Help with 4.30 Gears from ECGS

sub-a-dub dub

 

I haven't posted in TW in a long time, but here I am tonight !!!

I am currently committed with a local gear shop in Edmonton, Alberta, to do a 4.30 gear swap. I was considering ordering from ECGS for the longest time but ended up choosing to have it done locally instead. They are an official retailer for Yukon Gears, and also managed to source a front OEM 4.10 carrier, since I have a 3.73 and the new gear requires a 3.91 carrier and up for the front (they are not available in thick cut like the 4.56 and 4.88).

While at it, I am also swapping the rear differential for a Eaton Detroit True Trac limited slip. I had a LS diff in my 07 Ranger FX4 a while ago and I kinda miss the extra traction I could get.

The plan is to have this work done at the end of this month. I'll make sure to post my comments here. I am very exited to not only recover some MPGs, but also have some extra power at the wheels. Being on 33's in the summer is a constant struggle for torque. The tranny loves to constantly hunt for a gear.

More to follow next month !!!

 

Can't wait to hear what it does for ya! I think its a great inbetween, but a better option for more highway miles with heavier than normal loads.. (tires, rtt, racks, load.. etc)

 

@Tiger541

 

Work is booked and I landed a deposit for the job.

I am getting excited !!!

P.S. Realised this thread was for MT, not AT like me. However we truly need some test rigs and collect data from multiple sources so we can provide the best facts to this community. Perhaps a dedicated 2nd Gen 4.30 gears thread will soon be created . Let's not discriminate M/T versus A/T.

 

Agreed, you gonna post your updates here? I am looking to do this before I move to cali in september. Will be traveling across the country, spending a week in colorado and a week in utah

 

Back from the dead but as I reread this thread I thought you should know I had an 88' at the same age and it was a real gem haha (went to the junk yard when the strut mounts rusted through). Everyone knows the ladys love dark red velour.

 

Will do. The truck is actually at the shop and the re-gear is in progress. More to follow later this week.

I will also be going on a long trip this weekend. Perfect occasion to break in the new gears. I would still be on my winter 32in tires, but soon my 33's should be put back on and I'll see the real difference.

 

Picked up the truck from the shop today. So far wow !!! what a difference already.

At this moment I am breaking in those gears, so no harsh tests are going to be done for a little while. However the improvements are significant. It is great to feel the truck have more power down the pavement. Also, I can accelerate from 35 to 50 MPH (60 to 80 KM/H) without requiring the transmission to kickdown. It also handles hills quite well, maintaining current gear at 50 MPH (80 KM/H).

The shop used master overhaul kits to rebuild both differentials. They also swapped the front carrier with one that can use 3.91 gears and up, since the 4.30 gears were not available in thick cut, unlike the 4.56 and 4.88 options.

For the rear, they removed the OEM open carrier and installed a Eaton Detroit Truetrac limited slip.

This weekend I will see how this is affecting the gas mileage. Later next month I will be installing my 33's back on and assess the improvements.

 

After running them for several months I’m very happy with the 4.30’s. Truck has lots of power and it’s good on the interstate as well. Stays in 5th on big hills with no downshifting. I have a 5000# travel trailer (dry weight) and it has no issues towing, although our ‘16 Tundra is the main tow rig. A small part of me wishes I would have gone 4.56 for the off chance I want to run 35’s in the future, but the way the truck drives with 33’s I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t be bad at all even if I went up a size. Glad to see more guys going to 4.30’s.

 

how was your gas mileage around town and on the highway affected by the 4.30? I'm averaging 220 per tank with a blend of city and highway and babying the throttle... on long highway stretches, i'll average 230-235 (maybe) while on 285/75/16

 

I did get approx. 16 MPG of combined highway and city driving, but mostly highway at a cruising speed of 70 MPH. I have about 650 miles with 3 fill ups as a reference.

For my Canadian folks, this is about 14.7 L/100 km, at a speed of 114 km/h. This was calculated over a distance of 1045 km.

 

Are you manual?

 

Just swapped to the 4.30's and on the interstate its like driving a completely different truck. Before the swap the truck would never stay in 5th gear with any sort of hill or wind. My most recent trip had a 25mph headwind along with decently sized rolling hills and the truck just pulled. Fuel economy has also been up about .5-1mpg since the swap.

 

What size tires are you running?

 

285/70r17 duratracs

 

After reading many posts i am torn between 4.30 and 4.56. I have a v6 auto with 33's. I plan on getting full armor. I drive a lot of hwy miles so im trying to find a good balance on and offroad. Now im at about 2000rpms at 70mph(gps). I'd like to keep my rpms around 2500 at 70.

 

I was torn as well but chose 456 with the thought that I may go bigger tires one day (currently on 33s) and the shop I went with suggested 456. I’m a manual though pushing 2800-3000 at 70mph, I believe. I can check this morning and edit if that’s not correct.
I am also fully armored with a HC rear with swing out camper shell, full prinsu rack system to go with full skids, sliders, aluminum front bumper with winch. The on road drive is fine. I might not go 80-85mph as much anymore but when I choose to it’s not an unbearable drive.
I will say running on stock gears with 33s and all the weight I was made driving on or off-road no fun at all. Now it’s fun again!

 

Will be looking to swap gears next year and have a very similar set up. Can you please confirm rpm at 70mph. Thank you.

 

OP what did you end up doing? I’m trying to decide if 4.10 or 4.30 is right for me. Manual transmission with 33s, 255/80R17s.