, Francis G MSgt 436 CES/CECM" " <Francis.Swygert3@xxxxxxxxxxxx> " " " " The .55 OD gear is probably NOT a good idea!! The engine wouldn't be " " turning enough rpm to build any power, so 6th gear would be near " useless " " unless going down hill. With a diesel it might be better, but even " they " " need to turn a minimum rpm to produce power! Automotive diesels aren't " " like the big stationary types that produce gobs of power at 1500-2000 " " rpm -- with a redline of about 2200! " " true enough - but what if you [he] are running deep axle gears, like " 4.10s or lower? " " ------------------------- " " A good point, but then the 3.52:1 first gear is useless! First gear " reduction would be a really deep 14.43:1. I surveyed AMC cars from " around 65 to 83 and discovered that a good rule of thumb is to have " first and final gear ratios add up to about 6.5 (between 6 and 7) for a " manual transmission. Anything more than 7 is too low and anything less " than 6 is too high. For example, if running a 2.53 rear axle you need " about a 4:1 first gear for good take-off. So find a trans with a 3.5-4.5 " first gear. Automatic transmissions can get by with a lot less gear due " to the torque multiplication of the converter -- a good range is 5-6 for " an auto trans. Larger engines generally use gears closer to the lower " number, smaller ones the higher number. Weight of the vehicle has the " same effect -- heavier vehicles to the larger end of the scale. jeeps violate this rule. okay, they use taller tires - 215/75r15 is about the smallest - but the tj/xj/yj 4-cylinders run 3.93:1 1st and 4.10:1 axles. even the 4.0 runs 3.83:1 with a 3.07 axle. and the 4.0 auto with a 2.8:1 1st has a 3.54 axle. compared to these, a 3.52 1st isn't very odd. i've been looking into toyota l-series diesel engine swaps. surprisingly, the little diesels run pretty low gears, 4.30ish - pretty much the same as their gas counterparts. this is with transmissions like the jeep ones above. ________________________________________________________________________ Andrew Hay the genius nature internet rambler is to see what all have seen adh@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx and think what none thought _______________________________________________ Amc-list mailing list Amc-list@xxxxxxxxxxxx http://www.amc-list.com/mailman/listinfo/amc-list