Gary Weeks
Viper Owner
I had mine installed at Woodhouse and they are Great! If I was to make only one change to an 08 it would be 3:55's. It feels like a whole different car...way more fun to drive!
Owners of 08s with 3.55 Gears Report
- Thread starter Flash1034
- Start date
I will probably call Woodhouse and have parts sent to the shop thats doing the work. I haven't decided on 3:55 or 3:73, the car will never be on the track just pleasure driving around IL and Ia. our speed limit in IL. is only 65 and I'd like to use 6th gear on the interstate. This has been a very informative thread, any more insight would be great(3:55 vs 3:73)I had mine installed at Woodhouse and they are Great! If I was to make only one change to an 08 it would be 3:55's. It feels like a whole different car...way more fun to drive!
We put a 3:73 in Doris' 2008 ACR. This made for frantic acceleration in 1-2, and tremendous pulling power in 3-4...and a fully functuioning 6th gear.
It also moves the "Exhaust Note Sweet Spot Burble" to a great place to have fun with it. The car slows down off-throttle MUCH faster. Like an anhor. The gas mileage went in the crapper.
Note to Michael et al: the 08-09 DIFF CASE is the same as 03-06 but the internals are Waaaay different, from stub axles inward. Swaping out a 355 is MUCH more challenging with the 08-09.
Lastly: Altho mathmatically attractive, the 3:45 as Mark mentioned, is NOT a good choice......but that is due to metallurgy. The 333,355,373 and even 411 gears are made of better quality metal. The only 3:45 out there is a weaker GM unit that will FIT for sure, but NOT intended to handle 500lb-ft + Tq.
Like Goldilocks, when you plan to stay under 650HP, 3:55 is "JUST RIGHT"!
black mamba1
Enthusiast
This would be my concern as well...anyone have thoughts on this?
mjorgensen Woodhouse
Enthusiast
6th gear will work on the interstate at 80 mph, 3.73 in my car (1750 rpm.) any lower than that rpm is a WASTE of fuel and motor. At speeds lower than 80 I choose 5th gear and still averaged 20 mpg at 2600 rpm. Go for the 3.55 and the 5th gear will do you just fine but rpm in 6th will be too low for any good. Like I have written before I LOVE my 3.73 more than any other gear we have driven with in the Gen3-4 cars.
Thanks for the conformation, 3:73 it is. I am going to the shop that will be doing the work next week and then we'll give ya a call about getting parts ordered. Thanks
mjorgensen Woodhouse
Enthusiast
mcar00
Viper Owner
There was a rear gear thread awhile back related to road course use. If I remember correctly, a guy and his buddy whom each have comp coupes changed the gears and compared before and after lap times. While the cars felt faster they actually got slower lap times. They attributed this to the need to make additional upshifts and downshifts and also to the lack of traction exiting slower turns. Again, this is just for road course use and doesn't address which setup would work better on the street, but something to consider.
Flash1034
Enthusiast
So, it looks like 3.73s and 3.55s are the hot ticket!
Flash
Flash
Hi Bruce
Yes sir
I hope that you are doing well and with any luck your building project has moved forward.
Takes care
Shadowman
I was just talking to another member about the same thing. here is what he had to say. He lives next to a track and tracks all the time he can get the track.
On the blue car, I had a Quaif diff installed and I specified stock 3.07, but it arrived with 3.33. I accepted it with great reservations. The 3.33 was great for the street, but terrible on the track because I was prematurely red lining and shifting at poor track positions. So they corrected their mistake and replaced the unit with 3.07 which is a superior track ratio. Now if we were running high speed rovals or long straights that required more than 185, then I would change the gearing in the 5th and 6th gears in the transmission instead of the rear end. That said, I think you’ll appreciate 3.33 on the street…
With what he says I think I will go with the 3.33
I am curious about this. The power is the same as you go thought the RPM's no matter what gear. The only way this could happen is if it was a traction issue & he should have had that down low. I am not disagreeing with what you said it just does not sound correct. Can someone help? Am I wrong in my thinking?
It's difficult to judge a gear being a "good" or "bad" track gear because tracks can be so different. A gear that works great at one track may be poor at another.
Doesn't sound correct to me either. Is it possible you were pulling at the top of 3rd when he had already shifted to into bottom of 4th? If this was the case I would think he would get back what you pulled, and then some, after you went to 4th.
Your curiosity is very understandable based on the like power being present at a given RPM aka moment in time however the torque band and in the case of alternate gears the changing of the load factor meaning how much is realized and then how long one is within it can and typically does play a big factor.
This is why track only gals will have alternate gearing depending on the track configuration. In the ideal world one would always have the gal operating in her proverbial sweet spot aka torque, load, and RPM however when driven on the street this is not practical as such short gears will typically give a crisper feel and quicker operation when traversing from stop light to stop light however once on the highway the gals with taller gears aka longer legs will pull like a freight train.
I hope that this helps
Takes care
Shadowman
gtsviper
Enthusiast
I have a brand new Unitrax 3.33 kit for an SRT to sell if anyone is interested. Send me a PM.
Sorry, still confused. If you are running the same cars would the torque not work the same for both cars assuming that both would be at the same RPM's at shift therefore making the lower gear still pull harder. If the torque is consistent with both cars would it not continue at any speed as the conditions don't change? I don't track my car so I am not questioning this from that standpoint. I understand that shift times are different on road courses. I still do not understand how the car can change its pulling ability because you are going faster. I actually would assume lower gears would help even more on the top end because it can push the load easier. I am asking this because of my set up on my car. If I new this to be true I might change mine. Thanks
Flash1034
Enthusiast
Mark,
For the street, can you really feel the difference between 3.55s and 3.73s? If so, please describe. With the 3.73s does first gear wind out too fast?
Thanks,
Flash
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No worries
Two identical gals at a given RPM with different gears will have a different load factor.
All the best
Shadowman
true, I should mention that he is refering to a local track that we would both be running and that he has a membership to. Some of you may be familiar with the Spring Mountain track in Pahrump, there have been Viper Days there in the past.
eucharistos
Enthusiast
good question? flash
mark, would you also elaborate on this
.
do you mean waste as in "wastes fuel and harms car" or "waste of fuel to drive a viper like that" or something else?? am wondering as the skip shift (now gone, thanks sean roe) puts it in a bogging rpm/speed intentionally and i often drive in 6th below 80 mph on the freeway and don't want to hurt the car or mpg
nono: yes, mpg is a consideration when not playing ) (i have an '02 btw)
thanks
mjorgensen Woodhouse
Enthusiast
I think 1st gear is a lot quicker since it only goes 51 mph now but I like the feel. 2nd gear is 80 and feels better than the normal 1st IMHO. I would have to drive 2 back to back 3.55 and 3.73 to give a good answer on if there is a appreciable difference but I think there is.
As for the gears at higher speeds I do not agree with the above. My car pulls way harder now in the 2700-6300 rpm than any stock geared car and will top out 5th in nothing flat where as the 3.07 seems to take forever, granted it is 20mph faster but when you get to 6th at my rpm it is still pulling VERY strong and exceeds the pull of the stock gear in top end although I don't no by how much yet. Kinda hard even in Ne.
VVVVVVVVVVV
I just feel the overly low rpm is an attempt to get the fuel mileage up for CAFE and how could anything but a diesel like that low of rpm? I got better mileage (somehow) driving in 5th at 80 even with the 3.73 than I have seen with the 3.07 in 6th (17-18 vs. 20-21) plus I was "playing a little" at that rate with a green motor. Again these are all just my observations and that is it.
As for the gears at higher speeds I do not agree with the above. My car pulls way harder now in the 2700-6300 rpm than any stock geared car and will top out 5th in nothing flat where as the 3.07 seems to take forever, granted it is 20mph faster but when you get to 6th at my rpm it is still pulling VERY strong and exceeds the pull of the stock gear in top end although I don't no by how much yet. Kinda hard even in Ne.
VVVVVVVVVVV
good question? flash
mark, would you also elaborate on this .
am wondering as the skip shift (now gone, thanks sean roe) puts it in a bogging rpm/speed intentionally and i often drive in 6th below 80 mph on the freeway and don't want to hurt the car or mpg
(i have an '02 btw)
thanks
I just feel the overly low rpm is an attempt to get the fuel mileage up for CAFE and how could anything but a diesel like that low of rpm? I got better mileage (somehow) driving in 5th at 80 even with the 3.73 than I have seen with the 3.07 in 6th (17-18 vs. 20-21) plus I was "playing a little" at that rate with a green motor. Again these are all just my observations and that is it.
eucharistos
Enthusiast
Flash1034
Enthusiast
Im ready to move on this but I cant decide whether or not to go with 3.55s or the 3.73s....AAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH my head's going to explode!
Flash
Flash
Newport Viper
Enthusiast
Im ready to move on this but I cant decide whether or not to go with 3.55s or the 3.73s....AAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH my head's going to explode!
Flash
Dude...just leave it in 2nd or 3rd all the time....same feel as the gears.
Flash1034
Enthusiast
I think Im going to take Mark's advice on this one and go with the 3.73's on my 08.
Flash
Flash
Newport Viper
Enthusiast
I remeber the first time I rode in RedSleds geared Gen 1. My head was bouncing off the passengers seat. Totally whiplash ...LOL. I can't image gears in a 600 HP car..
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