440 Automatic. What gears are you running?

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famous bob said:
Just reread this thread, who runs 55mph / more like 75-80 straight for the most part-------
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I do and 65-70 or you will get run over. Course only when jumping on the highway. Not often but it does happen.
 
I'm old school from years gone by, 4.10 for cruising and 4.88s for the strip both on spools. I won't even talk about the converter....
 
1BAD72 said:
Shredding a pair of 28" street tires is easy even with the 3.23's... I am basically looking for the around town "fun factor". Trying not to put in 3.73 gears and then wishing I had put in 3.91's. :icon_fU: I will probably be changing to a softer rear street radial. Still 28" though.
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"shredding 28 inch tires is easy with 3.23's."
I'm confused...what are you hoping to gain with 3.73's or 3.91's
 
ir3333 said:
"shredding 28 inch tires is easy with 3.23's."
I'm confused...what are you hoping to gain with 3.73's or 3.91's
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Hoping to gain more "throw you back in your seat". More "exhilaration". Faster 0 to 60.
 
For me it's the put in third hit the throttle and roll smoke as long as you can keep it strait.
But that's me.....
 
Oldiron440 said:
For me it's the put in third hit the throttle and roll smoke as long as you can keep it strait.
But that's me.....
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Not me , I`d rather that mine would "move" , than just sit there . I was 32 yrs old before I figured out my dad wasn't paying for the tires /lol.
 
ir3333 said:
"shredding 28 inch tires is easy with 3.23's."
I'm confused...what are you hoping to gain with 3.73's or 3.91's
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If, u got the power to break the tires loose w/3;23`s it will likely spin more than a lower gear set, because of tire speed anyway.--------waste of time !.
 
323s with 295/50 15 Futura and the hook decent depending on the surface
 
famous bob said:
If, u got the power to break the tires loose w/3;23`s it will likely spin more than a lower gear set, because of tire speed anyway.--------waste of time !.
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I can address tire spin. I was planning on some better rubber too as I mentioned back there somewhere. BFG Radial T/A's on it now look nice but don't hook. Nitto or MT ET S/S streetable drag radials are being considered. So you think a gear change from 3.23 to 3.73 and a drag radial won't make a noticable difference in what I'll feel in the first few hundred feet of WOT? I'm honestly intrested in your feedback because you're one of the few that is taking that stance.
 
forphorty said:
converter??
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Not sure if if the TC is stock. Somewhat tight. It was in the car when I got it. A few weights welded on by someone other than Mopar. B&M shift kit. Shifts 1st to 2nd with no slip and a slight bang at any speed. If you jump on it she leaves 20 feet or so of rubber and rear of car slides left a bit, bangs into 2nd along with a foot or two of rubber and a little rear slide to the left. 2nd to 3rd is firm but no wheel spin.
 
1BAD72 said:
I can address tire spin. I was planning on some better rubber too as I mentioned back there somewhere. BFG Radial T/A's on it now look nice but don't hook. Nitto or MT ET S/S streetable drag radials are being considered. So you think a gear change from 3.23 to 3.73 and a drag radial won't make a noticable difference in what I'll feel in the first few hundred feet of WOT? I'm honestly intrested in your feedback because you're one of the few that is taking that stance.
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Not so , a 3:73 w/ 295 60 15 drag radials wont hook real good on my 440/505 fastback, it really needs bigger tires . They do hook better than any street tire tho! _______________________________ ____________________________________
 
Thank you all for the opinions and suggestions. Much appreciated. I drove about 45 minutes to a car show today in Punta Gorda, FL. A good portion was secondary roads with a 60 mph speed limit. Traffic was moving at least 65. My 3.23s were giving me between 2,500 and 2,600 rpm. 3.55s would have had me close to 2,900 rpm. I drove at 2,900 for a few miles and for me and a car that I won't be seriously racing, I couldn't even see 3.55 gears on that ride. I'm going to leave the gears as is for now. If I did change I wouldn't go over 3.55s for the kind of driving I'll do the majority of the time. The car show was at the Muscle Car Museum in Punta Gorda and we took a People's Choice trophy.
 
Old guys rule of thumb used to be 3.23 for a big block and 3.55 or 3.91 for the small block. It makes sense, because the big block has more torque and can pull into more of a highway gear. These choices are for street cars of course. More performance and or race gearing is entirely different.

There used to be a guy that would come up to Silver Dollar Raceway in Reynolds, Georgia years ago when I was in the local Mopar club. He had a 68 Charger with a really TOUGH stock stroke 440. Car had 2.76 gears and ran 11s. Never got out of 2nd gear. lol So you don't have to have short as heck gears to run. You just have to have the car set up to run the way you want.
 
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Looks like a set of sticky tires would help with traction and the side effect would be more of that set you back in the seat feel you want. Plus still have your cruise gears.
 
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I've known plenty of people who have run 3.55 down to the track then swap the center for 4.88 or deeper, race and swap them back for the drive home. Lots of work but doable.
 
Thanks to everyone for their input. I realize that the people that responded have different set ups in their cars and they use their cars differently. Clearly, it explains why there are so many opinions on which gears to run. I asked the questions knowing fully that there was no one right answer.

For my particular situation I bought my 8.75 with a 3.23 SG in a 489 case and I run 28" tires. My decision was to go with 3.73 gears. I went with a Motive gear set and Motive master install kit. Imagine my surprise when I pulled the pumpkin and found my 3.23 pinion was a 10 spline like on a 741 case. Wish I could still get hold of the previous owner to ask a few more questions. It's now all 489 with the correct 29 spline but there was a bit of head scratching...
I'm very happy with the 3.73 gears and glad I skipped over the 3.55 and didn't jump to 3.91 for my driving and set up. Still breaking them in. I'm in no rush.
 
1BAD72 said:
Thanks to everyone for their input. I realize that the people that responded have different set ups in their cars and they use their cars differently. Clearly, it explains why there are so many opinions on which gears to run. I asked the questions knowing fully that there was no one right answer.

For my particular situation I bought my 8.75 with a 3.23 SG in a 489 case and I run 28" tires. My decision was to go with 3.73 gears. I went with a Motive gear set and Motive master install kit. Imagine my surprise when I pulled the pumpkin and found my 3.23 pinion was a 10 spline like on a 741 case. Wish I could still get hold of the previous owner to ask a few more questions. It's now all 489 with the correct 29 spline but there was a bit of head scratching...
I'm very happy with the 3.73 gears and glad I skipped over the 3.55 and didn't jump to 3.91 for my driving and set up. Still breaking them in. I'm in no rush.
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They are a great gear, just did a 840 mile trip the "long" way to la Crosse Wi from racine with mine and it wasn't that bad.
 
Fisher said:
I have 3.73 in mine with a 275/60/15 drag radial, car is a handful. runs 2600 rpm at 60 on the highway. Good all around gear.
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Is 2600rpm @60 a little high? us being 440s would drain the gas tank pretty quick right?
 
I went with Motive 3.73 gears. Very happy. Should reach the recommended 500 mile break in after the holidays. I am planning to pull the center section, clean the case again, check all clearances and refill with Valvoline conventional 85w140 and 4 ounces of MOPAR Suregrip additive. I have the lighter 80w90 in there now for the break-in. Love the extra grunt compared to 3.23. Noticeable. Breaking the tires is much easier... to my surprise, even from a 20 mph roll. Yes, when I'm in 3rd I sometimes find myself wondering when it's gonna shift into 3rd... lol. Yes, gas mileage is a little worse. Not sure how much worse. Yes, glad I didn't go any lower than 3.73 for a street car. Yes, glad I didn't just go with 3.55. I would probably have wished I went to 3.73. No, there wasn't any real "need" to change gears. I just wanted to enjoy what lower gears offer and, well, it's my car. Yes, I have a bit more gear whine, mostly on engine breaking at low rpm, than before. I'll double check everything when I pull the center section. So that's all the answers to the common questions from my experience. Thank you all for the input.
 
1BAD72 said:
Thank you all for the opinions and suggestions. Much appreciated. I drove about 45 minutes to a car show today in Punta Gorda, FL. A good portion was secondary roads with a 60 mph speed limit. Traffic was moving at least 65. My 3.23s were giving me between 2,500 and 2,600 rpm. 3.55s would have had me close to 2,900 rpm. I drove at 2,900 for a few miles and for me and a car that I won't be seriously racing, I couldn't even see 3.55 gears on that ride. I'm going to leave the gears as is for now. If I did change I wouldn't go over 3.55s for the kind of driving I'll do the majority of the time. The car show was at the Muscle Car Museum in Punta Gorda and we took a People's Choice trophy.
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ur rear tires are too short !
 
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