Someone please help me out and tell this guy that 4.083 gears do not slow the 350Z down. He's saying I should go for 3.3 gearing to be faster.

http://www.carolinanissans.com/forum...0&#entry302324

 

In a F/I application 3.3 gearing will allow you to wind out the motor in each gear longer than with the stock gears. You give up some top speed to gain acceleration.

 

He is saying that 3.3 gears are HIGHER than 3.56 and that 4.083 is LOWER gearing than 3.56. It's the opposite.

My impression:
Lower gearing=lower ratio/taller gears
Higher gearing=higher ratio/shorter gears

Am I right?

 

Define "faster" in this situation.

 

The track is what? Drag racing? Autocross? Open road?

 

In the maths world, 4.08 will always be faster from a stop.
In the real world, it depends on your power level and subsequent grip situation.

 

LOTS of reading to be had about 4.08s here: https://my350z.com/forum/engine-and-...installed.html

 

The theory is the higher the number(lower ratio) will give you quicker acceleration out of the hole. So 4.083 should be quicker out of the hole than 3.3s. Forced induction cars that run over 500whp often swap to the 3.3 gear sets the longer ratios help reduce tire spin in the first few gears. Otherwise the first few gears are useless when running higher power. i have drove a FI car in the 450wtq with 3.9s they seemed fine but with the 600+wtq I have the 3.3s still go through the first 2 gears very quickly.

I just read the other thread you seem to be correct on the theory 3.9s should be quicker out of the hole than 3.3s unless pushing very high hp/tq numbers then the 3.3s might prove an advantage.

 

Any of them. I mean, I could see a tight road course giving traction issues with the 4.08s but I think it'd be better all around for a NA 350Z.

If you read about time attack, a lot of the cars built for that have a higher gear ratio. Some of the hondas are running like 4.7s or higher. It's a torque multiplier and it gets you the most acceleration out of every gear.

This is the 2nd person to tell me that when going from a 3.5 to a 4.08 is lowering the gearing. I guess they like to refer to the actual longevity of the gears instead of the actual ratio? Maybe I'm out of the loop?

 

You increase the gear ratio (or multiplying torque) but this is termed a "shorter" gear because the speed range for which that gear is active reduces. Acceleration increases but so does the necessity to switch to the next higher gear at an earlier point. Shortening the final drive (increasing final drive torque multiplication) but ALSO increasing redline helps maintain the best of both worlds . As you might guess, selecting gear ratios matched to an engine's torque curve and rev limit is the way to go...

 

All of them is a lengthily discussion of pros and cons of each. There is no “best” gearing for all driving.

NOTE: rcdash is on target. Altering gears (transmission or final drive) is similar to altering tire circumference. Torque and horsepower are the same. The motor makes torque not the gears. Besides the Z has 6 forward gears. Plenty to choose from.

 

Pros, cons, and LOTS of discussion about 4.08s here, again, here: https://my350z.com/forum/engine-and-...installed.html