Swapping 4.10's for 3.27's but have some questions

[brickwall]

So like all of us with the 4.10 gears my ex is terrible on gas for highway driving. I get around 350 Kilometers(220 miles) per tank. I'm going to be doing more highway driving now and wondering if putting a set of 3.27s will get any better mileage and also while swapping out the axles what else will i need to swap out. I have a donor truck so just curious as to what else I need to swap.

Thanks,
Lee

 

[Dan Whitaker]

I'd be willing to bet it gets worse with the 3:27 gears. Explorers are heavy and the V6 needs the torque the 4:10 gears provide to get it moving.

 

[fordpower1989]

i would go somewhere in between and put like 373's u wont lose all that torgue of the 410 and can possibly gain some gas mileage. i have 355s and dont get the best gas mileage ever not too much more than u i am swapping to 373s soon

 

[Willard]

You don't want 3.27's. 3.73's are best for gas mileage. But you shouldn't be doing that bad with 4.10's either. My 94 with lots of miles and some current problems and 3.27 gears still gets around 17 mpg. But if I could get lower gears I would. The 3.27's suck for torque, and I could only imagine that getting something lower would be better for mileage with less stress on the drivetrain.

 

[MrQ]

The 3.27's suck for torque, and I could only imagine that getting something lower would be better for mileage with less stress on the drivetrain.

Try a 3.08

 

[IZwack]

It all depends on you're driving habits and the terrain. 3.27's will be just fine as long as you accelerate slowly. Also keep in mind that the original poster has a Sport - slightly lighter than the 4-door models.

 

[CDW6212R]

Ford learned in the early 90's that higher gear ratios(that OEM was installing) do better for fuel economy in most driving. My 93 Explorer with 3.73's got better mileage all of the time than my 91 Explorer with 3.27's, both 4WD.

I don't know what difference the 3.55:1 would make, but 3.73's are likely the best all around gear ratio. If you literally hardly ever drove in city traffic, I'd go to a 3.55:1 ratio. That doesn't apply to 99% of everyone, so go with 3.73's, they help in traffic more than lower ratios help on the highway.

 

[fordpower1989]

i do jus fine in traffic and everything with my 355s and if i drive nicely around 19 mpg highway but i want more get up and go so im gettin 373s.

 

[dkchrist]

running 4.56's in the the vehicle below and made 18's average on a recent roadtrip

 

[techieman33]

i do jus fine in traffic and everything with my 355s and if i drive nicely around 19 mpg highway but i want more get up and go so im gettin 373s.

3.55 to 3.73, or similar is a huge waste of money. You'll never get it back in fuel savings unless the axles are free. If you went to 4.10's then you might feel a difference, but I wouldn't even do that unless you were running oversized tires.

 

[fordpower1989]

well i plan on 33's so i was thinkin 373s to keep my gas mileage about where its at right now but still get some help gettin thos 33's movin

 

[techieman33]

well i plan on 33's so i was thinkin 373s to keep my gas mileage about where its at right now but still get some help gettin thos 33's movin

you'll want 4.10's then, that's what it takes to keep the v8's happy so you'll want at least that.

 

[fordpower1989]

sweet. wat size rim width would u reccomend for 33x12.5x15 or 10.5s?? and backspacing?

 

[techieman33]

sweet. wat size rim width would u reccomend for 33x12.5x15 or 10.5s?? and backspacing?

8" for a 10.50, and 9 or 10 for a 12.50. I think most guys run around a 3.75 backspacing.

 

[fordpower1989]

ok also wat do you think i would go with. i am gonna do a 3in BL and wanna do as little of fender trimming as possible do you think the 10.5 and deeper wheels would give me enough stablity for offroading?

 

[techieman33]

ok also wat do you think i would go with. i am gonna do a 3in BL and wanna do as little of fender trimming as possible do you think the 10.5 and deeper wheels would give me enough stablity for offroading?

33x10.50's would be fine there are tons of different wheel and tire combo's out there. The best way to figure out what to do is look at other peoples explorers and find what look you like and then ask them what they're running.

 

[fordpower1989]

hey thanks for the info!