I don't think that's true, who told you motive made them?

You'll feel like you lost some power, but consider the stock tires on the 20's are 33's it's not a huge jump.

 

Running 3:55's and 35's is just foolish IMO. 3:92 is the smallest gear I would run with 35's. I ran 35's and 3:55's on my 06 F-150 and went through two rear ends and two transmissions in 50,000 miles. I sold it to a friend whom re-geared it and he is now at 97,000 miles without a single issue. Those big tires and small gear put a huge load on the entire drivetrain that is not worth it at all. Spend the $$ and re-gear.

 

So we are talking about the strain on the trans? Based on what your saying I souldnt tow anything with my truck because its running stock 20's and has 3.55's correct?

 

You're absolutely fine towing with the 355's on 20's but you'd be better off with at least 4.10 gears if you go with 35" tires. It's not the size of the tires or rims...it's the diameter or over all height of the tires "ONLY" that matters (as in how tall in inches). From the factory mine are 392 gears on 30.5" tires and are perfect all around. The 30.5 inches height is the only thing used to calibrate gear ratio with the ring gear. With 35" tire height...you're going to need at least 4.10 or even better, 4.56 gears to compensate for the height of those tires. And they do have some good selections of rear ends and carriers at several places. But I think Moe's Performance (strictly for the 09 Dodge Ram I think?) is one of them that you should compare prices and quality with. And last...a lower gear actually puts less strain on your engine and transmission putting the torque and strain at the rear where it belongs and less in the tranny. IMO, for 33" tall tires...4.10's and for 35" tall tires I would go with 4.56 gears only, good luck!

 

Dude- don't let these gear-thumpers freak you out!! Especially if you plan on keeping your 33" tires!! I have several friends with 3.55s and tires as large as 37" on their trucks (Ford and Dodge) that have not had any of the problems these gear heads on this thread are preaching. I myself had 35" tires on my last F150 with 3.55s and didn't have a single problem with my tranny (85,000 miles before I traded it in on a new Ford F150) or issue with towing or felt like I didn't have any power (when compared with the stock set up).

The only way I would justify such an expense of swapping gears would be if my truck was used for constant heavy towing. Otherwise- it's a ridiculous waste of $$$. You have a 5yr 100k mile warranty on your powertrain for Pete's sake!! Drive it like you stole it and enjoy your truck!

 

I'm not saying that at all. By increasing the tire size you are essentially putting more strain on the drivetrain at all times. So with 35" tires it would be the same as having 33" tires with a load in the bed or a light trailer on at all times. Taller tires, especially with a 3:55 WILL increase the wear on your drivetrain. Many dealerships will not cover warranty issues such as transmission and rear end problems if you are running big tires with a small gear. You WILL feel a reduction in power, the numbers prove that and in city driving I can almost guarantee a reduction in mileage. The added wear will occur more if you are spending a lot of time driving in the city, btu I would advise at least a swap to 3:92's, I would probably go with 4:10's or 4:56's myself.

 

We've had traveling sales vehicles here at work we've put 35's on with stock gears. Some are at 120,000 miles with the larger tires and lift - with no plans on regearing them. I have 35's on my personal truck, eventually I'll get new gears... I have a couple other things I want to get first.

 

35's with 3.55's is the same final drive ratio as 3.21's with the stock tires.

 

It's evident that you don't like spending money seeing your previous truck mods, but money spent on ones truck is in the eyes of the beholder, whether it's performance mods or body mods. Some may like mods that others don't but if you do any mods you should at least try to do it in a professional manner. I guarantee you that if he puts 35" tires on those 3.55 gears his gas mileage and power will plummet to the ****s! You should take heed to these gear-thumpers as you say with Jeeps and mods with such to learn something before you go slamming peoples opinions. Most like me are telling you this from professional on hands experience and only trying to help this guy. With the kind of build advice that you are offering, his truck will not be able to get out of it's own way .

 

I have decided to do the gear swap. I now am researching parts as this is a whole new world to me. I have questions like... When I do the 4.10's will I only need a ring and pinion (and LSD or Locker) for the rear and front? Or will I need to buy a replacement carrier as well. and the list goes on. It would be nice if some place had a package I could click on and buy. Any suggestions on where to shop? Also the "4.10's are noisy" bothers me too. Making me think I should just go with 3.92's. Any imput would be greatly appreciated. I drive about 1200-1500 miles a week so I dont mind paying for reliability.