3.73 vs 4.10?
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 2,652
Likes: 629
From: Rural North West NV
3.73 vs 4.10?
I tried the search function but turns up a gazillion posts that have nothing to do with gears. 
I have an '02 vert, M6 and want to do a gear swap for a bit more snappier performance. Don't know if I should go with 3.73 or jump up to 4.10. Would going from the stock 3.42 to 3.73 be very noticeable or be better to go with 4.10?
The car is not a DD and gets used only for occasional spirited drives in the mountains or road trips. The engine is stock with no mods (yet).
I have an '02 vert, M6 and want to do a gear swap for a bit more snappier performance. Don't know if I should go with 3.73 or jump up to 4.10. Would going from the stock 3.42 to 3.73 be very noticeable or be better to go with 4.10?
The car is not a DD and gets used only for occasional spirited drives in the mountains or road trips. The engine is stock with no mods (yet).
Le Mans Master
Joined: Dec 2017
Posts: 5,602
Likes: 3,322
From: Virginia
2021 C5 of the Year Finalist - Modified
St. Jude Donor '21-'22
Based on your current use (and lack of other mods), the 4.10s make a bigger difference for you. If you're planning on any big power adders in the future, I'd stick with the 3.73s as the 4.10s could give you traction issues. I'm sure you're aware that you'll lose some at the top end. However, given your stated use, you really weren't using that top end speed anyway. I say go with the 4.10s and enjoy the extra giddy up.
EDIT: It's worth noting your fuel economy will suffer some.
EDIT: It's worth noting your fuel economy will suffer some.
Drifting
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 1,411
Likes: 111
From: Chandler AZ
I built a '68 Nova back in the day, Replaced the third member with 3:73 posi and a ZZ4 up front with a Muncie & made all the difference performance wise.
Currently my '01 Z is 3:73 and I enjoy the drive. I don't rag the car but when I want giddy-up it's there. Hope that helps.
Currently my '01 Z is 3:73 and I enjoy the drive. I don't rag the car but when I want giddy-up it's there. Hope that helps.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 2,847
Likes: 1,144
From: Sleepy Hollow- NJ
I tried the search function but turns up a gazillion posts that have nothing to do with gears.
I have an '02 vert, M6 and want to do a gear swap for a bit more snappier performance. Don't know if I should go with 3.73 or jump up to 4.10. Would going from the stock 3.42 to 3.73 be very noticeable or be better to go with 4.10?
The car is not a DD and gets used only for occasional spirited drives in the mountains or road trips. The engine is stock with no mods (yet).
I have an '02 vert, M6 and want to do a gear swap for a bit more snappier performance. Don't know if I should go with 3.73 or jump up to 4.10. Would going from the stock 3.42 to 3.73 be very noticeable or be better to go with 4.10?
The car is not a DD and gets used only for occasional spirited drives in the mountains or road trips. The engine is stock with no mods (yet).
I ran 3.90s in an otherwise stock MN6 (Vararam and Billy Boat Bullets). The car was fun to drive and definitely pulled harder through all gears than my all stock MN6 with Borla exhaust. The gears really made a difference. With the right tire... traction improved with the lower gear over 3.42.
I also ran 4.10s on two separate builds in another MN6. Both ported heads and cammed. If you go with a cam that builds power from 2800 rpm up the 4.10 gear is a shinning star in a cammed car. At least in 228/228/112 to 232/236/113 cam specs. Again traction IMPROVED with a good tire over 3.42 with the same tires.
My very first reccomendation when asking for advice on whether or not to gear...ask those that comment what their personal experience is driving a geared MN6 C5. Base your decision on feedback from those with first hand experience not assumptions.
Guys that road race typically don't like a gear and the other 99% that don't have zero experience with them.
Safety Car
Joined: Jan 2019
Posts: 4,308
Likes: 3,455
From: Somewhere, Florida
St. Jude Donor '20-'21-'22-'23-'24
lol I always chuckle when you post on threads where people want to modify their car. Relax. Stock isn't for everyone.
OP: Here's a handy chart that shows what your cruising RPM will be with all the popular C5 ratio choices. For me, since I do a lot of highway driving in my car, this matters a good bit.
OP: Here's a handy chart that shows what your cruising RPM will be with all the popular C5 ratio choices. For me, since I do a lot of highway driving in my car, this matters a good bit.
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Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 2,652
Likes: 629
From: Rural North West NV
Truely it depends on what "yet" means when you state you don't have mods "yet".
I ran 3.90s in an otherwise stock MN6 (Vararam and Billy Boat Bullets). The car was fun to drive and definitely pulled harder through all gears than my all stock MN6 with Borla exhaust. The gears really made a difference. With the right tire... traction improved with the lower gear over 3.42.
I also ran 4.10s on two separate builds in another MN6. Both ported heads and cammed. If you go with a cam that builds power from 2800 rpm up the 4.10 gear is a shinning star in a cammed car. At least in 228/228/112 to 232/236/113 cam specs. Again traction IMPROVED with a good tire over 3.42 with the same tires.
My very first reccomendation when asking for advice on whether or not to gear...ask those that comment what their personal experience is driving a geared MN6 C5. Base your decision on feedback from those with first hand experience not assumptions.
Guys that road race typically don't like a gear and the other 99% that don't have zero experience with them.
I ran 3.90s in an otherwise stock MN6 (Vararam and Billy Boat Bullets). The car was fun to drive and definitely pulled harder through all gears than my all stock MN6 with Borla exhaust. The gears really made a difference. With the right tire... traction improved with the lower gear over 3.42.
I also ran 4.10s on two separate builds in another MN6. Both ported heads and cammed. If you go with a cam that builds power from 2800 rpm up the 4.10 gear is a shinning star in a cammed car. At least in 228/228/112 to 232/236/113 cam specs. Again traction IMPROVED with a good tire over 3.42 with the same tires.
My very first reccomendation when asking for advice on whether or not to gear...ask those that comment what their personal experience is driving a geared MN6 C5. Base your decision on feedback from those with first hand experience not assumptions.
Guys that road race typically don't like a gear and the other 99% that don't have zero experience with them.
I think the only mod I may do is exhaust and even then, probably just the cheap bypass mod. I don't want to mess with cam, heads, etc. I have too many other hot rod projects I'm working on. The car has 138K miles on it and I want to keep it a dependable car that I can just fire up and rip around in without doing a lot of work on it or dumping a bunch of money into it.
What you said above is what I'm looking for, opinions from guys who have done gears and what their results were. Sounds like a 3.90 may be the sweet spot between 3.73 and 4.10. I'm not drag racing or doing hard launches. More rolling start pulls and shifting through the gears or down shifting to pass cars and trucks on short passing sections.
My girlfriend has a Tesla that accelerates like crazy and it makes passing cars very easy. She also has a ZL1 Camaro and it's the same way (580 HP). The C5 is obviously a different driving experience than either of those cars. It's no slouch but would like a bit more kick out of it.
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 2,652
Likes: 629
From: Rural North West NV
lol I always chuckle when you post on threads where people want to modify their car. Relax. Stock isn't for everyone.
OP: Here's a handy chart that shows what your cruising RPM will be with all the popular C5 ratio choices. For me, since I do a lot of highway driving in my car, this matters a good bit.
OP: Here's a handy chart that shows what your cruising RPM will be with all the popular C5 ratio choices. For me, since I do a lot of highway driving in my car, this matters a good bit.
Looks like if I go with a 3.90 gear I'm only increasing RPM by 225 at 70 MPH. That seams pretty insignificant and 1725 RPMs is still pretty low.
I doubt it would affect gas mileage much at all. Of course, with the extra grunt the gears will give me I might have a hard time keeping my foot out of it and will end up sucking more gas overall! A small price to pay for the extra fun though.
Thread Starter
Melting Slicks
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 2,652
Likes: 629
From: Rural North West NV
Also, "If it ain't broke, **** with it until it is"! 
The thing is, it is broke. Well, not really broke but not quite fast enough for me. What is your suggestion for that? Perhaps sell it and buy a Z06 or maybe a C6? I have thought about that and the problems is, even though my C5 is worth more money in this crazy market, a C5Z or C6 are significantly more money as well. Replacing gears is way cheaper than the price difference in buying a new (to me) car.
The thing is, it is broke. Well, not really broke but not quite fast enough for me. What is your suggestion for that? Perhaps sell it and buy a Z06 or maybe a C6? I have thought about that and the problems is, even though my C5 is worth more money in this crazy market, a C5Z or C6 are significantly more money as well. Replacing gears is way cheaper than the price difference in buying a new (to me) car.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 2,847
Likes: 1,144
From: Sleepy Hollow- NJ
Thanks for the info.
I think the only mod I may do is exhaust and even then, probably just the cheap bypass mod. I don't want to mess with cam, heads, etc. I have too many other hot rod projects I'm working on. The car has 138K miles on it and I want to keep it a dependable car that I can just fire up and rip around in without doing a lot of work on it or dumping a bunch of money into it.
What you said above is what I'm looking for, opinions from guys who have done gears and what their results were. Sounds like a 3.90 may be the sweet spot between 3.73 and 4.10. I'm not drag racing or doing hard launches. More rolling start pulls and shifting through the gears or down shifting to pass cars and trucks on short passing sections.
My girlfriend has a Tesla that accelerates like crazy and it makes passing cars very easy. She also has a ZL1 Camaro and it's the same way (580 HP). The C5 is obviously a different driving experience than either of those cars. It's no slouch but would like a bit more kick out of it.
I think the only mod I may do is exhaust and even then, probably just the cheap bypass mod. I don't want to mess with cam, heads, etc. I have too many other hot rod projects I'm working on. The car has 138K miles on it and I want to keep it a dependable car that I can just fire up and rip around in without doing a lot of work on it or dumping a bunch of money into it.
What you said above is what I'm looking for, opinions from guys who have done gears and what their results were. Sounds like a 3.90 may be the sweet spot between 3.73 and 4.10. I'm not drag racing or doing hard launches. More rolling start pulls and shifting through the gears or down shifting to pass cars and trucks on short passing sections.
My girlfriend has a Tesla that accelerates like crazy and it makes passing cars very easy. She also has a ZL1 Camaro and it's the same way (580 HP). The C5 is obviously a different driving experience than either of those cars. It's no slouch but would like a bit more kick out of it.
I never ran the 4.10s without a few extra RPMs to redline from the head/cam setup. But If I were to do it again and start with an otherwise stock car I would still go 4.10 if it were me.
I'll never own another naturally aspirated C5 without a gear swap. They are that significant an improvement over 3.42 in my opinion.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 2,847
Likes: 1,144
From: Sleepy Hollow- NJ
Also, "If it ain't broke, **** with it until it is"!
The thing is, it is broke. Well, not really broke but not quite fast enough for me. What is your suggestion for that? Perhaps sell it and buy a Z06 or maybe a C6? I have thought about that and the problems is, even though my C5 is worth more money in this crazy market, a C5Z or C6 are significantly more money as well. Replacing gears is way cheaper than the price difference in buying a new (to me) car.
The thing is, it is broke. Well, not really broke but not quite fast enough for me. What is your suggestion for that? Perhaps sell it and buy a Z06 or maybe a C6? I have thought about that and the problems is, even though my C5 is worth more money in this crazy market, a C5Z or C6 are significantly more money as well. Replacing gears is way cheaper than the price difference in buying a new (to me) car.
Safety Car
Joined: Jan 2019
Posts: 4,308
Likes: 3,455
From: Somewhere, Florida
St. Jude Donor '20-'21-'22-'23-'24
If I blow this diff up, 4.10s are in my future I reckon. I don't know for sure, but it doesn't SEEM like 3.42 to 3.90 would be enough of a jump... but maybe I just need to drive one with gears.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 2,847
Likes: 1,144
From: Sleepy Hollow- NJ
The 3.90 in the MN6 is actually tighter than the M12 with 3.42. Even though it's an almost like for like gearing equivalent.
I love the 4.10s. The two other guys I know running 4.10s in an MN6 also love them.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Nov 2017
Posts: 2,306
Likes: 747
You won't tell much of a difference between 3.90 and 4.10. I wasn't as content with the 3.42 to 4.10 jump as I thought I would be, so I threw a blower on it after that. I do like the overall gearing change as I felt the stock gearing was just too looooong for stock power. Made the car feel slow IMO. And a ~300 rpm increase in 6th gear cruising is nothing. If you plan on staying relatively stock, nearly everyone that has done 4.10s enjoys them. Everyone that hasn't always has complaints and warnings lol. I'd recommend some stickier-than-street tires as the next mod and you'll love them more. A lot of people complain that you'll need to shift more often, but it's actually the opposite; you can easily go 1-3-5 or 2-4-6 if you want while cruising. As far as "losing top end", depends on what you consider top end. 4th gear will end a lot sooner, that's true, but if you're talking top speed, 4.10s would give you a higher top speed...(which 90% will never flirt with anyway).
Banned Scam/Spammer
Joined: May 2007
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From: Machineguns, because I don’t compromise
I have a C5z so it’s like a 3.90 in your car.
Also had a C6z with standard M6 and 3.42
Lastly, had an LS1 Trans Am with M6 and 3.42, then 4.11 and added twin turbos.
All said my favorite was the C6z with torque to pull the taller gear and a high redline to have eye popping speed at the end of each gear.
C5z is modded with a 7,000rpm redline but the shorter gear means less speed at changes than the c6
Last place was the Trans Am as 4.11 with heads/cam was a decent improvement in felt acceleration but in reality racing a friend in an identical car with 3.73 I was only 1/2 a car length ahead at 120mph from a stop. Added twin turbos and had zero traction the car was in many ways “faster” before the turbos but was insane if it ever hooked up.
Final thought is people that swap gears can have gear whine even if they follow break-in procedure to the T. No rhyme or reason some just have noise that starts out of the blue and have to deal with it.
Also had a C6z with standard M6 and 3.42
Lastly, had an LS1 Trans Am with M6 and 3.42, then 4.11 and added twin turbos.
All said my favorite was the C6z with torque to pull the taller gear and a high redline to have eye popping speed at the end of each gear.
C5z is modded with a 7,000rpm redline but the shorter gear means less speed at changes than the c6
Last place was the Trans Am as 4.11 with heads/cam was a decent improvement in felt acceleration but in reality racing a friend in an identical car with 3.73 I was only 1/2 a car length ahead at 120mph from a stop. Added twin turbos and had zero traction the car was in many ways “faster” before the turbos but was insane if it ever hooked up.
Final thought is people that swap gears can have gear whine even if they follow break-in procedure to the T. No rhyme or reason some just have noise that starts out of the blue and have to deal with it.