I wanted to get some opinions on if shorter gears for S/C actually help a low boosted car. From my logic I would think yes because you don't start to build boost until the higher RPMS for a S/C. With that said shorter gears are going to help get you to higher rpms quicker then OEM gears. I am aware once I make more power I may end up spinning the tires more then I like which would result in me going back to OEM gears. SO question is do having shorter gears ( have 4.56 gears) make the car any quicker then OEM gears? Currently running a SOS stage 1 kit on the piggy back system which is only 6 pounds of boost.

 

I would think it depends on where you're driving. For the 1/4 mile I would say you want OEM (maybe even longer) because if you end up having to shift one more time on shorter gears (which you probably would) then it's for sure slower. For road courses/street then shorter gears might benefit by being able to get into your peak powerband more quickly, and the loss of top speed through each gear isn't as important. This is all based on intuition so if someone else knows otherwise please feel free to correct me.

 

I had this exact question before. As far as having to shift at the 1/4 mi mark one more time, it probably would make your time a tad slower than the OEM gears. That being said, unless you're just out to build a track car, who cares if you have to shift into fifth? Most of the benefit of the gears is to get you into the power band quicker, right? The centrifugal SC builds boost with RPM, so theoretically you would want to get to a higher RPM faster. Unlike a turbo, where you could build full boost by 4500 RPM and want longer gears to stay at full boost for the last 4000 RPM or so. How many times are you going to be going at 1/4 mi speeds anyway? Me personally, I would rather my car be able to get from 0-100 mph faster than anyone else because that's about your limit on the street.

 

Smaller gears will always make you accelerate faster as long as you don't have traction problems. With a low boost supcharged you will not have traction problems.

 

The conclusion is? Does it make it quicker on the street then OEM gears? Rice not to sound like a dick but you stated the obvious.

 

No, people are missing the point.

I had 4.57r gears on my CTSC 10psi setup, i actually just swapped back to stock 4.10 3 week ago - it feels better in gear.

Shorter gears will help you get a faster 1/4 mile and on tight winding circuits (slow corners), likely any higher than 4.57 and you will have to shift more often at a 1/4mile which will result in worse times.

For me i don't do 1/4miles, you want to take advantage of the spread of torque and stay longer in gear, since each gear "stock vs 4.57r" will give you higher speeds in gear (say around 3-4mph) thus in gear you will be faster. You also (obviuously) sit higher in the rev's in each gear.

With 6psi your on the boundary of having them be an advantage/disadvantage IMO, but if 1/4 mile/standing start races is your game get them IMO.

I prefer to be faster on the highways etc from low'ish speeds, not standing starts, 1/4 miles.

There is a bit of a caveat with gears but on the whole when boosted i don't think you should have them, sure they 'feel' faster. NA is different.

 

I think they hurt more than they do good. Sure you will get into the higher rpms quicker but you will also be out of them quicker and have to shift to the next gear. Even NA they made the car feel slower on the highway. Faster around town from a stop etc but from a roll it was not a fan at all.
Maybe a 4.44 for an AP1 car but I definitely would not go for anything shorter than that.

 

If your car feels slow make more power. Gears only make it feel faster. More power makes it actually faster.

 

Just up the boost. Shorter gears really are for NA. Being already boosted just up the boost to 12 psi or so and the car will be loads faster!

 

Yea didn't want to say it but either no one knew the answer or were just re posting what I said.lol

Anyways I think I'll keep the gears. I don't plan on doing any rolls on the highway with the car. Yea it's quicker then stock but to me the car isn't fast maybe a little quicker then the 4.6 stangs but in my eyes that's not really saying much considering most cars are running 13s stock now of days. How much do you think I could get for the gears? The most ignoring part besides shifting like a mac truck is that at 65 I'm already at 4 grand. Thing feels shorter then a b16 tranny.LOL.