what gear?

[dropit69]

ok i have a 69 camaro with a 12 bolt .. has 4.56 gears in it now ..nice but i want a better all around gear...heres the specs on car..355 roller engine..400 turbo ...should i go 3.73 or 3.55?...will be street car mainly with a few track events if i can get time too..thanks

[chicane67]

...My favorite ratio of all time... 3.42.

But... we need to know more information about your combination to make a more intelligent recommendation.

[dropit69]

what kinda info you need and ill see what all i can find out ..i just bought the car this way a month ago so im limited some on info..thanks for the help

[Turbo67camaro]

I don't know what gear ratios are in your 400 turbo transmission, but it seems to me that the most important determining factor in picking rear end gears are:
1) What gear ratios are in your trans. ?
2) How quick do you want the car to be (1/4 mile etc.) ?
3) How much do you care about gas mileage on the street ?
4) How many RPMs are you willing to turn when cruising at highway speeds ?
5) Desired top speed capability at the track ?

[jackfrost]

whats the intent for the car? if you're drag racing 1/4 mile, you want to be hitting (near) redline in 3rd gear at the top of the track. if highway driving, pick a lower numbered gear or get an OD trans, check out one of the online calculators for RPMs at speed.

if just cruising w/ no real highway or heavy drag racing, 3.73s are my favorite.

[Todds69]

My vote is the 3.73, but depends on how long you plan on keeping this combo in the car. I know we talked about the LSx/T-56 swap when you were here, so that would be a big consideration.

With 3.55 gears I think the converter would be slipping the most of the time, which isn't bad as long as the tranny cooler is doing its job. Which it should because I went a little larger than the what was recommended, because of possible gear changes.

Anything I can do to help let me know.

Todd

[dropit69]

thanks guys.....i do plan on prolly swapping the tranny for a stick for sure..prolly wont do lsx stuff till later...im thinking 3.73 will be a good choice also..i dont plan on drag racing just cruising and the ocasional auto cross...