4.88 or 5.29 ring and pinion experience (1 Viewer)

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Madison, MS
I am trying to decide what gears to go with and want to know what 80 SERIES LANDCRUISERS owners are currently running. i would like to know about any regrets with a certain brand or gearset chosen. I am running Elocked 4.10s with 36s and the stock 4.5 L inline six & stock tcase. . needless to say a little sluggish. i mostly run level 3-4 rocktrails. I am leaning towards the 4.88s because i don't want ring and pinion trouble.

thanks!
 
There is a good analysis of the 5.29 gears concerning whether or not they are "weaker" than 4.88's. It is on Zuk's web site (IIRC, gearinstalls.com). There have been a couple of links to that write-up here on 'Mud but I don't have them handy. Do a google and see what you come up with and let us know if you come up empty.

With true 35" tyres, the 4.88 gears will give about 6% improvement over stock gears. Probably pretty close to equivalent with 37" tyres and maybe 3% with your 36's. I think the additional tyre weight will make that improvement feel less than the math.

This particular topic has been discussed several times. I can recall that Nay has started several threads that became 'spirited' during the back-and-forth dialogue. There might be a link in the FAQ so check there for more feedback.

We have discovered that box labeling is misleading. a Yukon box might have Precision gears and it might have Motive gears. This has also been covered a couple of times in past discussions. Again, Zuk's web site has a lot of information on the details of gear set-up. I don't think he sells gears so it is relatively unbiased in that regard.

I have the 4.88 Motive gears (Yukon labeled box) and they set up fine after a relatively minor issue with the rears. The place that set them up said there was a burr on the pinion gear that wasn't obvious until he tested the gears after set-up. He had to tear it down and grind off the small burr; then everything was OK. I have not noticed any noise or other issues after 12 months and about 6,000 miles.

-B-
 
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thanks for the reply. i did do a search before launching this thread and unfortunatley came up empty for 80 series specific ring and pinion experiences. i have a suzuki samurai as well and have had issues before with ring and pinions and want to avoid them at all cost if possible. in my zuk i run yota mini truck axles and have not have any issues thus far but i am running 4.10s. i am asking for 80 series specific issues because i know that ring and pinions issues can be different for different size axles ( stock samurai axles vs yota axles ,for example).
 
It will be a difference of opinion at the end of the day. With that said, my vote goes to 4.88
 
I agree it will come down to opinion and that's why i started this paritcular thread because i want to know your opinion and past experiences with running certain set ups. That being said why would you go with the 4.88? what setup (tires, engine, tcase gears) are you currently running?
 
I'm not trying to squash this thread but if you want to read what others have posted in past discussions then search for posts by Ringpinion.biz
They sell and set-up gears and usually reply to threads like yours. Also do an advanced search, 80-Section, and use Keywords=Motive, Yukon, Precision (plus gear*) and you should get some relevant threads.

Another good search is keyword=Zuk*, 80-Section. It seems Zuk is mentioned in just about all the "re-gearing" threads. Here is his analysis of 4.10 gears vs 5.71 gears. Again, search for and read the posts by Ringpinion.biz in the 80-Section. There shouldn't be that many and they will all be relevant to your questions.

-B-
 
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I have had every gear size all with my 35's. I have had 4:11s (stock), 4:56's and finally 4:88's'.
All were with 35's. The bottom line for me. The 4:56's were good enough. BUT, when I went up to my current 4:88's, it gave me 100 more RPMs at highway speeds, and I got more "oomph" with the 4:88's. So, in summary, The truck is quicker with 4:88's. The 4:88's are the sweet spot for 35's....no doubt about it.
airlaird
 
I would not make the decision based on strength. I run my 5.29's hard offroad.

I would make the decision based on your highway driving style and offroad requirements.

If you drive under 70 mph, then 5.29's with 36's are going to spin around a max of 2,600 RPM, which I think is ideal (with 35's it's about 2,700 RPM). The 5.29's will let you easily step up to 37's without rethinking gearing.

If, however, you like to drive >70 mph with those 36's, then you will not like 5.29's, they will be too low.

The harder your crawl, the more you are going to like the 5.29's. The more moderate your wheeling, the more the gearing difference will be irrelevant.

My view on R&P strength in axle of this strength and quality is simple: relying on 4.88's to save you from the type of abuse that is likely to bust 5.29's is a web wheeling game. If you are blowing up properly installed 5.29's, you need to upgrade the entire axle.

Most people will prefer 4.88's even on 36's and possibly 37's over 5.29's. My usage is geared to high elevation (up to 12,000') driving and at times even higher elevation wheeling combined with reasonably serious rock crawling that is almost always 8,000'+. I don't care about driving over 70 mph a whole lot, although I'd be lying if I said my next set of tires wasn't going to be 37's.

So I like the 5.29's and I will be properly geared for 37's. Momentum that suddenly stops breaks R&P's, not ring gear tooth count. YMMV.
 
Nay nailed it. I'd also go with 5.29's if I could do it over again. I did 4.88's with my 37's but will be going to 39's. I want 5.29's.
 
My vote's for 5.29's as well, however I rarely break 70 mph.
 
I just switched from 456 to 529's. I also have the 3FE, I say go 529's. Hell some day you might want to go to 38's or bigger.
 
I run 36" Irok radials (which are pretty close to other 37" tires) on 4.88s. I don't peticularly like the higher highway rmps and I didn't notice any more advantage off road than my previous 4.10 and 33" tires. I personally would run 38" tires to make up for the lower gears if my truck would still fit in the garage.

Simply consider where the MAJORITY of your driving will be. Is this a daily driver or more a weekend fun toy? If the answer is not the latter I would stay with 4.88s and 35 tires. Also it leaves the door open if you ever feel the need for going to 37" tires. Tires larger will require beefer parts including the elockers.
 
Have run 5.29s with 35s and 37s for years now. Driven from WA to Moab and Rubicon multiple time, no big deal in terms of engine revs and all that. Off road, 5.29s pay off in gold. Love them, would never go back!
 
I just got my 35's on and will be running 4.88s soon it's my daily driver and i dont need the 5.29s for what im doing with it now.
 
I didn't notice any more advantage off road than my previous 4.10 and 33" tires.

That's because you are still undergeared :flipoff2:

Just kidding - this is a good example of why answering this question around your usage is the right approach. These are two answers on the opposite ends of the spectrum, both of which are "right" for the user.
 
Alvarorb on the board here went from 4.88s to 5.29s and still runs 35s. This prevents the torque converter stall he was getting in boulder fields. Unless you genuinely will be doing heavy offroad with your truck, I would think the 4.88s will be more flexible, especially for dd duties and the like.
 
It comes down to what you will be doing. 5.29's will be lower and better for wheeling, but bad on the highway.

I like my 4.88's because it still provides lower gears and I can do 90 on the highway so when I go places like the Rubicon or Moab, I don't have to crawl.

I have no regrets and would choose 4.88's again
 
5.29's will be lower and better for wheeling, but bad on the highway.[/QUOTE]

They aren't "bad" on the highway. You doing 90 with 4.88's is going to be higher RPM than me doing 70 with 5.29's.

5.29's will increase RPM by about 200 at 70 mph over 4.88's. That is all. This will lower top comfortable driving speed by 10 mph for most of us.

So, if you only drive 65 mph, 4.88's are a complete waste of top cruising speed headroom, and the extra gearing of 5.29's with cruise control on is a nice thing. If you drive faster on a regular basis, 4.88's are a no-brainer.
 

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