I read it as an example of what kind of RPM would be too high for a 3FE, which, when contrasted against 2800rpm makes the latter appear quite reasonable.
Regearing questions? 3FE with 33's
- Thread starter Fiveo
- Start date
This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.
I read it as an example of what kind of RPM would be too high for a 3FE, which, when contrasted against 2800rpm makes the latter appear quite reasonable.
33's and a 3fe, I would just keep the gears stock and pick a lighter weight tire. Unless your doing a lot of driving up hill.....
Your words, "2800 is starting to get a bit on the high side for sustained flat highway RPM for the 3FE"
I disagree. The 3FE will be very happy at 2800 rpm for years on end. 3800 RPM is what I would consider "high" for sustained use, but I can't tell you how many times I've pulled hills at 4200. Don't fear the RPM. There's no reason to.
I don't recall the numbers, but I've driven across the country with 33s and 4.88 pulling a trailer. I don't drive at 75 MPH simply because there's no reason to push a lifted truck that fast. If I want to go fast, I'll drive my wife's car.
Last edited:
Just got brand spankin’ new BFG is KO2 A/T 33s installed on Saturday
—285/75 R16 to be exact. It was a choice of going from 31s to 33s or 35s after getting the 2 inch OME lift. Tires are a $1000 ish commitment, but the re-gear is a lot more $ so the decision is a lot harder to make. I am sure my answer would be 4.56 if asked when cruising a flat desert highway (to maintain lower cruising rpm), but come the mountain pass highways, which there are a few out in Southern California, starting out from a red light in the hilly area by my house and off-road my answer would be 4.88–no question about it. With the accessory weight being added on is increasingly tipping it in favor of 4.88. Definitely going to drive it around for some time to get a feel of how the 33s feel compared to the 31s. What a tough decision!
The 3FE has always seemed really good off the line, but the midrange trying to hold 60 mph ish up slight inclines with it kicking down and shooting up to 3600-3800 rpm is what I least like about it. It’s almost as if a gear in the tranny is missing a gear between D and 3. I’m sure fellow 3FEers know exactly what I am talking about. Incidentally, some 1FZFEers have told me it’s better, but not by much for them.
Yeah I hear your point. It just seems / sounds like 2800-3000 rpm sustained going down the highway is a lot. In hot Southern California where I live and through the very hot deserts I drive through it just seems like the heat soak on the engine spinning at that rpm would be high. 4200 rpm
...oh man that’s within spitting distance—300 rpm away from the 4500 rpm redline. I know you’re a seasoned 3FE guy speaking from experience so I’ll take your word for it. I suppose I need to spend more time with the 3FE tractor motor. Only reason I say 75mph is cause everyone else is cruising at 80mph. I’d be happy to cruise at 65mph, but worry about the speed differential of constantly getting passed up by cars in the lane next to me going 15+ mph faster.
Learn to enjoy the right lane. The time difference between 65 mph and 75 mph over a distance of 100 miles is a whole 12 minutes. You're just burning more fuel to get there.Yeah I hear your point. It just seems / sounds like 2800-3000 rpm sustained going down the highway is a lot. In hot Southern California where I live and through the very hot deserts I drive through it just seems like the heat soak on the engine spinning at that rpm would be high. 4200 rpm
The 3FE does not have oil starvation issues like the older 2F design. If you're concerned about the cooling system, then address any issues you may have.
As with anything else, maintenance is key. If you don't maintain it, it won't work well. It's a pretty simple equation.
Let me explain my reasoning.Just got brand spankin’ new BFG is KO2 A/T 33s installed on Saturday
I drove a 91 with 315's, armor all around, and 4:88's all across Southern Utah for 5 years.
Even with the 4:88's I still had to keep it above 3,000 rpm's in third or 2nd for any kind of grade, and there are a lot of grades in Utah.
With my 91 my interstate cruising speed was 70 tops if I could actually keep it going in D.
If I was doing another 3fe and going for 33's I would keep the stock gears so I could retain a higher cruising speed. Because even with the regear it will still be slow and downshifting a must for the hills.
Basiclly the only difference I noticed after changing the gears on my 91 was a slower top speed and a little more pep off the line, but no real difference in driving up hills. I always had to gear down for the grades before and after the re-gear.
Even better than diff gears would be a manual transmission swap.
Your current plan sounds like a good one. Drive it for awhile before you make the decision.
Goodluck with your rig whatever you decide.
i am on 4.88 and 37s. the 3FE can sustain climb @ 4k rpm on 2nd gear for a long period of time. 35s amd 4.88 is a sweet spot, but 37s on 488, desmog and a little timing advance is really no complaint here along with my tranny VB upgrade.
All great info, thanks Fellas.
@leonard_nemoy interesting you should bring up the manual tranny because once I started driving the 3FE around the city in 3 rather than D I got rid of a lot of gear hunting and enjoyed the drive much much more. In fact I almost drive it like a manual now—I’ll start out in 2 to ensure the revs don’t drop down only to scream back in case I kick down the tranny to get a little extra power back then shift to 3 when I know the revs are high enough to avoid a kick down. Those dreaded kick downs! My 4Runner and truck are already manuals so not sure how the Mrs (who doesn’t know how to drive a manual) would feel about the Land Cruiser becoming a full time manual
. Pretty sure I would love this thing in a manual.
@leonard_nemoy interesting you should bring up the manual tranny because once I started driving the 3FE around the city in 3 rather than D I got rid of a lot of gear hunting and enjoyed the drive much much more. In fact I almost drive it like a manual now—I’ll start out in 2 to ensure the revs don’t drop down only to scream back in case I kick down the tranny to get a little extra power back then shift to 3 when I know the revs are high enough to avoid a kick down. Those dreaded kick downs! My 4Runner and truck are already manuals so not sure how the Mrs (who doesn’t know how to drive a manual) would feel about the Land Cruiser becoming a full time manual. Pretty sure I would love this thing in a manual.
I share this person’s license plate frame sentiments...
