What's the best gear ratio for drag racing?

If we have a daily driver, 2.55 to 3.25 gear ratios typically work best, whereas a street/strip application we would usually use a 3.42 to a 3.90 gear ratio, and race applications most commonly use a 4.10 and above gear ratios.

What gear ratio is best for speed?

In the real world, typical street machines with aspirations for good dragstrip performance generally run quickest with 4.10:1 gears. Lower gears are required if the car is very heavy, or if the engine makes its power at the upper end of the rpm scale.

What rear end gear ratio is best for drag racing?

Typically a tall gear (2.79 – 3.70), would be used in a street car depending on the powerplant the car has installed, whereas a short gear (4.29 and up) would be the ratio of choice for big-power racing applications of 1,000 horsepower and higher.

What is the best rear end gear ratio?

The higher the ratio, the more revolutions per minute. Towing: For pickup trucks released after 2010, the best axle ratio for towing falls somewhere between 3.55 and 3.73. This range provides good acceleration for V8 gas and diesel engines.

What gears are best for racing?

If we have a daily driver, 2.55 to 3.25 gear ratios typically work best, whereas a street/strip application we would usually use a 3.42 to a 3.90 gear ratio, and race applications most commonly use a 4.10 and above gear ratios.

Drag racing: Streets - Tuning tips

Are 4.10 gears good for racing?

Installing 4.10 gears improves the car's performance on the track but with negligible effects to the highway driving. If your car is equipped with an overdrive, you may not even notice a difference in gas mileage with the new higher gearing.

Are 4.10 and 4.11 gears the same?

Adventurer. 4.10 will have 41/10 teeth so more, but smaller for the same diameter ring. 4.11 will have 37/9 teeth which will be larger. The 4.10 is a stronger pinion.

What transmission do drag cars use?

Drag racing cars are typically automatic. Using automatic gearboxes greatly increases the speed at which gear changes are carried out and, therefore, the car's overall acceleration. To be able to withstand the enormous torque forces, every automatic gearbox has to have a high-performance clutch system fitted.

What RPM does a Top Fuel dragster turn?

A Top Fuel dragster reaches more than 300 mph before you have completed reading this sentence. With a redline that can be as high as 9500 rpm, Top Fuel engines turn approximately 540 revolutions from light to light. Including the burnout, the engine needs to survive only 900 revolutions under load.

What is the rear end ratio of a Top Fuel dragster?

A while back I posted conserns about NHRA's Top Fuel rear-end ratio rule, the one that mandates a 2.90 to 1 ratio as the highest ratio allowed. This rule was put in place as a means to keep the Fuel cars under 300 mph.

Is 46 16 A good gear ratio?

A 46/16 gear ratio (2.88) on the other hand, provides higher top speeds, and is more efficient than the 44/16 - however acceleration will be more difficult. The 46/16 will permit you to travel farther with each pedal (you'll basically have longer legs) and therefore cover more distance with less effort.

Is higher gear ratio better?

Gear ratios can be boiled down to a single statement: Higher ratios (with a lower numerical value) give better torque/acceleration and lower ratios allow for higher top speeds and better fuel economy. Higher ratios mean the engine has to run faster to achieve a given speed.

Does gear ratio affect horsepower?

A higher numeric axle ratio (4.11:1) keeps the engine running in the higher horsepower range, thus improving performance.

What is a 3.73 gear ratio good for?

A numerically higher axle ratio provides a mechanical advantage to send more of the engine's available torque to the rear tires (and front tires, in a four-wheel drive vehicle), but you pay the price at the fuel pump. So, a truck with optional 3.73 gears will tow a heavier trailer than one with 3.55 or 3.21.

What does a 4 11 gear ratio mean?

A 4.11 refers to a 4.11:1 ratio. This means that the driveshaft turns 4.11 times for each time the axles turn once. This yields strong acceleration but, depending on transmission ratios, can mean the car cruises at high RPMs.

Can gears increase torque?

A gear's transmission torque changes as it increases or decreases speed. Generally, by reducing the speed, a small torque at the input side is transmitted as a larger torque at the output side. The calculation of torque depends on the number of teeth.

Is 3.31 a good gear ratio?

Those ratios provide very good acceleration with gas V-8s and diesels. Trucks equipped with 8-, 9-, or 10-speed automatics may work well with 3.31 ratios as the new transmissions have lower 1st and 2nd gears than the old 4-, 5- and 6-speeds, helping offset the axle ratio acceleration deficit.

Is it better to have more or less gears for racing?

In top gear, your car is working too hard to overcome a gearing disadvantage (higher gears mean less wheel torque) to accelerate. The more gears a transmission has, the more flexibility it has to find the most efficient engine speed for a given wheel speed.

How do I find the right gear ratio?

To determine the vehicle's overall First gear ratio we simply multiply the First gear ratio by the rear axle ratio (e.g., 2.48 x 4.10 = 10.17:1).

Is 3.23 a good gear ratio?

3.23 will be better suited to highway cruising and better fuel economy. 3.42 for better acceleration and better towing performance.

Is a 4.30 axle ratio good?

A 4.30 ratio will give you better low end acceleration but also lower gas mileage. A 3.73 ratio will still provide decent acceleration but will also provide a tad better mileage plus give you a higher top end speed.

What are the gear ratios in a Turbo 400?

The GM TH400's gear ratios are 2.48:1, 1.48:1, 1.00:1, and 2.07:1 for the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th gears. The THM400's transmission works excellently for high-performance and heavy-duty vehicles.