Well, as we all know life often has priorities that come before our cars. Mine this year has been landscaping our yard, and children's sports. (And steady rains for almost 2 months)
That said, I finally changed the rear gears in my w2 408 Dart and have had enough time between rain storms to get it out and critique.
As some may recall I have a 65 A833 commando box in my car with the 3.09 first gear ratio. Initially I tried the car with 3.55 gears, although a great deal of fun in town, not so much on the highway. Where I live, in small town Alberta, anywhere I go are highways with 110 km/h speed limits.(68.5MPH) so this is an important aspect to consider. First gear with the 3.55's was extremely short with nothing but rubber.
Next, I installed a 2.94 center later last summer. This was in advance of a car show about 400 miles away. While these were a blast on the highway, it wasnt optimal in town or on secondary highways. Second gear was almost too fast in town, first not ideal at lower speeds. Starting out on inclines or up curbs required feathering clutch more than I'd like. These were just not enough gear for this particular engine combo, it wasnt very happy anywhere but on the highway. (Not huge surprise, but I had them so I tried them)
Last week I installed my 3.23 chunk, this seems to be the ticket for multi use enjoyment. Around town, roll out is very easy, as are inclines into garage or parking lots. Once warm, car pulls along in 1st with little surge or bucking, likely tuning will eliminate. Second gear is perfect speed for in town use, and highway speeds are perfect at around 2700rpm. First, and a lot of second, it will annihilate the tires with ease. I think these are the perfect gear for my application.
For those of us without OD transmissions, gearing our cars is always going to be a compromise. We live in a small town, simply cruising town gets boring very quickly, so we like to take the car on road trips where we are at 60-70 mph for extended periods of time. Heck, the closest track is 2 full hrs away, still havent made it there with the Dart.
Nice thing the 8 3/4 allows pretty quick and easy gear swaps, can change out depending on usage requirements. Anyways, thought I'd share my results with the group, I too am a fan of the 3.23 gears with a large torque engine. Especially with the 3.09 first gear transmission.
Ps, tires are 235 70r15, listed at 27.9".
That said, I finally changed the rear gears in my w2 408 Dart and have had enough time between rain storms to get it out and critique.
As some may recall I have a 65 A833 commando box in my car with the 3.09 first gear ratio. Initially I tried the car with 3.55 gears, although a great deal of fun in town, not so much on the highway. Where I live, in small town Alberta, anywhere I go are highways with 110 km/h speed limits.(68.5MPH) so this is an important aspect to consider. First gear with the 3.55's was extremely short with nothing but rubber.
Next, I installed a 2.94 center later last summer. This was in advance of a car show about 400 miles away. While these were a blast on the highway, it wasnt optimal in town or on secondary highways. Second gear was almost too fast in town, first not ideal at lower speeds. Starting out on inclines or up curbs required feathering clutch more than I'd like. These were just not enough gear for this particular engine combo, it wasnt very happy anywhere but on the highway. (Not huge surprise, but I had them so I tried them)
Last week I installed my 3.23 chunk, this seems to be the ticket for multi use enjoyment. Around town, roll out is very easy, as are inclines into garage or parking lots. Once warm, car pulls along in 1st with little surge or bucking, likely tuning will eliminate. Second gear is perfect speed for in town use, and highway speeds are perfect at around 2700rpm. First, and a lot of second, it will annihilate the tires with ease. I think these are the perfect gear for my application.
For those of us without OD transmissions, gearing our cars is always going to be a compromise. We live in a small town, simply cruising town gets boring very quickly, so we like to take the car on road trips where we are at 60-70 mph for extended periods of time. Heck, the closest track is 2 full hrs away, still havent made it there with the Dart.
Nice thing the 8 3/4 allows pretty quick and easy gear swaps, can change out depending on usage requirements. Anyways, thought I'd share my results with the group, I too am a fan of the 3.23 gears with a large torque engine. Especially with the 3.09 first gear transmission.
Ps, tires are 235 70r15, listed at 27.9".
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