315's vs 285's, R16
- Thread starter offthebeatenpath
- Start date
laxtoy
Adventurer
yeah, i can honestly say i haven't felt too much in the way of pain from 285's with a manual, 4.10's and a 3.4, i just don't see how some suffer so much and others don't. i have always been down at sea level, but even the times i'm loaded down with a half a ton of tools or materials, and armor, and a fiberglass shell, i seem to do alright. still get around 17 mpg average too, which surprisingly just hasn't changed that much from 31's. i think i will go to 4.56's when i decide to put the arb in the back, but until then, i don't seem to do bad crawl/clutch wise even on some tougher trail sections. i know it's not all about me though 
so experiences obviously vary, and it seems like region/elevation play a big part as well from what everybody has been saying
so experiences obviously vary, and it seems like region/elevation play a big part as well from what everybody has been sayingHe's still on stock 3.91's in the diffs. We're also at 1,100m in altitude as well. He drive's with a very lead foot... I was impressed with how he was able to get a move on with his Tacoma on 35's. He can definitely pass on hills and keep a very high rate of velocity on the highway
with stock 3.58's and 32's i had alot of power and could haul *** all day long on the freeway at about 82mpg and that was because i was back reving high and in the powerband. maybe thats just his trucks sweet spot and that makes it seem like it has balls. u can definetly adjust ur driving style to get by without gears and i did it for over 2 years untill i broke down and couldnt take the feeling of slipping my clutch all the time on and offroad. some get used to it some dont and im glad i didnt cause its so nice to be able to have power again(as much as u can get out of a 2.7:wings
TangoBlue
American Adventurist
I must be hallucinating and for the record I am drug free - condition of my employment is periodic, random drug screening so I got proof! :ylsmoke:
Just curious - are you all running with 285's (33) and 5.29 gears? I am, and that's not my experience AT ALL. That's at a base weight of 4700 lbs to over 5,000 lbs loaded and operating at elevation ranges from sea level to 10K feet. My 3RZ with AT and stock 4.56 gears and 285's just dragged ***, and guzzled gas until I re-geared to 5.29 which brought me back to original performance. :wings:
I appreciate that experience with a 3.4 or 4.0 with a MT or AT will be different and different gearing is required as I cited in an earlier post. :coffeedrink:
Not looking for an argument (note liberal use of smilies) about gearing -- I just don't understand why I drive a miracle truck... :Wow1:
Just curious - are you all running with 285's (33) and 5.29 gears? I am, and that's not my experience AT ALL. That's at a base weight of 4700 lbs to over 5,000 lbs loaded and operating at elevation ranges from sea level to 10K feet. My 3RZ with AT and stock 4.56 gears and 285's just dragged ***, and guzzled gas until I re-geared to 5.29 which brought me back to original performance. :wings:
I appreciate that experience with a 3.4 or 4.0 with a MT or AT will be different and different gearing is required as I cited in an earlier post. :coffeedrink:
Not looking for an argument (note liberal use of smilies) about gearing -- I just don't understand why I drive a miracle truck... :Wow1:
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freeze
Adventurer
Maybe book the Tacoma in for a dyno assessment. Check to see if you're putting down all your V6 worth.
At 70mph what's your RPM at in top gear?
Somebody want to pm Addicted Offroad and get his opinion on this? He had a 4Runner with 255/85r16 tires and 5.29 gears and was of the opinion that it was an awesome combination.
According to GrimmJeeper the difference between 4.56 and 5.29 at 70mph with 255/85r16's is 300rpm, 2303 vs 2672.
TangoBlue
American Adventurist
freeze! Check your PM's on CT4WD mon frer.
Oh my, I LOL'd beau coup when I read your post, Nathan. My wife even came over to check on me and said, "what's your problem - do I need to look at something?"
3RZ is the venerable 2.7L 4 cylinder engine, mine with automatic transmission with overdrive, or it was available with a manual.
In this thread we've been talking a variety of individual experiences with a combination of gears, engine displacement, and transmissions. I'm thinking there might be a little tunnel vision focusing in on gear numbers and not so much looking at the whole enchilada... or TACO, if you will.
But to answer your question, when I'm going 70 mph (GPS) I'm comfortably in overdrive and indicating 2700-ish on the scan gauge with my 285's and 5.29's - ********** dab in the 3RZ power band. Can't ask for any better numbers than that -- the 3RZ is functioning in top form. But 2 more cylinders would be good; 4 more would be better; best would be a D4D!
I don't discount anyones personal experience... if you're convinced that your decision is good enough, than so be it. Now, this is my opinion but one I've given a lot of thought to... a problem with strictly interpreting gear ratios from an internet matrix is they are often based on Jeeps, not Toyota engines and drivetrains. It's necessary to factor Toyota engines and their ideal range for HP and torque along with the drive ratios of the transmissions, in addition to the matrix numbers, to find ideal gearing options. Then factor weight (armor, suspension mods, load) and desired tire size. In the end the choice is simple -- study a Jeep chart and calculate Jeep gearing for your Toyota, or noodle it out some more and discover the right gearing for your Toyota.
I don't profess to be an expert but I'll stick with my recommendations in post #20 - they were gathered from a lot of forum research, discussions with expert Toyota technicians with extensive off-road experience, and the pragmatic experience of Toyota owners (wheelers) - the ones with grease-stained fingernails...
I'm not on a mission to convert anyone to my thinking, but I caution: if you can only bear to part with your personal treasure just once to re-gear, pay heed to my observations. ExPo hugs all around... :victory:
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freeze
Adventurer
Hahaha. Too funny!! Completely missed that one!! Haha. Having a hard time keeping track between V6/4Cyl/manual/auto.
5.29's for sure
I'll check my PM's on CT4WD..haha.
pillguy
Observer
My experience with 33s
I have 97 4runner 6cyl and 4.10 gears with auto and armored.
I had 32's from previous owner and went to 285 55 16's maxis big horns.
My mileage dropped from 17-19mpg to about 14-15mpg.
I have gotten as low as 12mpg in city.
I would say 33s is the max at this gearing and as someone said the rpm drop is about 300 rpm and I am off about 8% on my speedo.
Would I do 33s again?
Probably not would have stayed with 32s but man do I love the performance in the mud:bike_rider:
I have 97 4runner 6cyl and 4.10 gears with auto and armored.
I had 32's from previous owner and went to 285 55 16's maxis big horns.
My mileage dropped from 17-19mpg to about 14-15mpg.
I have gotten as low as 12mpg in city.
I would say 33s is the max at this gearing and as someone said the rpm drop is about 300 rpm and I am off about 8% on my speedo.
Would I do 33s again?
Probably not would have stayed with 32s but man do I love the performance in the mud:bike_rider:
TangoBlue
American Adventurist
Or maybe re-gear? I mean if you like the truck and you don't plan on getting rid of it anytime soon...
austintaco
Explorer
255/85/16 AT v6 Double cab 4wd 70k miles
My 03 DC could get over 20 MPG on the highway when it was new and in stock form. I used to do the math from one tank to the next whenever I would take a long trip to see how the truck was running.
Since then I have added:
Campershell- no noticeable drop in MPG
Deck plate mod- no noticeable drop in MPG
lift and 265/75- lost 1.5 mpg,
ARB bumper- lost another 1 mpg
255/85/16-lost a solid 1.5 mpg on the highway and 3 in the city
I purchased a scangauge while I had the 265/75's and a GPS around the same time. I did the numbers by hand calculating for change in tire size and the amount of gallons to fill up as well as what the scan gauge would read so the difference between the 265/75 and the 255/85 is very noticeable.
I need to regear, but I can live with it for now.
My 03 DC could get over 20 MPG on the highway when it was new and in stock form. I used to do the math from one tank to the next whenever I would take a long trip to see how the truck was running.
Since then I have added:
Campershell- no noticeable drop in MPG
Deck plate mod- no noticeable drop in MPG
lift and 265/75- lost 1.5 mpg,
ARB bumper- lost another 1 mpg
255/85/16-lost a solid 1.5 mpg on the highway and 3 in the city
I purchased a scangauge while I had the 265/75's and a GPS around the same time. I did the numbers by hand calculating for change in tire size and the amount of gallons to fill up as well as what the scan gauge would read so the difference between the 265/75 and the 255/85 is very noticeable.
I need to regear, but I can live with it for now.
Gearing has a alot to do with personal preference and usage. Did a 3" lift and 285/75's on my mother's 04 DC. Pesonally didn't find a noticable difference in highway driving. Biggest difference was it always seems like it should shift one more time for the around town speed limits. Which could be corrected by regearing to the next ratio.
As far as travels, is it going to be used on backroads, trails, more extreme trails? If you going to spend a lot of time in low range, I don't feel regearing is needed if on mild trails. The percentage gain from diffs is minimal compared to the t-case reduction. If you need a lower range, dual t-cases. If you're not wanting to deal with dual t-cases, regear to 5.29's.
As far as travels, is it going to be used on backroads, trails, more extreme trails? If you going to spend a lot of time in low range, I don't feel regearing is needed if on mild trails. The percentage gain from diffs is minimal compared to the t-case reduction. If you need a lower range, dual t-cases. If you're not wanting to deal with dual t-cases, regear to 5.29's.