Where to buy Toyota OEM gears?

[kcjaz]

Starting to plan (dream about) regearing and lockers. Thinking about OEM gears (4.88 likely) vs aftermarket like Nittro or whatever else might be out there. If I go OEM, what is the best way to get them? I've got a lot of learning here to do...

 

[619TOY]

For a 2013, I believe you can only get factory 4.88’s for the rear, not the front and even the rears would need to be imported from Japan. @bjowett would probably be your best source for the gears or sourcing assistance.

I think the more common approach if you’re looking to stick with factory gears would be to shoot for something less than 4.88’s.

 

[linuxgod]

@619TOY is correct, as far as I've seen on this forum.

Nitro seems to be the readily available answer.

I know there's a desire to keep with OEM parts but has anyone had serious issues with the Nitro gears and/or any stories about them breaking/failing or not lasting for hundreds of thousands of miles? I can't recall seeing any significant problems and so I'm curious if you're going to drive your cruiser another 300k miles will it actually matter? Wondering if we're all overthinking this

 

[kcjaz]

@619TOY is correct, as far as I've seen on this forum.

Nitro seems to be the readily available answer.

I know there's a desire to keep with OEM parts but has anyone had serious issues with the Nitro gears and/or any stories about them breaking/failing or not lasting for hundreds of thousands of miles? I can't recall seeing any significant problems and so I'm curious if you're going to drive your cruiser another 300k miles will it actually matter? Wondering if we're all overthinking this

Overthinking is in my DNA. I can't help it. I'm not set on OEM, more just wondering what the real options are so I can weigh them in an overly analytical way.

 

[TeCKis300]

@619TOY is correct as far as I understand it. 4.3 is going to be the highest gearset at the moment available with OEM parts. Rear OEM R&P 4.3 parts kit - 41201-80493 - that you can order at any Yota dealer.

You might have seen this thread that has relavent commentary

DIY 4.3 Re-Gear

Still in the early stages and I could use some recommendations on differential install kits/parts. I've got the keystone pieces in the garage as I attempt to collect the ancillary parts before I rip into the car. Planning a 4.3 re-gear with rear only Harrop e-locker. Locker is less of a...

forum.ih8mud.com

What overall tire size are you looking to build to? And what weight level?

From my experience towing 15k of rig, the 4.3s work exceedingly well with 33.2" tires, with overall gearing still 3% better than stock. 34" tires will still be ~1% better than stock. 4.88s could work great with a really heavy rig. As one that tows heavy, with high continuous loads on the diff, in both forward and engine braking, I was only willing to consider an OEM gearset.

Far fetched, but I often think to trade in for a later model year 200-series with the superior gearing of the 8-speed. That'll get better OEM gears. LOL.

 

[linuxgod]

Far fetched, but I often think to trade in for a later model year 200-series with the superior gearing of the 8-speed. That'll get better OEM gears. LOL.

That thought has crossed my mind, too. ~2018 with 3.90 gears. But then if I think about starting my build over again...

 

[kcjaz]

@619TOY is correct as far as I understand it. 4.3 is going to be the highest gearset at the moment available with OEM parts. Rear OEM R&P 4.3 parts kit - 41201-80493 - that you can order at any Yota dealer.

You might have seen this thread that has relavent commentary

DIY 4.3 Re-Gear

Still in the early stages and I could use some recommendations on differential install kits/parts. I've got the keystone pieces in the garage as I attempt to collect the ancillary parts before I rip into the car. Planning a 4.3 re-gear with rear only Harrop e-locker. Locker is less of a...

forum.ih8mud.com

What overall tire size are you looking to build to? And what weight level?

From my experience towing 15k of rig, the 4.3s work exceedingly well with 33.2" tires, with overall gearing still 3% better than stock. 34" tires will still be ~1% better than stock. 4.88s could work great with a really heavy rig. As one that tows heavy, with high continuous loads on the diff, in both forward and engine braking, I was only willing to consider an OEM gearset.

Far fetched, but I often think to trade in for a later model year 200-series with the superior gearing of the 8-speed. That'll get better OEM gears. LOL.

Thanks. I searched but didn't find you previous post. Currently running 285/70/R17 Duratracs. So far, I'm pretty happy with those. I think the max I'd go is 34". As far as weight goes, I have a heavy front bumper, and plan on adding a winch, rear bumper/tire carrier, rack, dual battery, rear drawer system and 3/16 SS BudBuilt full skids. (skids are already ordered!!!!). So it will be fairly heavy. Like I said, I'm just starting the thinking process. 4.88 is just a guess at this point based on really nothing. I started thinking gears when I when I started thinking about lockers. I started thinking hard about lockers when I was thinking about ways to blow up a CV and ways to reduce that risk. I have been told that front lockers increase the risk of blowing a CV, but I think its the other way around as long as you know when to turn it on and then, go straight. Slowly crawling, and minimizing the need for momentum seems the best approach to me. I've never seen a blown CV in the wild but all the videos I have seen are always some guy with his foot on the gas bouncing up, spinning the free wheel, then landing hard and gaining instant traction. boom. Anyway, I digress...

 

[linuxgod]

Thanks. I searched but didn't find you previous post. Currently running 285/70/R17 Duratracs. So far, I'm pretty happy with those. I think the max I'd go is 34". As far as weight goes, I have a heavy front bumper, and plan on adding a winch, rear bumper/tire carrier, rack, dual battery, rear drawer system and 3/16 SS BudBuilt full skids. (skids are already ordered!!!!). So it will be fairly heavy. Like I said, I'm just starting the thinking process. 4.88 is just a guess at this point based on really nothing. I started thinking gears when I when I started thinking about lockers. I started thinking hard about lockers when I was thinking about ways to blow up a CV and ways to reduce that risk. I have been told that front lockers increase the risk of blowing a CV, but I think its the other way around as long as you know when to turn it on and then, go straight. Slowly crawling, and minimizing the need for momentum seems the best approach to me. I've never seen a blown CV in the wild but all the videos I have seen are always some guy with his foot on the gas bouncing up, spinning the free wheel, then landing hard and gaining instant traction. boom. Anyway, I digress...

IMO on the 2008-2015 you want 4.30s if you have 34+" tires or tow anything heavy. You can get away with not re-gearing, but if Toyota sold multiple different LC versions 3.90 would be stock and 4.30 would be the towing package. Towing is why you can find Tundra 4.30 factory gears. But Toyota sells a limited number of LC and they weigh fuel efficiency of a stock spec truck as their sweet spot.

If you have lots of armor and 35" tires or if you have some armor on 33" tires but you tow a heavy trailer you probably want 4.88s. In your case I think you will probably want 4.88s. I speak from research, not experience with actual gear changes, but with a front bumper + roof rack + 34s + trailer I know I want *at least* 4.30 gears and that would barely get me back to stock gearing.

As @TeCKis300 points out the 5.7L is no slouch and has plenty of grunt to get your 8000# rig and 7000# trailer moving, so it's not like you *have* to do it. But the more weight you're trying to move the more you'll likely appreciate it.

 

[kcjaz]

So, while my 285/70/R17 Duratracs aren't huge, they are slightly bigger than stock and heavier. That change was a noticeable mpg change. With more weight, my mpg will get worse. I don't do a lot of towing but do occasionally tow the boat to a different lake. I was thinking the lower gearing would generally improve my mileage in normal use (not towing).

From a pure off road point of view, the lower the gearing the better right? I realize that in the end, I need to balance rock crawling with cruising down an interstate at 80 mph but I think that as long as I don't let the rpms go too high at 80, lower gearing is "better".

 

[bloc]

@619TOY is correct, as far as I've seen on this forum.

Nitro seems to be the readily available answer.

I know there's a desire to keep with OEM parts but has anyone had serious issues with the Nitro gears and/or any stories about them breaking/failing or not lasting for hundreds of thousands of miles? I can't recall seeing any significant problems and so I'm curious if you're going to drive your cruiser another 300k miles will it actually matter? Wondering if we're all overthinking this

I always forget who it was but someone here reported seeing a lot of metal on the magnets while breaking in their Nitros. That did slow down some, and they didn't seem to have any other problems, but that's definitely not a good sign.

Toyota clearly makes extremely high quality gears, based on how few of their diffs fail. and Nitros seem good. That statement pretty much sums up my feelings on it, and is why I'll be going toyota 4.3s when I move up to 285/75s.

 

[M1911]

. I was thinking the lower gearing would generally improve my mileage in normal use (not towing).

I doubt you will see much difference, if any. You are getting worse mileage from added weight, added aerodynamic resistance, increased rolling resistance.

The way to get better mileage is to reduce weight, remove lift, use stock size highway tires with low rolling resistance.

 

[TeCKis300]

So, while my 285/70/R17 Duratracs aren't huge, they are slightly bigger than stock and heavier. That change was a noticeable mpg change. With more weight, my mpg will get worse. I don't do a lot of towing but do occasionally tow the boat to a different lake. I was thinking the lower gearing would generally improve my mileage in normal use (not towing).

From a pure off road point of view, the lower the gearing the better right? I realize that in the end, I need to balance rock crawling with cruising down an interstate at 80 mph but I think that as long as I don't let the rpms go too high at 80, lower gearing is "better".

I posted my experience with towing MPG over a long 1000+ mile trip. It may not always be true that it'll be better mileage.

DIY 4.3 Re-Gear

I get your point (even as a joke), but counter with this example of me getting in over my head. Almost lost one of my hands in the process. Wouldn't have happened if I didn't have lockers. Rolling a truck (admittedly out of ignorance and lack of skill) has a way of making you prioritize keeping...

forum.ih8mud.com

 

[linuxgod]

@kcjaz, if you're rock crawling offroad then you pretty much want the tallest gears you can get. If you're overlanding and rarely spend time in 1st gear in 4Lo then you may not.

I'd expect a bit better mileage in city/stop-and-go driving, since the engine doesn't need to work as hard to get you moving. Think of pedaling a bicycle in 1st vs 10th gear from a stop.

If you're having trouble regularly maintaining top gear on the highway then taller gearing may help a bit as well.

Taller gears may help with mileage if your engine is running below the optimal A/F mixture. That said the mileage improvement from optimal A/F is at least partially offset by taller gears/higher RPMs. This is more pronounced under engine load, which is why those of us that tow are particularly interested in taller gearing. that said, "YMMV".

Taller gears should help a bit with transmission temps when towing as the higher RPMs the faster fluid circulates through the system, though in most cases the transmission temps stay in the 195-200F range whether in 4th gear with a trailer or 6th gear without, and since the A/T thermostat keeps you at/above 195F it's probably a limited benefit.

FWIW 4.30 on 34s gets you back to stock gearing (3.90 on 31s). 4.88 will be taller and IIRC gets you back to stock gearing on 37s. If you don't plan to go taller than 33 (those 285/70R17 Duratracs) or 34" (285/75R17) and you don't tow a lot, then even with the aero losses from a front bumper etc you may not want to go all the way to 4.88s.

 

[bloc]

I think some of our terminology might be getting mixed up. I always understood "tall" gearing to mean a lower number ratio.. eg moving from a 3.9 to a 3.3. The word comes from a given transmission gear working to higher speeds, and with less shifting.
Conversely "short" gearing to be moving from 3.3 to to 3.9, 4.3, low range, etc.

But I could have all of this wrong..

 

[linuxgod]

I think some of our terminology might be getting mixed up. I always understood "tall" gearing to mean a lower number ratio.. eg moving from a 3.9 to a 3.3. The word comes from a given transmission gear working to higher speeds, and with less shifting.
Conversely "short" gearing to be moving from 3.3 to to 3.9, 4.3, low range, etc.

But I could have all of this wrong..

Nope, you're right, I've been doing it wrong all this time

 

[bloc]

Nope, you're right, I've been doing it wrong all this time

I do it often enough.