Where are the gears located? And...

[ATiredExplorer]

I asked my dad if we could change my 3.55's to a higher gearing but he said it's going to be hard because it's in the transmission or you have to mess with it. I just I always though it was in the differential?

If it is in the differential, how difficult would the task be of changing it out and what would I need in order to do this?
Can you just put it in place of the stock gears and close it up and call it a day?
My Dad is a pretty good mechanic in my opinion but there are those somewhat difficult tasks such as this.

Also what would the price on 3.73 gears for my explorer? I've searched but cant seem to find any.

 

[Blee1099]

The gearing is in the rear and/or front differential. If your awd or 4wd, you will need to replace both front & rear differential ring & pinions. To be perfectly honest installing gears isn't that difficult, just a matter of having the right tools. Personally what I'd do is just look for a axle with 3.73, 4.10 gearing at your local junk yard

 

[ATiredExplorer]

Thanks for your answer. My dad isn't a big fan of buying used items that are pretty important in playing roles. I would get 4.10's I suppose but is that too extreme for the 29 inch tires I have now? But I will be getting 31's next year. But is that still too extreme...


Anyway I was wondering, if I get the 3.73's or 4.10's, would that mean I'd be getting better mileage so to speak since the acceleration will be improved and not have to give it as much gas?

 

[mysticclam]

I dont think swapping gears is that hard from a simple take them out put them in standpoint but the tolerances are very precise and if you dont set them up right they will fail. I think setting up gears properly is beyond most home mechanics. Having a shop do it is pretty expensive as well. Seems like a lot of money to spend to go to just 31 inch tires. Are you 2wd? If so you could just get an entire 4.10 rear axle from a wreaking yard. I would think anyone with some mechanical aptitude could swap out a rear axle.

As to mileage, my city went up a tiny bit but my highway went down a couple mpg

 

[Rottie]

Mine are 4.10's from the factory on my Sport and I get 18-21 mpg with 115,000 miles on it. I don't think that's too bad at all. Your fuel economy will be worse on the highway because your engine will be running at a higher RPM then it used to. But I agree with the other guys, the swap itself isn't too hard but the setup is critical or you'll be doing it all over again very soon. Like they said before, find a complete axle assembly from a wrecked X and swap it in, unless you're 4WD, then it could be a little pricey and labor intensive.

 

[DeRocha]

4.10s will be fine with stock tires up to 33s..

Check out the Gear install thread in the List of useful threads forum for lots of info and pics on installing new ring and pinion gears. Although its not mechanically difficult to install new gears it is very important to get the setup tolerances correct or the gears will whine and prematurely wear.

 

[410Fortune]

find an explorer rear end with 4.10 gears in it, buy ythe whole thing and install it under your truck, since you are 2wd this would be a great way to go.

4.10 and 31" tires would be perfect.

the jump from 3.55 to 3.73 is not enough to even justify changing any parts IMO

 

[kert0307]

What 410 said. Just swap out the whole axle for 4.10's. My sport came stock with 4.10's and 30" tires. It has 32's on it now with them and does good, but doesn't like pulling trailers much anymore...

 

[Space Truckin']

Ryan,
Why do you want to do this? What do you hope to gain? Your questions indicate you don’t have a complete and accurate understanding of the effect this modification will have on your Explorer. For example, your web site said you want better gas mileage, but 4.10 gears will make it quite a bit worse. Whether or not you get improved acceleration depends on how you define the improvement. The engine RPM will climb faster but the vehicle will not travel as far for a given RPM. Maybe you should start by finding someone in your area who has already made the same modifications. Go for a ride with them and be sure you like the difference before you start spending money and making changes you might regret.

 

[ATiredExplorer]

Thanks for your answers everyone! Yeah 4.10's do seem extreme for 31's. But my acceleration isn't as great as it was back when it was new.
And I rarely go on the highway much but now that college is coming up and it's about 10 or so miles from me, I'll think this through since it makes it kind of worse on the highway.

Space Truckin, I don't know much mechanical stuff such as the gears and what not. I'm just trying to gain more information on it. So don't be surprised if I ask more weird questions that everyone probably knows about haha
I don't know anyone here that would have done the same thing's that I can describe. Although I did see 1 lifted explorer here in Spring. My My first real one ever to see in person. It looked awesome

 

[jimbo74]

you say your dad is a pretty good mechanic but yet he doesnt know where the gears are? i would be weary of that....

 

[Space Truckin']

Ryan,
There is nothing wrong with your question. That is what this forum is all about. Just make sure you completely understand the answers. If you don't understand something, ask another question. That is how we all learned.

 

[n0xdw]

Thanks for your answers everyone! Yeah 4.10's do seem extreme for 31's. But my acceleration isn't as great as it was back when it was new.

Just an explanation. Higher number equals lower gear ratio. What it really means is the engine will turn faster for any given speed which will help make up for taller tires that turn slower at any given speed. As the others said it will not improve your mileage on the highway normally. In other words with 3.55 gears for ever 3 and 1/2 turns of the driveshaft your wheels turn approximately one turn. With 4.10 it would require just over 4 turns of the driveshaft for one turn of the tires. Hope that helps clarify?