Zachanadandy
Well-Known Member
- First Name
- Zach
- Joined
- Oct 17, 2023
- Threads
- 4
- Messages
- 3,032
- Reaction score
- 4,821
- Location
- Patterson, ca
- Vehicle(s)
- 2023 gladiator Mojave
- Occupation
- Electrical foreman
Not downshifting when at 2500 rpm doesn't prove it's a light load, as that will hold under moderate loads. Not downshifting from 2k or less like stock proves a light load. My point was you're out of upshifts. If you went extreme and regeared to 5.38s on stock tires and you were cruising around at 3k+ rpm in 8th it would almost never downshift. Raising the cruising rpm will obviously raise the amount of load it will take for the Jeep to want to downshift but that doesn't mean it's a light load. I don't buy the reduced load from gearing unless you drive it in the same gears at the same speeds all the time? Otherwise the trans will shift to compensate for the load. The pro-deep gearing crowd tries to argue both ways. It downshifts more often and cruises in 7th if there's a hill or heavy wind, that's a problem. Simultaneously more gearing reduces the load? Then wasn't the Jeep already reducing the load as effectively or moreso by downshifting? 7th with 4.10s is the same final drive ratio as 5.13s in 8th. If gearing reduces the load, it downshifting often is the most efficient way of doing that. Hell when it downshifts to 6th I've got the same final drive ratio as 8th gear with 6.12 axle gearing, and y'all thought 5.38s were impressive? And you made a moderate gear change. It's the extremes that I warn about.2200-2500 rpm is far from red line; it is not "out of shifts" (downshifts, that is, which is what we are talking about). Mine downshifts, just not on small hills. It will downshift several gears if I press the accelerator hard enough.
Gearing is a compromise. "Optimum" gearing is an opinion that depends on the criteria used for determining "optimum". My engine is spinning 11% faster than before. Whether the increased rpms causes more wear or the reduced load causes less remains to be seen. It has a small affect on mpg but I don't care, it was not one of my criteria.
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