4.88 vs 5.29 gears?

Hey folks! New to the forum and looking for some advice. I have a 2017 TRD Sport that’s pretty stock except for a 3” rough country spacer lift with 285/70R17 (33”) Cooper AT3 tires. I added a cold air intake to help with gas mileage. I’m taking it to get re-geared next month and can’t decide if I should do 4.88 or 5.29. I don’t plan on going larger in tire, they are 10-ply and will probably last forever. I may swap to a better suspension lift but I’ll probably stay at the 3-4” height. Weight wise I’m not running armor, no need at the beach. I may add a better roof rack and bed cover and will definitely put some steps on it soon. Shops recommend 4.88 but I’ve read a lot of other forums that say screw, go for the 5.29. Any advice, pro/cons, and recommendations are welcome. Thanks!

 

4.88, you didn’t mention location but if sea level and hi-way then 4.88 is what a 33 is best for.

 

Cold air intake doesnt give you better gas mileage.

 

Thanks. Yeah sea level for sure. I’m in eastern NC. I take it to VA and TX from time to time so plenty of Highway. Most of my off road is dirt paths and beach driving. Not a lot of rock crawling or heavy mudding going on.

 

No tire lasts forever.

There are tons of threads on gears. Google search is your friend.

https://www.google.com/search?q=tacomaworld+5.29+4.88&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en-us&client=safari

 

Watch the last 10 minutes of this video. These guys are as good as anyone doing gears, and they recommend Revolution 5.29 across the board regardless of tire size. They also recommend swapping out the pinion and needle bearing.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=MeyoGsVXpEo

 

based on what? Tacoma World?
@justdoit

 

The gear shops around me I have asked. I don't believe anything on this forum lol

 

they would be wrong. Almost everyone who runs 4.88s, regrets not going with lower gears as it’s almost inevitable that you will be going bigger tires, more weight on your rig. The benefits of lower gears off roading are also well documented.

 

Gear shops around me say the same thing. If he's doing a lot of highway and has no armor I would also suggest 4.88.

 

For what it’s worth, Nitro recommended 4.88s on my rig w/ 33s and bumpers/full armor. They did say if I ever had plans to go to 35’s are larger than go with 5.29s.
I’m happy with 4.88s, no complaints and I wheel all the time

 

I run a 2gen on 4.56s with 34in tires. This is up from the stock 2gen 3.73 final drive behind the Auto trans. Not sure what the trans and stock final drive ratios are in the 3gens, but I will say this: Everyone takes tire diameter into account, but no one seems to think about additional weight as well. Tire circumference is larger AND they're heavier.

If I were doing it again I'd go to 4.88s myself on my setup.

 

Just ask the guys who do it for a living, I got lots of people around town that will tell you what you need vs want. Most guys on here can't suggest stuff for me due to elevation and the flat landers just can't get it though their thick heads that the taco's suck ass in the mountains. Driving around a shopping mall at 5 mph is not like driving through a pass at 12,000 feet with the skinny pedal to the pavement losing speed at 5500 RPM's.

 

+1 super happy with 4.88s on my moderate rig

 

Do you have an automatic or a stick shift??? This does matter..... I'm driving a TRD Sport as well with a 6-speed manual... 4.88's are perfect with 33's...

 

If you live where it’s pretty flat and you don’t have a lot of weight on your truck, I bet 5.29s will feel overgeared for you.

With myself included my truck on 33s weighed 5030 lbs and for the few weeks I had the 5.29s on 33s it felt overgeared. With 35s, 5.29s feel great.

 

I just got 5.29s and I almost cant tell the difference from stock gears. Maybe the rpms are a little higher but barely

 

I bought a 2021 trd Tacoma with the 6 speed manual transmission. Its been in the Toyota shop 5 times.( no help) If i am stopped on an incline(truck only), there is no power to pull the hill. rpms go from 3,000- 4,000 then down to 600 then to a stall. Going to 4 low helps sometimes but not always. Tires don't break traction. tried pulling a 500lb drift boat. I had to be towed off the boat ramp. Toyotas answer is don't stop on a hill. MY toyota echo has more power on the hill.Will regearing help or am i just going down a rabbit hole. 4.88 or 5.29. Im not doing anything steep.No moab stuff. just hills on paved city roads in Idaho. Regear or sell my tacoma? Any info would be greatly appreciated.

 

I've got 285/75/17s (33.8s) and do my share of off roading and towing and I am SO glad I went with 5.29s. I had them on stock tires a week before I got my BFGs, and while super torquey, I actually liked it, although you bump up against the speed limiter.

Unless you ONLY drive flat as a pancake roads never tow and never go off pavement, I'd seriously recommend skipping the 4.88s and going with 5.29s