pHEnomIC

I am very interested in 3.73 gears up from the stock ones I have. I forgot what i have on my z28. How hard is it to do the install with basic auto knowledge and pretty good access to tools.

Can you describe how exactly it feels to have different rear gears and how it affects speed?

Does it affect gas mileage a lot? I only get like 15 mpg on premium and its killing me, so what will it do to my mileage?

What brand is a cheap good brand and what material do i want to get for a daily driver (I noticed there are different metals)?

If its really hard, how much can i expect to pay for a pro install?

I have a hypertech power programmer so I can change my odometer and shift settings on my trans.

Why should I get 3.73 and not 4.10?

ellodaddy

If you are not changing cams, I wouldn't advise you to change your rear gear. You will not pick-up any MPH or ET by changing to 3.73. I can't explain why because i do not know, but I'll bet you will be unhappy with the gas mileage, etc.

JoeliusZ28

you will need someone to do the gears for you, its probably possible to do it yourself but there is a 90% chance they will whine or something. it wont help your mileage at all, most likely hurt it. figure out what gears you have. autos came with either 2.73s or 3.23s. if you have 3.23s they will do fine for the time being, especially if mileage is a concern. if it were me id look at doing other things first.

ChevyTuffD.A.

I beg to differ that you wont pick up and E.T. or mph. If not then whats the piint in doing them??

ellodaddy

my 95 z28 camaro(auto) came with 3.23 rear end, and i changed to 3.73 rear gear. I did not pickup any mph or ets with the change. However, i race against many people that claim increases in mph and et with the change, and i have a few friends that did not gain anything but less mpg of gas like myself.

shoebox

It takes specialized tools to install gears. Even with those, you need to have very good knowledge of what you are doing.

Higher gears will make you "feel" faster, but not be necessarily faster. The extra torque multiplication makes it feel this way.

Gas mileage may suffer or may not. Depends on your setup.

Buy quality gears that are know for being quiet, if it is a daily driver. Cheap gears will give cheap results.

Install prices vary, maybe $100-$300.

Gear selection should be made on the basis of whether your engine can use the extra rpm to make more power or if you just want the car to feel more responsive at slower speeds.

Dave89IROC

get a hold of Scott K, 1BAD86Z , @ 586-630-1098. leave message , he does gears, good price and very good job

80TA

I have heard the stories about gears not gaining any et and think that could be a function of traction.Also not clear you car is an auto now but you want to go to six speed?

I have had both manual and auto fourth gens and experimented with many gear ratios.

My current 96 vert had pathetic boat anchor slow as a slug 2.73 gears.The car was horrible to drive around town and the gears may have been great past 100mph but they sucked otherwise.I installed 3.42 gears and am very happy.3.73 would be ok too but got gm 3.42 gears and 3 series carrier for good price out of 2002 ta.The 3.42 is nice jump from 2.73 but wouldn't maybe be worth it that much if you already had 3.23.Some guys say 3.73 are a bit too much in an auto and some guys like them.I doubt the 3.42 hurt mileage that much and don't really add that much rpm on highway.The cars have overdrive.

In a standard which my 99 ta is I like and noticed the diff 3.73 gave from 3.42 .I could pull on buddies almost identical car with 3.42 m6.I also had 4.10 briefly but took them out they were more fun around town and ok on highway but had bad whine from them and the 3.73 that went in after the 4.10.
The 3.73 were richmonds..they are whiney junk.The 4.10 were motive gm.They were installed first in my 97 ta m6 and were quiet but after putting them in my 99 m6 they were loud and out they came ,back to stock 3.42.

Oh I ran the vert with 2.73 and its best at our track and altitude was a 14.96 at 94mph with a 2.38 60ft best.
With only mods being magnaflow,maf transtlator, and 3.42 gears got best of 14.40 at 95 mph
with a similar 2.34 60ft.I also got a best of 14.35 at 95mph with a 2.18 on the nittos.

So I have to say the gears helped looks like 3 to 4 tenths and maybe a tenth or so for the magnaflow and leaning out the car with a maf translator.


Anyway 2.73 gears should have never been offered by gm in the autos.They should have offered 3.23,3.42 and 3.73.M6 should have offered 3.42,3.73 and 4.10.But hey what do I know?

And 2.73 are so weak and boring that I don't care if they give a bit better mileage.The car is 1000% more fun to drive with just a jump to 3.42s.

revtime

I run 3.73s in my auto and I highly reccomend them.
The car is tons more fun to drive and with suspension mods and a good stall you will launch hard.
the stall and the gears along with suspension mods really got me where I wanted to be on the street.
With the new engine this winter it should be even more fun.
Personally I would have the gears installed by someone who knows what they are doing, its very easy to screw it up.
I average 16 or 17 MPG with the gears and stall but its typical to loose some mileage with these type of mods.

twiztedone01

I recently upgraded to 4.10s and a friend of mine installed them for me at his shop... it was really not a difficult procedure but you do need the right tools for the job... I HIGHLY recommend having a professional do the installation... typically if you bring the rearend out of the car it will not take more than a few hours of labor... as far as picking up time... i gained 3 tenths in the quarter and that was on crappy worn to $hit tires... i also noticed that the car is more fun to drive with steeper gears and since it is stick i havent noticed my fuel mileage being hurt much at all...