There’s a very good chance that you’ve noticed some changes in how it feels to drive your vehicle if you recently upgraded it with a lift kit and bigger tires. In particular, you’ve likely noticed that your truck feels slower after lifting it, and that’s certainly not something you want to experience. This is an unfortunate side effect of lifting your vehicle and adding larger tires if you don’t also choose to regear it, as it’s caused by a mismatch between your truck’s new setup and the gear ratios it had beforehand.
In a recent blog over on LiftedJeeps.com, we took an in-depth look at the performance issues that can be caused by not regearing your Jeep or pickup truck after lifting it and upgrading to larger tires. Check it out to learn more about the consequences of not regearing, but today we’re going to expand on the solution by diving into which gear ratios work best after installing a lift kit and bigger tires.
Why does my truck feel slower after lifting?
This is one of the most common questions we get from customers after they lift their vehicle without properly regearing it as well. Lifting your automobile and swapping out the factory-installed tires for larger ones effectively alters the final drive ratio of your vehicle. This should lead to a boost in performance, but if you don’t also adjust the gear ratio it can actually create the opposite effect. In order to turn the larger tires, your engine has to work harder than it normally does, which leads to a reduction in acceleration, a sluggish throttle response and even a decrease in fuel efficiency. This mismatch is what causes your truck to feel slower after lifting it, but optimizing the gear ratios for your new tire size should return your performance to normal.
How do I choose the right gear ratio?
There are three different factors you have to keep in mind when determining the best gear ratio for your lifted truck or Jeep. These three factors are the size of your tires, the type of engine you have and how you plan to use your vehicle. Let’s dive a little bit deeper into how these three things affect your optimal gear ratio.
- Tire Size. The size of your new tires is obviously the most important factor when determining what your new gear ratio should be. The larger your tires are, the lower your gear ratio needs to be to maintain optimal performance. One thing to keep in mind to avoid confusion is that lower gear ratios are actually numerically higher. The more extreme your jump in size is, the more aggressive your new gear ratio will have to be. Here are three of the most common large tire examples:
- 33-inch tires should have a 4.10 to 4.56 gear ratio
- 35-inch tires should have a 4.56 to 4.88 gear ratio
- 37-inch tires should have a 4.88 to 5.13 gear ratio
- Engine Type. The amount of power your engine is capable of generating also plays a fairly big role in determining the best gear ratio for your vehicle. The smaller your engine is – for example, a four-cylinder model – the lower your ratio should be, as they generate less torque. Larger engines, on the other hand, can handle higher ratios without sacrificing any performance.
- Driving Habits. Finally, you should consider how you plan to use your vehicle most of the time. There are two main styles to consider: highway driving or off-roading driving.
- When it comes to highway driving, fuel efficiency matters, so having a higher gear ratio can help to balance out power and efficiency.
- But if you’ll be doing a lot off-roading, or even trailering, where torque is essential, you can prioritize lower ratios in order to maximize that torque output.
Hopefully, we’ve helped you figure out why you might be experiencing certain things after lifting your vehicle and equipping it with larger wheels. If you have any further questions, don’t hesitate to contact us.
