Any effects of smaller tires and 4.10?

[NYX]

Out of curiosity, I know that there are issues with power when going to larger tires( ex. 33s) when you have less than lets say 4.10 gears, what if you have the 4.10 which came stock with 16" wheels and now you switch to 15" and smaller tire, lets say 30" (but maybe a little wider), would there be any adverse effects in terms of onroad driving, power, accel., fuel consumption or would it just be an improvement/little change?

 

[Robert]

The factory tires that came with the 16" wheels and 4.10 axle are 30" tires. If you switch to 15" wheel, it will have no affect at all on your acceleration/performance if you stay with 30" tires. I'm not sure what size you have in mind, but the 30" tirs I've seen for 15" wheels are typically 9.5" wide. Your factory tires are 10" wide. If you do go to an overall shorter tire then your RPMs will increase by the same percentage that your tires got smaller. Depending on how much, it can lower your MPG and increase wear from higher RPMs. Your performance off the line would be quicker, but at higher speeds may drop. You would have to go to a much shorter tire though to see any real affects.