Is 5.29 gears too much?

You're going to need a bigger gas tank

 

6spd MTX vs 6spd ATX, switching to 5.29 gears in your ATX will have you turning TWELVE additional rotations per minute.

If you have an Auto, there is no question. Jump right into 5.29's and enjoy better acceleration in every gear, no gear hunting, and sometimes, better gas mileage. All while keeping the engine in the same RPM range it was designed for from the factory.

Only if you have the MTX should you consider the 4.88's. But even with 5.29's, the RPM's aren't much higher. Remember, this engine was designed for the Lexus IS350 and was 'transplanted' into the Tacoma. And if you live anywhere with hills and elevation, you were already in 4th gear to not be run over by tractor-trailers while going up any hills. haha

Manual trans in the left column. Auto trans in the right column.
Upper sheet shows 6 different Diff ratios in 6gear
Lower sheet shows all 6 transmission gears with Stock + MTX vs 5.29 + ATX

 

Is that spreadsheet code, or all manual calculations?

 

Taco X, it's all coded. Yellow fields can be edited and everything else is calc'd automatically.

This is also a great visual depiction of how my OCD operates. I have an Excel workbook like this for every vehicle I've ever owned no matter if they had changeable gear/diff ratios or not.

 

How your post has only one like is beyond me. Data is king and you make a data driven argument. Strong.

 

I thought I was uniquely nuts for writing code for this. I use this for my vehicles:

Code:

let gears = [3.6,2.09,1.49,1,.69,.58];
let shiftPoint = 2000;
let maxSpeed = 70;
let axleRatio = 5.29;
let tireSize = 33;
let dataGrain = 3;

//constants
const footMile = 5280*12;
const PiMinutes = Math.PI * 60;
const piConst = footMile / PiMinutes;

//state of vehicle
let currentGear = { ratio:gears[0], gear:1};
let rpm = 0;

const rpmCalc = (mph) => {
    const inchesPerMinute = (mph * footMile) / 60;
    const inchesPerRotation = tireSize * Math.PI;
  
    return (inchesPerMinute / inchesPerRotation) * (currentGear.ratio * axleRatio);
}  

const data = [];

for(let speed = 1; speed < maxSpeed; speed += dataGrain) {
    let rpm = rpmCalc(speed);
  
    if (rpm >= shiftPoint && (currentGear.gear + 1) <= gears.length) {
        const gearNum = ++currentGear.gear;
        currentGear = {ratio: gears[gearNum - 1], gear:gearNum};
        rpm = rpmCalc(speed);
    }
  
    data.push({mph: speed, rpm: rpm, gear:currentGear.gear});
}

console.table(data);

 

OP, I have had 4.88s since new with 33s, sliders, bumper, winch, full aluminum skid plates, and a steel gas skid = 400lb extra weight including the weight of the tires. I turn 2100rpm at 70mph and get 19mpg. 5.29s would be overkill for my set up.