We recently traded our camper for a new one. New camper is little bigger and heavier. Dry wieght is listed at 7100lbs so I'm guessing I will be about 7600lbs loaded. The biggest diffrence is height, this camper is so much tallee than the old one.
Now for my question, I currently have 3.73's and was wondering what you guys think of switching to 4.10's. Is it worth the cost? What cruising RPM's can I excpect? I'm not to concerned about MPG, I don't drive it everyday and it's a big truck with a V10, not gonna get but so good.

 

I would switch to 4.30's instead.

 

I.M.O.......If MPG is not a concern I would say go for it as it will make the drive train not have to work as hard. Even though you don't drive it daily when you do it will "feel" better with that much load on it.

 

Go with 4.30s if you're going to pay for the swap. It puts the V10 into a better power band and will more than likely improve your current fuel mileage, especially in town.

Cruising RPM will depend on your tire size. If you have stock 32" tall tires, expect 2400 or so RPM at 70 MPH.

I ordered my '08 V10 with 4.30s. My '05 V10 had 4.10s. That ought to tell you something.

 

I'm kind of surprised you have an issue, since 8k# isn't all that much for the much ballyhoohed V10. But if you are going to the expense of regearing, I agree that you should go 4.3's. From 3.73 to 4.1 just isn't enough of a change to justify the expense.

As for RPM's, it's a simple math equation.

RPM / old ratio * new ratio.

For example
2,000 RPM / 3.73 * 4.3 = 2,306

Therefore, at whatever MPH your truck used to turn 2,000 RPM, it will now turn 2,306 at the same MPH.

 

i had 4.30 installed on my 04 with the 5.4 motor and im running 285 75r16 and i wish now i had 4.56 installed instead. after having them done and figureing out how much the 285 actually take away, the 4.56 would have put me back to a factory 4.10 so you live and learn i guess

 

not enuf of a jump..

dont bother...

go higher (numericaly) or spend the money elsewere.. such as a 5Star tuner...

 

Go 4.30s if you have stock tires. If its a dedicated tow vehicle maybe consider 4.56s. A good custom tune will make a big difference regardless or gearing.

 

Thanks for your help. I currently running 285's and will most likley stay with them.
The truck pulls the load easy enough, just can tell the difference with the addtional 2k Lbs.
I do agree, i would be better off woth the 4.3's.
No to highjack my own thread, but I also have a bone stock 7.3 psd with 3.73's. The PSD keeps it at speed easier but the V10 gets it there faster and easier. Hey, it shocked me too!
Thanks agian for all the help.

 

You can't compare a V10 to a PSD when it comes to gearing.

 

x2 Go with 4.56... you never have too much gearing.

And Welcome to FTE...

 

If you're having problems towing an 8000 lb camper with a V-10 you might want to look at getting a tune up before you dump major coin into the diff. If you said your new camper was 12,000 lbs I'd say look into different gearing but go to a 4.56. You won't hardly notice a difference between 3.73 and 4.10.

 

You can use the link below to determine the exact RPM's based on your desired configuration. Your truck should have a "Transmission High Gear Ratio" of .71, which is required to calculate the RPM's.

RPM Calculator

 

I made this swap in my '99 2WD V10 SD, only I went to 430 gears. My truck uses the standard size tires. My trailer weighs around 7K#. It tows much better with the new gearset. Prior to the swap the tranny would constantly downshift to get the RPMs up on a hill. The V10 pulled the load fine but it was constantly downshifting which hurts the fuel mileage when towing. Now with the new gears, the RPMs stay higher so the tranny doesn't downshift near as much. The RPM power range is where the truck is running without having to downshift. This made my towing mileage (slightly) better, kept my truck from revving up, and keeps the tranny temps cooler. I have no regrets making the swap as it really woke up my V10 for towing. I would also strongly recommend the installation of a tranny temp gauge if you are doing any towing of heavy loads.