Okay...who has one?

How does it shift between over and under?

I understand the concept of it, I just don' understand the operation of it.

I'd like to get one when I'm on the Mainland this summer.

 

Well, you know I don't have one, but I drool all over the display unit at the local Camping World every time I go in there. Someday.

Anyway, I found this thread that might help for now until someone can chime in later with first hand info.

How Does a Gear Vendors Overdrive work? - FSC Forum



BTW: I see that it is only 10:00 pm there on the Island, and 4 am here in NJ. Most of the rest of the US is asleep now, so that means you have a long lag time between some responses if you post in the evening. It must drive ya nuts.

 

Yeah...gives me something to do in the morning though.

Thanks for the link! I was hoping that the it would allow me to AUTOMATICALLY split each gear. I got the idea from that article that it doesn't. Although...that article is 5+ years old and the last post the guy was asking about new software that seemingly allows each ratio to be split before the main tranny shifts.

What I want is automatic shifting like this:

1st
1st O
2nd
2nd O
3rd
3rd O
4th
4th O

 

Good Morning, Ken. its about 5:30 am your time.

That automatic shift pattern is what I'm hoping for also.

 

[quote

Thanks for the link! I was hoping that the it would allow me to AUTOMATICALLY split each gear. I got the idea from that article that it doesn't. Although...that article is 5+ years old and the last post the guy was asking about new software that seemingly allows each ratio to be split before the main tranny shifts.

What I want is automatic shifting like this:

1st
1st O
2nd
2nd O
3rd
3rd O
4th
4th O[/quote]

W H Y ?

 

The ability to split gear ratios is most useful when towing heavy loads under stress.
A regular transmission will wind to a high rpm before it shifts under a heavy load. When it does shift, the next gear is many times too high and the engine speed plummets below the ideal torque rpm. At this rpm and high gear there is not enough torque to the wheels to maintain speed, and the transmission shifts back down. So, your speed plummets going up a steep encline, and the situation continues to get worse as you steadily shift down the gears all the way to first. You are now like the trucks on a mountain that are crawling up a hill, and burning fuel like there is no tommorrow.

Splitting the gears, or effectively adding a new set of gears between the standard ones, can prevent this. When the transmission shifts to the next higher gear, it finds a gear that is not nearly as tall, and therefore the rpm does not fall as much. This leave the engine running within its power band, and enough energy is applied to the rear wheels to maintain speed or even accellerate. Higher speed, less time on the hill, and better shifting ratios equals better fuel economy.

Wth the Gear vendors unit, you also enjoy a extra high gear above the regular Overdrive gear. While this gear is useless for towing, it is very effective with a large engine to reduce engine rpm on the highway when not towing, thereby saving fuel. The 2nd overdrive gear has a 28% taller ratio than overdrive.

Bion Rogers

 

I forgot to mention that this is also vry effective for the same reasons while towing a load and trying to accellerate quickly, as when entering traffic off of a entrance ramp. If you try to accellerate too quickly with a heavy load, you find that the transmission balks, and accelleration is slow and may be very jerky, putting additonal dynamic stress on the transmission, increasing heat and decreasing transmission life. The Gear vendors unit can alleviate most of this and allow smoother, quicker accelleration

Bion Rogers

 

Honestly, if you have to ask why I would want an (effective) 8-speed transmission over the 4-speed, then maybe you should just stay out of the conversation part of this thread and just read it and learn .

 

Yeah. 4th Over is .55. That's a super cruising OD ratio! great for you guys with highways!

I want something better between 2nd and 3rd. 3rd Over would be a great ratio for towing. It is .78 and the tranny is in direct. Nice.

 

Yes, I agree with you, within certain limits.

I have one of the last EX's built (a late '05 V-10 4wd Limited). As noted by myself and many others in numerous posts, it is hard to figure out what FORD was thinking of, marketing this as a heavy duty tow vehicle, in view of the 3.73 rear axle ratio, NO rear sway bar, and absurdly soft springs.

With its approx. .70% over-drive, the final drive ratio is approx. 2.6 to one, which, with those large tires, means it is pretty useless, even running empty, under about 45 mph. I generally lock the over-drive out unless I am in a highway situation.

For those using these vehicles for heavy towing but have 3.73 rear axle ratios ( meaning towing a load weighing more than, say, 6,000 lbs), I believe their money would be MUCH better spent getting lower axle ratios. With a lower final drive ratio, the four speeds in the factory transmissions are just about perfect.

Both my "loads" weigh around 11,000 lbs ( either my boat and its trailer, or my "toy / box" trailer and my big car from the 1930's). Unless I am on level ground with no or a tail-wind, over-drive is out of the question. So, again, the additional "higher" ratios of a a Gear Vendors or similar aux. tranny would be useless.

What do YOU think ? Are you serious ? Are there THAT many EX drivers so stupid as to do forced shifts under full load ? If that is true, that is pathetic. Have the young people of today become that ignorant of basic technology ? Wonder why these people think there is a gear selector lever on the steering column....

 

Once again...a whole lot of typing but not much content. Judging by the baiting questions at the end you don't really know anything about a Gear vendors O/U drive or gear splitting in general. Why don't you read up on the subject first. That way we can all then have a civil discussion without all the condescending remarks.

 

That Chev article talked about automatic gear splitting being worked on. I can't see anything on their site that says they've now got that. However, they do talk about an "AutoShift Sequencer" in the "Performance Electronics" section here:

Gear Vendors under/overdrive transmissions the most awarded auxiliary transmissions.

Contact them direct.

 

Yes, please do go and study what the unit is and what it does. There is no "forced shifting" involved in its operation.

There are good reasons that the unit is standard or optional equipment on certain performance cars and motorhomes as well.

 

You are mistaken. And your unfriendly attitude is puzzling. I happen to know just a bit about aux. transmissions. I was working on, and then driving heavy trucks with "Brownie Boxes" ( the generic term for "splitters"; that term came to be simply because Browne and Lippe was ONE of many two or more speed aux. transmissions big trucks had in the old days, when they didn't have the flexibility and power of modern turbo-charged diesels) probably MANY years before you were born.

The Gear Vendors transmission is an excellent one for what it is designed for. For providing a "higher" final drive ratio on heavy vehicles that are geared too low for Interstate sustained high speed driving.

In the old car hobby, especially for the largest, most powerful of the "super luxury" cars of the 1920's and 1930's (we used to call "classic cars" before that word was adopted to describe everything from shoe laces to Chevrolets to chicken sandwiches) these things are the answer to a virgin's prayer. They generally do NOT work out well on "ordinary man" pre-war cars, simply because these lesser cars do not typically have anywhere near enough power to overcome both their weight, and the ever increasing wind reistance their massive frontal area provides. Anyway, given the tremendous strength and torque-capability of the Gear Vendors unit, that would be a bit of "over-kill" in the typical ordinary low powered pre war car.

But getting back to your particular application, I dont see the point. Because some modern trucks, and, as noted above, most of the largest, most powerful big pre-war cars were geared for the roads of THAT day, meaning their final drive ratios are WAY too low for modern Interstate driving, resulting in over-reving at modern speeds) the Gear Vendors and other similar "over-drive" type transmissions are great. Gives you the ability to "loaf" at Interstate speeds, without the engine over-revving.

I do not see why you'd want to bother with both the expense and time-to-install a Gear Vendors over-drive in an Excursion-type vehicle. It already has great rear axle ratio choices avail. for handling any reas. speed and any reasonable towing load.

So the simple answer to your question is - they are great for what they are. I dont think they would be of any use to you in our application (having fun with EX's).

 

Now, I've never driven one equipped with a GV but the thought of having another ratio available between the HUGE gap between 1st and 2nd is enough to make me think about it.

After all, that's all they basically did to make the ratios for the Torqshift. They lowered first a tad, raised the old first a tad (split them) and left the other ratios intact.

Sure it will loaf at the .55 double overdrive but that's not all the GV will do.

Even with the relatively wide powerband of the V10, it could benefit from more available ratios. Get ready....that's the wave of the future. I bet in 5-8 years all trucks will have 6-8 speed transmissions. One can already see the demise of the 4-speed.

C'mon 6686L...unfriendly? Moi?? You have to admit that you do tend to talk down to people here on the board. I just wanted to head it off at the pass. I welcome your input, however, given some of your examples in this thread it seems that you may not see the whole picture of what it (GV) claims it will do.