4-Grand Power-Band

If you drive a three-point-five, you know what I’m talking about. How does it make you feel?

I had some good uphill miles today on the freeway and dipped deep into the power this engine hides in it’s upper RPMs. Burned some fuel and enjoyed the sense of power. To me, the weird throttle of the 3.5 is akin to an old 2-stroke Suzuki dirt bike I once had. That bike went from snoresville to blast-off once the throttle passed that magic spot.

Happy Saturday everyone.

 

Make it sing!

 

It's a big difference all around coming from owning nothing but 4 bangers prior. 3k+ is where the power is at in those too so I don't mind having to wind it up when I want to go.

 

Funny you say that I haven’t really given my truck much petal yet. Just haven’t needed to. But the other day I floored it to race a frontier and popped a bit of a chub walking away from him ! Lol

 

I don't know if it's just my truck but if I get on it right, once the RPM's reach 3 to 3.5k it's like a sudden surge of power. Reminds me of turbo lag. I kind of enjoy it as long as nothing is actually wrong lol

 

Just a couple days ago I had to go out of town for work. I took the work Tundra. Just over a 3 hour drive one way, so when I got back to the shop I got in my Tacoma and headed home. I thought, man this truck is sluggish, then I remembered she likes to be driven hard. Once I got her wound up, it was that good feeling I missed. I appreciate the MPG in my Tacoma vs. the mpg of that Tundra.

 

I had a 3.5 in my wife's 2010 Accord that I drove for a few years after she bought a new car. Then she bought a Maxima last year with a 3.5. Holy shit, that thing flys.

The Tacoma has some power but with the weight it's only exciting if you're into it. Then your milage sucks

 

Having an M/T truck makes this even more fun,then add the OVTune with the 7k rev limit these trucks really like to go...

 

I can see how that would be a pile of fun.

 

2nd gear is a blast,it will take you right to 60mph in the blink of an eye. Almost feels like a sports car...almost

 

How far will you push the MT before you shift in RPMs?......at what point does it stop feeling like it wants to keep pulling harder?

 

The rev limiter

 

It stops pulling going into 5th... but I was still in 3rd at 70+ mph so I'll let you extrapolate my top speed in 4th.

 

Just about like this

 

I hit 6K almost daily. I don't think my engine is going to last long.

 

It feels a little like this I think:

 

Coming from a 3.4 in my '01, this one has balls. It does hesitate sometimes but you really have to learn how to work the throttle. It's only .1 more displacement but my new one has 120 more HP than my '01. From the day I got my new one, I could tell it wanted to be unleashed. I have to be careful with that. I could also tell that it wanted to be off road. It's just a feeling that's hard to describe. I am impressed.

 

God why are you guys afraid of rpms?

As long as the engine is designed for it, then it will last just as long as anything else.

Has NASCAR ruined you? Diesels? Geez.

Turbos run at 150K
Superbikes run at 16.5K
F1 cars 15K.

Ad this is continuous duty!



And you worry about 4-6K intermittent?

 

So I guess the question is, did Toyota intend this high RPM power, or is the result of other factors? I have to imagine, since it happens well below the redline, that Toyota intended it to be there when you need it.

 

When designing pretty much anything that rotates, you have three targets:
Continuous
Intermittent
Peak

I would safely say for the 3.5 the peak is well beyond redline lol.

This is not a big block 454 from a 1973 Buick.