New Gears and Lockers
Ever since upgrading to 19.5" wheels (10 years ago) I have felt that I was geared way too tall with the camper on-board, especially in the mountains and at altitude. In addition the inability to air-down has left me with limited traction and on several occasions caused me to get stuck on soft surfaces and sand.
I finally decided to remedy the situation by re-gearing from 3.73's to 4.10's and adding Air-Lockers front and rear. While I was at it I installed a new ARB compressor, a high capacity aluminum rear diff' cover, and I built a new mounting panel for the locker and air-bag switches.
Overall I couldn't be happier. The truck accelerates & shifts way better, and feels like it's in "just the right gear" all the time, especially climbing long grades. Prior to the gear swap I was concerned that I'd get a lot worse MPG unloaded, but I couldn't have been more wrong. I just did a 1000 mile trip to Death Valley and back (incl' 200+ miles off-road) and got nearly 2 MPG better fuel economy (hand calculated) on the highway than I have ever gotten in my truck before... and this was with a roof-tent on top. The improved economy is proof that the 3.73 gearing was too tall.
While I wasn't in any situations in Death Valley where I needed to use the lockers, I did play with engaging them a bit and the difference in traction compared to open diff's is nothing short of astonishing. Locked when you need it, open when you don't :C
I haven't had a chance to go for a spin with the TC on the truck yet, but I'm looking forward to a lot less downshifting, lower EGT's, and better MPG's. Will update here after the first TC outing.
Cheers,
-Mark
I finally decided to remedy the situation by re-gearing from 3.73's to 4.10's and adding Air-Lockers front and rear. While I was at it I installed a new ARB compressor, a high capacity aluminum rear diff' cover, and I built a new mounting panel for the locker and air-bag switches.
Overall I couldn't be happier. The truck accelerates & shifts way better, and feels like it's in "just the right gear" all the time, especially climbing long grades. Prior to the gear swap I was concerned that I'd get a lot worse MPG unloaded, but I couldn't have been more wrong. I just did a 1000 mile trip to Death Valley and back (incl' 200+ miles off-road) and got nearly 2 MPG better fuel economy (hand calculated) on the highway than I have ever gotten in my truck before... and this was with a roof-tent on top. The improved economy is proof that the 3.73 gearing was too tall.
While I wasn't in any situations in Death Valley where I needed to use the lockers, I did play with engaging them a bit and the difference in traction compared to open diff's is nothing short of astonishing. Locked when you need it, open when you don't :C
I haven't had a chance to go for a spin with the TC on the truck yet, but I'm looking forward to a lot less downshifting, lower EGT's, and better MPG's. Will update here after the first TC outing.
Cheers,
-Mark
