7.5/8.8 question plz help

[Dube_77]

Alright, i dont know jack about axles and gear ratios so im tryin to learn. for the longest time, ive been tryin to figure out why my bros ranger seemed so much faster and had so much more power than mine. he had a 92 reg cab 4x4 with the 2.9 l and i have a 87 ext cab 4x4 2.9l stx. and now reading the gears and axles section might have explained it. mine has the 7.5 gears so im thinking his had the 8.8. so the question is the 8.8 gear is lower than the 7.5 right? and if so, how much lower? by lower i mean more torque and not as much top end

 

[Dube_77]

ok i think i already caught myself and thats why im no genius on axles and gears haha but um i was reading... the 7.5/8.8 is just the axle, not the gears. how do u figure out what gears u have?

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

You can look by the drivers door, there's a sticker that will have an axle code. Copy that down and look up axle codes in the tech library. Another option is to look for the metal tag attached to your rear axle cover. The #'s closest to the bolt, [on the tag,lower left] will give you your ratio. EG; 4 10 is an open carrier with 4.10 gears, 4L10 is a limited slip carrier with 4.10 gears. Most common gear ratios I've come across are, in order; 3.45, 3.73, 4.10
Hope that helps,

Richard