Simple question about gear ratios
 

I'm looking at adding a truck to the fleet, as I need something cheap for work. So I'm pretty sure it'll be a 2005 Chevy Colorado reg cab 4X4. It's jsut for work, so I don't need anything fancy.

Very basic in terms of options.
CD/MP3 player
carpet
tilt/cruise

And that's probably it.

A question I have though. I have a choice of gear ratios with this engine. It comes standard with 3.73 gears, or I can opt for the no charge 4.10 gearing.

In simple, real world terms, what difference would I see between these two gearing set ups? Which one should give me better fuel economy?

Thanks in advance.

:)

For highway cruising, 3.73's should be slightly better. If you'll see lots of stop & go then the 4.10's should be better. If you have any plans of going up in tire size then definitely go with the 4.10's. Resale value will be better, too.

Real-world, 3.73 vs. 4.10 means the driveshaft will spin 3.73 vs. 4.10 times for every rotation of the tires. I'll leave the math to you. The difference is slight but depending on engine/trans/tires/load it's noticeable.

The 3.73 will offer better fuel economy, the 4.10 will offer better torque at the wheels (and therefore towing capacity). The 4.10 also offers better acceleration but lower top end, but I doubt that matters to you.

Go with the 3.73, I'd say.The 4.10 isn't going to give you anything you'll need out of a Colorado; if you wanted towing capacity you'd probably rather get a Silverado or Ram anyway.

Thanks guys. This truck won't be doing any towing. I have a Cherokee that's set up for all the towing needs I do anyway. Unfortunately, with the amount of driving I do for work, a 4.0L Cherokee would be a money pit at the pumps.

:)

if your getting the I5, go 3.73, if you going I4 go 4.10.

I agree with Nimisys:

When going with smaller engines, go with higher ratios to keep a little 'pep' under the gas pedal.

Honestly, in this truck, pep means nothing to me. It's all about better fuel economy. For pep I've got my old 944 Turbo I use for autocrossing.

:)

then it's settled, 3.73 it is.