4.88 vs 4.56 gears 2.7L

You could also check out east coast gear supply.

 

I am having the same dilemma; you should really verify what you have though as reference point.

My truck seems like a the same yours, we even have the same wheels...

Anyway my door sticker showed 4.30s and veriifed with an online calculators.. I can post that info when I get home tonight...just let me know

Edit:

So yah, I didn't notice the last post on here was from a year ago ...

 

BTW, the ring gear, in the so-called 8.4 diffs, are actually 8" in diameter and are completely different from the TRD 8" gears. This does create some confusion.

 

Don't confuse him lol

If he has an e locker it's an 8" and if there is no e locker it's an 8.4. This all you need to know when ordering it

 

The thing about Tacomas is that it seems like whomever is building it chooses whatever they want to put in it. I have a 2004, 4wd with a 2.7L and it has factory 3.91. As others mentioned, some also come with 4.10.

To the OP, is this a DD or mainly a trail toy? You said that you have some engine mods so if this is a DD, you'd probably be happier with 4.56. If its a trail toy or if you don't mind the drop in mpg while on the highway, go with 4.88.

For what its worth, I'm going 4.56 once I regear and go with 33's.

 

I agree with dispatch55126, not sure how Toyota decided what gears to put in these trucks and what to base there decisions off of, but id be curious to know. I recently went to East Coast Gear Supply and got there master rebuild kit for the front and rear. Yes it was salty, but everything you need is in there (bearings, seals even marking compound). My 04 2.7L 5speed came stock with 4.30s, was ok on the flats but even the slightest incline would slow me down and i would have to always drop to 4th. Went to 5.29s and couldn't be happier, powers back and then some.

This is a site i used to make my decision:

http://www.grimmjeeper.com/gears.html

I liked it because it was very detailed

 

Just wondering how you determined stock 3.91s?

So far every 01-04 tacoma manual trans (4x4 or prerunner) I have seen has 4.10s for the v6 & 4.30s for 4 cylinder; do not take this to imply your determination is wrong, but rather since this is first deviation I've found for those particular vehicles I am just very interested...

 

A few locals have 4:56 from factory in both manual and auto too.

 

I don't have a door tag so I contacted Toyota directly to review my VIN number for a few different things. One of the things that came back was that I have 3.91 gears.

 

I had 3.91 in my factory rear diff, 1997 with 2.7L engine, 4wd, and 33 inch tires. I counted the teeth and divided to verify the door tag. lol.

I went with 4.56 gears when I regeared, and I am somewhat happy with them. The RPMs are a little too high really on the interstate, and I am suffering fuel economy because of it. For example if I do my USUAL day of country roads and sub-60MPH speeds I get about 20.8 MPG right now. When I took a trip to Texas the first of the month and spent most of my time at highway speeds of 70 MPH, my economy went down to 19 after the trip was over. I don't even want to THINK what the MPG would be with 4.88 gears!

 

Thanks for the info everybody.

Well that the end of that little correlation I thought existed; seemed to make too much sense anyway. I thought it might be the case because Toyota seems to really limit the different configurations in their vehicles, especially when compared to American cars/trucks.

Anybody know if there is more than 1 manual transmission for 01 to 04 tacoma 2.7L; I assumed there is only one; w59

with the following ratios:

first gear, 3.954:1
second gear, 2.141:1
third gear, 1.384:1
forth gear, 1:1
fifth gear, 0.81:1

edit:

also wondering if either of you guys have thoughts on a twin stick; there are plenty of times where
I would like 2low, so like the idea and it seems like a easy install...

 

Or just do the 2 lo mod for a fraction of the cost to get 2wd in low range

 

Check these out:

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/showthread.php?t=248180

 

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/showthread.php?t=288270

 

Thanks for the links, that is great; I will definitely go over them in more detail

One of the them mentioned the mod will be harder on the drivetrain than the twin stick; I'll look into it more to find out what they are specifically referencing .... the ADD...?

You have any info on that issue?

 

Doesn't harm the drive train or the add. Simply prevents the add from activating. The front drive shaft will spin, but the front diff doesn't engage.

 

I think it depends on the tire size and transmission the truck came with

Mine is a manual and had the 31" tire option. It had 4.10 gears before I changed to 4.56 (with 33" tires).

Manual without the 31" tires probably had 3.91.

Auto configurations usually have lower axle gears because the gear sets in the trans have higher ratios than manual. So 4.10 without the 31" tire option?

Don't take this info as fact but it is my best guess.

 

You could pick your ratio back in the day. Mine is a 4cyl manual with 4:30s. A local had a 4cyl manual with 4:56 from the factory. It was just personal choice. Google the old brochures. They used to have a ton of options. You don't have to but a package to get options, you could just select what you wanted from a big list.

 

http://www.angelfire.com/fl/procrastination/rear.html

 

I'm trying to regear my truck too! i have a 03 2.7L 5speeed 4x4.... which gear sets did you get from East Coast Gear supply? I couldn't find the master rebuild kit you were talking about. I only could find these two for the front and rear diffs.

http://www.gearsandlockers.com/ring...ota-tacoma-and-t100-7-5-ifs-reverse-rotation/

http://www.gearsandlockers.com/ring...t-for-toyota-tacoma-and-t100-in-a-4-56-ratio/

Let me know, what you guys think.
Thanks