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3rd Gen Ram Tech2002-2008 Rams: This section is for TECHNICAL discussions only, that involve the 2002 through 2008 Rams Rams. For any non-tech discussions, please direct your attention to the "General discussion/NON-tech" sub sections.
Hammer if i have a 285 right now and i just bought a 6" suspension lift and 35" tires and i have 3.92 gears how bad will the performance change will be and i have a 2004 dodge ram qc 4x4 hemi 5.7
Bad, at least in my opinion. I went from 33's on 17" wheels to 35's with 3.92s after the lift and to me, at least, the truck felt like it couldn't get out of it's own way.
Some are happy with the 3.92s and 35" tires though. NOBODY is happy with 3.55s and tires that large. Do the lift and tires and see. If you are happy, keep the gears, however, because the engine is working easier keep in mind that the transmission is working harder, much harder than before. We all know that the achilles heel of these trucks forever has been the tranny. The current model on the Hemi seems to be the best Chrysler has come up with yet, but it still ain't no Allison if you know what I mean.
Over the long haul, upgrading your gears will be the best thing for you, IMO...
I know where you are coming from, my plan was to save for the lift & tires, then save for about 3 months for the gears, then about 6 months for power stuff (thank god I was working then). But after the lift & tires it took about a week for me to say "OK, I'll put the gears & LSD on a credit card, and pay it off over 3 months"
Yeah, you'd have a little more low end torque with a 2.5" pipe/3" tip setup, but it's not bad, many people do the 3" pipes. I'd still say the tuner/gear deal is by far your best bet...