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Axle

alpine_64

Donation Time
Joel are you running a 4 or 5 speed? Given all your mods i always assumed a 5 speed.. A 3.7 with 5 speed would seem a nice balance.. With a 4 speed probably a bit revvy on cruise.

Ive got a 3.07 with 195/60/14s and id love a 5th gear to knock back rpm on cruise
 

alpine_64

Donation Time
You are not liking the rpm or response in 5th when cruising or the balance between the acceleration in intermediate gears vs final? What o/d ratio is the 5th?
 

George Coleman

Gold Level Sponsor
I use a Toyota 5 speed and the 3.7 gear worked very well for me, but the 3.7 set was a new piece from Holland and it was always noisy. Wish I could find a Alpine GT 69 or so that had the factory 3.7 gear.
 

alpine_64

Donation Time
George.. Joel's has a bit more torque and power than a rootes 4....

My alpine has a 3.89 with OD and 195/65/14s.. Very good gearing for highway in an 4cyl alpine
 

Barry

Diamond Level Sponsor
Response is not a problem in any gear, I'm not liking the overall balance this is a 1950# car I reckon after putting a 1000 miles on it it just doesn't need a 3.7 gear.we will see!



I think Joel is on the right track.

A light car with a powerful engine and short gearing can have an awkward feel. Light and powerful are pretty easy to understand; gearing not so much because people get tangled up in ratios rather than the more universal MPH / 1,000 RPM that takes both gear ratios and tire diameter into account.

For comparison, the current manual transmission ZL1-1LE Camaro and GT500 Mustang are about 6 lbs. / HP with a 1st gear that is about 8 MPH / 1,000 RPM. A stock Mk-I Tiger is about 15 lbs. / HP and 10 MPH / 1,000 RPM in 1st gear. A stock Mk-II Tiger is about 12 lbs. / HP and 8.3 MPH / 1,000 RPM in 1st gear. A stock S-V Alpine is about 23 HP / lb. and 5 MPH / 1,000 RPM in 1st gear.

Joel's 1,950 lb. "Alpine" with about 450 HP is only 4.3 lbs. / HP and has gearing and tire size that works out to about 6 MPH / 1,000 RPM in 1st gear. It is no wonder that the gearing "balance" does not feel right.

Changing from a 3.73:1 to a 3:27:1 rear end will increase the 1st gear MPH / 1,000 RPM to about 7 MPH / 1,000 RPM. Better, but still pretty "short" for a car with only 4.3 lbs. / HP. A 2.95:1 1st gear and 3.27:1 rear end would be about 7.7 MPH / 1,000 RPM. A 2.95:1 1st gear combined with a 3.00:1 rear end would give about 8.5 MPH / 1,000 RPM in 1st gear which would probably "feel" pretty good.
 
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alpine_64

Donation Time
370 ft.lbs
Joel i have 338lbft in my tiger wirh 3.07lsd... In the dry its a blast... In the wet... Not so much.. So in your car with such a lightweight body... The taller gearing would help calm it down.

One of my alpines is only 1925lbs and it certianly makes it sprightly with only a 1600cc
 

Barry

Diamond Level Sponsor
Did not realize that you were using a S-10 T-5. The S-10 T-5 shifter location works well for a V8 Alpine with the engine and firewall moved back, but the first gear ratio leaves a lot to be desired (3.76, 3.97 or 4.03) and only gives about 5 MPH / 1,000 RPM with the 3.73 rear end and 255/50-16 rear tires. Putting a 2.95 gearset in the S-10 transmission (you have to keep the S-10 tailshaft that matches the S-10 tailshaft housing) might make a big difference in the feel.
 

Barry

Diamond Level Sponsor
Chevy or Ford, it's still a 4-cylinder T-5 with the same problem (a 3.97:1 first gear) and the same solution (a better transmission gearset).
 

Series6

Past President
Gold Level Sponsor
I use a T5 from a Turbo Thunderbird, with the .80 final. My car has a Dana 44 and a 3.31 ratio. I only use 1st from a light. Eventually I'm going to put a different set in the diff.

The .80 vs the .68 I had from a 5.0 Mustang raised my rpm at 65 by 400 rpm and is perfect freeway. Don't mind the short first gear at all.
 

PROCRAFT

Donation Time
I use a T5 from a Turbo Thunderbird, with the .80 final. My car has a Dana 44 and a 3.31 ratio. I only use 1st from a light. Eventually I'm going to put a different set in the diff.

The .80 vs the .68 I had from a 5.0 Mustang raised my rpm at 65 by 400 rpm and is perfect freeway. Don't mind the short first gear at all.
Nick. All sounds familiar This is the third time with a 4 cyl. T5 the first gear really doesn't bother me just use 2nd less effort. Looks like on the highway we'll be around 2600 revs. Barry brings up a lot of good points, but I reckon it'll be a 3.27 gear set.
 
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PROCRAFT

Donation Time
So gotta give an attaboy to Moser Eng. On the axle deal. Went over Monday, they asked how far I drove said I 140 miles they said well maybe you need this today! So I went for a visit came back picked it up around noon. Done!
 

PROCRAFT

Donation Time
So it seems with the track width I'm using the slider bolts are necking out on the chassis, so to get some more travel I turned the caliper brackets upside be down and left for right,this will be a problem for those or you using the 8.8 axle if you don't have a wide enough track width.IMG_20191216_101716073.jpg
 

DanR

Diamond Level Sponsor
My problem I reckon not yours.
Joel, I am using the T5 from the 1997 FORD 3.8 Mustang.

Some say it is a little beefer than the 4cyl. It has a 3:35 1st and they seem to be fairly easy to come by. I believe the tail shaft will be a bit farther back than the S10 for your application than desired though?
 

PROCRAFT

Donation Time
Joel, I am using the T5 from the 1997 FORD 3.8 Mustang.

Some say it is a little beefer than the 4cyl. It has a 3:35 1st and they seem to be fairly easy to come by. I believe the tail shaft will be a bit farther back than the S10 for your application than desired though?
Dan: not quite sure what your telling me here the Gearbox I'm using is a T 5 from a mustang abet a 4 cylinder, not sure what the S10 has to do with it. Anyway the fellow that did my rebuild showed me a T5 from a V6 car that had a short tail shaft not like any thing I've seen. This box is a world class and the only difference is the first gear ratio,as Barry said, makes no difference to me this is not the first time I've done this,also the Tiger I sold had a Camero V6 T5.
 

260Alpine

Silver Level Sponsor
Joel, I think Dan is thinking of the Tiger guys that use the S10 tailhousing. The rare Chevette and semi-rare Astro van have a more forward shifter also. Halfway between the Mustang and S10. Maybe the short tailshaft was the 2000-2005 Mustang V6?
 
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