I tow my Jayco hybrid with a 2012 Chevy Silverado with the 4.8 V8 and 3.23 gears. It does just fine in Florida where it's flat. The owners manual says I can gain 2000 lbs. towing capacity changing to 3.73 gears. Does this make sense to you? How would that effect my RPMs at any given speed? Right now at 55 MPH I am turning 2000 RPMs. Just curious.

The gearing will make towing in the mountains and accelerating much better. I can't say wihthe GM, but with my Excursion it made a huge difference in towing performance because the engine isn't working as hard, RPM's will go up slightly but not a lot unless you go up to a 4.10. Your towing mileage and around town mileage may improve also.Then again if your trailer is light you shouldn't have any issues in the mountains. I would wait and see how it does out of Florida before considering changing the gearing (front also if it's a 4X4!)

I have the same model tv and I changed to 3.73 and it made a huge difference towing hard to tell trailer is back there without looking in mirror. The gear change also increased my gas mileage.

If you cannot remember to shift I it out of OD when climbing a long hill then changing gear ratios is for you.:S It's also a good idea to do the same going down if you need to lower your speed. You are right to question how a higher ratio increases it by 2000 lbs. You can make it a 3.73 by never towing in OD but on flat ground you do not need a 3.73.

Gruu wrote:How would that effect my RPMs at any given speed?Since there's approximately 15% difference in ratios RPMs with a 3.73 ratio would be approximately 15% higher ... plenty of axle ratio charts online if you need to be more precise than that. ;)

Ivylog wrote:If you cannot remember to shift I it out of OD when climbing a long hill then changing gear ratios is for you.:S It's also a good idea to do the same going down if you need to lower your speed. You are right to question how a higher ratio increases it by 2000 lbs. You can make it a 3.73 by never towing in OD but on flat ground you do not need a 3.73.That is a very simple explanation.But the question deserves more than a "simple" answer.:SThe reason that the tow rating increases is not the final rpms in cruising gear.... ALL of the gears will see a boost in power. Does that matter? You bet. Since you have to accelerate from a stop, and drop gears for climbs, it makes for a much better tow. Lower gears will also increase the lifespan of the u joints, as they will see less stress in every gear. Lower gears will also make for better engine braking in EVERY gearIn other words... simply not using OD does NOT make it a 3.73.:S

TV gearing. | Good Sam Community

Golfcart
Explorer
Sep 22, 2016
Gruu wrote:
Thank you all for your replies, the deciwsion has been made. I WILL go with the lower gears, thanks gain. Golfcart, you can buy the ring and pinion online from summit racing for $169.00 brand new. Just saying.

I dont have the skill required for such a job lol. for the right deal i think it would be better for me to just replace the whole rear end
danimal53
Explorer
Sep 22, 2016
i dont understand some of the gear ratio discussion, but I'd like to learn more. can someone give a simple concise explanation? from what i understand, is it similar to the gears on a bike? I have a Jeep Liberty KK, and here are some specs i found. What do these mean, and how should it affect my towing?:

Number of gears: 4
Gear ratios (overall):
I 2.84 (10.59)
II 1.57 (5.86)
III 1 (3.73)
IV 0.69 (2.57)
time2roll
Nomad
Sep 22, 2016
danimal53 wrote:
i dont understand some of the gear ratio discussion, but I'd like to learn more. can someone give a simple concise explanation? from what i understand, is it similar to the gears on a bike? I have a Jeep Liberty KK, and here are some specs i found. What do these mean, and how should it affect my towing?:

Number of gears: 4
Gear ratios (overall):
I 2.84 (10.59)
II 1.57 (5.86)
III 1 (3.73)
IV 0.69 (2.57)

Yes similar to a bike. Think of the rear cog as the transmission and the front cog as the differential. For a bike towing or going up hills you use the smaller front cog to reduce the effort for anything selected in the rear gear-set.

Now if vehicles could have a two speed differential...
Unfortunately once the final drive ratio is changed it is fixed... unlike the bike where it is selectable.
subcamper
Explorer II
Sep 22, 2016
danimal53 wrote:
i dont understand some of the gear ratio discussion, but I'd like to learn more. can someone give a simple concise explanation? from what i understand, is it similar to the gears on a bike? I have a Jeep Liberty KK, and here are some specs i found. What do these mean, and how should it affect my towing?:

Number of gears: 4
Gear ratios (overall):
I 2.84 (10.59)
II 1.57 (5.86)
III 1 (3.73)
IV 0.69 (2.57)

The numbers not in parenthesis are the gear ratios of the transmission for each of the 4 gears. A gear ratio of less than 1 is an overdrive gear (Gear IV in your case).

The number in parenthesis is the overall gear ratio, which is the transmission gear ratio multiplied by the rear axle gear ratio.

In your case, you have a 3.73 rear axle ratio, which is pretty short (good). In general, that means the gear ratios are set up pretty well for the vehicle that you have. How well your vehicle tows will depend on a bunch of other factors, such as the engine torque peaks, etc.

Yes, it is similar to gears on a bike. Imagine the transmission gear ratios as the gear selection at the rear wheel, while the rear axle ratio determines the gear at the pedals. Note I said GEAR, which means only one. When you change the rear axle ratio it's like shifting to a smaller gear at the pedals.

Steve
subcamper
Explorer II
Sep 22, 2016
I didn't see smkettner's post while I was replying, so I didn't mean to duplicate his answers.

Steve
Turtle_n_Peeps
Explorer
Sep 22, 2016
danimal53 wrote:
i dont understand some of the gear ratio discussion, but I'd like to learn more. can someone give a simple concise explanation? from what i understand, is it similar to the gears on a bike? I have a Jeep Liberty KK, and here are some specs i found. What do these mean, and how should it affect my towing?:

Number of gears: 4
Gear ratios (overall):
I 2.84 (10.59)
II 1.57 (5.86)
III 1 (3.73)
IV 0.69 (2.57)

Yep, it's like a bike.

A higher rear end gear (numerically) gives the engine more leverage or torque.

A lot of people on here will say you get more power with a higher gear ratio. Not true. In fact you get less power to the road; not more. The only thing a higher gear ratio will give you is more torque to the road.

With modern 6, 8 and even 10 speed transmissions now days it almost kills off the rear end ratio debate. Need more torque? Just drop a gear. Need more? Drop another gear.
Golfcart
Explorer
Sep 22, 2016
Turtle n Peeps wrote:

In fact you get less power to the road; not more. The only thing a higher gear ratio will give you is more torque to the road.

You dont "get" less power. it just requires less power to accomplish the task
dodge_guy
Explorer II
Sep 22, 2016
And "just dropping a gear in the trans" is not the same as changing the gear ratio! When you change the ring and pinion each gear in the trans is much more efficient at moving a load!

Go with the swap!
danimal53
Explorer
Sep 22, 2016
thanks for the replies, a follow up question:
the TOW/HAUL button, I believe basically keeps the transmission out of 4th gear, is that correct? Should I always do this when towing, or is it not necessary in flat areas?
time2roll
Nomad
Sep 22, 2016
subcamper wrote:
I didn't see smkettner's post while I was replying, so I didn't mean to duplicate his answers.

Steve
Sometimes it is good to read the comparison two different ways.

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