Do 4.10s make 1st gear useless?

[GreyDiesel]

Thinking about 4.10s. But I already feel that I am shifting out of first very soon with the 3.55s. It seems like with 4.10s, first gear would be there only if you wanted to smoke your tires.

Funny thing is, when I was researching the mustang, I was upset to see they only came with 5 speeds (rather than a 6 speed), but after owning one, its pretty clear that with a V8, three gears is plenty. Obviously not for outright performance, but just driving around town fun, you still have loads of power and performance with just 2nd, 3rd, and 4th. 1st is for smoking tires, and 5th is for good MPG cruising. I cant imagine what I would do with another gear in there... other than constantly be shifting.

 

[o0Dan0o]

4.10's do need good tires but they get you out of the hole a lot quicker. If you don't watch your right foot you will shred the tires, but thats part of the fun.

The point of a 6-speed is to give you a usable overdrive for top end, somewhere around 0.8/1 gearing, while still having a highway/fuel mileage gear (under 0.7/1).
Dan

 

[GreyDiesel]

ah, well that makes a lot of sense about the top end. I guess since I never plan on hitting the top speed, I have not given that much thought. Thanks for the info Dan.

 

[07SGT2003]

Before I got some decent and wider tires my first gear was pretty close to useless. I would just spin. I went from 235 tires in the back to 285's and got better tires and it has helped alot. Love my 4.10 though I wouldn't ever want to go back to 3.55's.
-Matt

 

[anthony05gt]

4.10's will make 1st gear seem shorter, but it's a great gear all around.

 

[o0Dan0o]

ah, well that makes a lot of sense about the top end. I guess since I never plan on hitting the top speed, I have not given that much thought. Thanks for the info Dan.

You're absolutely right from a racing standpoint, a lot of drag cars use a 3-speed, and a lot of road race cars use a 4 or 5 speed. The extra gears add unneeded weight and parasitic loss in a racing situation, but for road cars a six speed has its uses. In terms of fuel economy, the 5 and 6 speed automatics are a huge leap over the old 4 speeds.
Dan

 

[PoopDawg]

Hasn't hurt my 1st gear... It's still plenty useful

 

[FIRE IT UP]

Don't second-guess yourself on this one...if you're thinking about 4.10s you should get them... a lot of people think they eliminate 1st gear, which they absolutely don't...i use my gears as a daily driver and the only real difference I noticed is how much more fun I have with them...my only input is that you should get a tuner with the gears (if you don't already have one)...overall you shouldn't spend more than 900 bucks installed and tuned... careful though, once you get the gears installed and broken in (which takes 500 miles of non-heavy acceleration and a gear-oil change after those 500 miles), you will want to go with much crazier mods...have fun

 

[GreyDiesel]

thanks for the info everyone.

The main thing that started me thinking about the 4.10s is the akward downshift on the highway. Right now, with the 3.55s, if I want to pass someone at full power, and I am currently going 60, I have to downshift to second, and ride the very bit of top rpms up to 67, and then back into third. With 4.10s, I think 2nd would only go up to 50mph, so on the highway I could stick to using third gear as the acceleration gear. The power band would be better placed for third gear.

I am going to do it. How hard is the install? Am I better off taking it to a shop? I noticed when you buy the gears, you also have the option buying a $50 install kit. If I buy the gears for 160, plus the kit, I am looking at 220, plus an afternoon for the install. Correct?

Also, do I need a re-tune even with a manual tranny?

 

[Sparty92]

Right now, with the 3.55s, if I want to pass someone at full power, and I am currently going 60, I have to downshift to second, and ride the very bit of top rpms up to 67, and then back into third.

Ok....I have 3.55s and a 5-speed. I would never (ever) consider going down to 2nd gear at 60mph. To gain all of 7 more mph. To pass someone on the highway.

If I'm needing to pass someone on the highway (as in, blow by them), I find 3rd gear to be plenty to make the point. If I'm going 60-70 already, I think to go to 3rd is pretty safe, as 3rd is good for 100+ mph. I rev-match down to 4th, then to 3rd before I jump on the gas.

Maybe I'm too concerned with the life span of my transmission?

 

[GreyDiesel]

yeah, as I was writing that, I thought is sounded a bit off. Maybe I am actually going down into 2nd from 50mph. Its not like I am watching my speedo, so I cant say exactly what speed I am going, but I do know that I am tempted to go down into 2nd a lot on the freeway... Maybe the freeways around here are slower than I thought, and I am going between 45-50 mph rather than 55-60 mph more than I realize.

The point is, I think 4.10s would make third gear much more useable in daily driving. As it is, 2nd gear is the only gear it is legal to punish. You can floor it in 2nd, and not break any speed limits. On public roads, you arent going to get above 80mph , so, its nice to have the power band of the rpms show up three times below 80mph, instead of just two times. Does that make sense?

 

[chad9350]

Suspension and tires will make 1st gear VERY useful

 

[GreyDiesel]

D*mn chad, that is a hell of a car you've got there.

 

[CPman]

Also remember 4:10 will not only give you better torque multiplcation in 1st gear, but all gears.

 

[Five Oh Brian]

I have 4.10's and run a shorter 275/40/17 drag radial at the track and first gear actually lasts longer than 2nd gear. On street tires, 1st gear is almost useless as any moderate throttle leads to tire spin. If I know I'm going to launch hard on the street, I often select 2nd gear to start. In summary, though, I absolutely love having 4.10's and highly recommend them for all S197's.

 

[FIRE IT UP]

only do the install if you know what you're doing...get the kit with the new bearing if you do it yourself...just remember, there are quite a few things that can go wrong if you don't do the install right (i.e. 50-50 chance you're gonna break something upon pulling the differential apart)...if you go the safer way and get a shop to install it, make sure you don't buy the kit as they will be replacing the bearings anyhow..plus it's really not that expensive for the labor...remember you wanna do it right and get a speed cal afterward, otherwise you'll be getting 16 miles on the speedo to every 10 or 11 actual miles...have fun!