Need opinions: 3.42 vs 3.73 GR

[buckwild27]

I think he meant 10k total? so like a yukon xl with an empty trailer on it?


so anyways, I think I need more details about what you mean by towing in 6th gear? I mean I don't have that setup, but mine goes in and out of overdrive ratio with the cruise set at 75 just rolling along I10 on the Florida "hills". I mean if you're able to just hold a speed down a small hill in 6th but as soon as you touch the gas to hold speed up a mild overpass it drops 2 gears and screams it's brains out at 5k. I'm not sure I count that as towing in 6th gear.


I worked with a guy once that towed 2 golf cars on a open trailer from Houston to New Orleans in a f250, foot to the deck the whole way to do 75. burned thru 2 tanks of gas. the plastic roofs were a decent wind break. when he got there the told me how great it towed. my other buddy that rode with him was like I have no idea how this pos made it there and didn't leave rods in Baton Rouge.


things are like that are all relative.

All my rods are intact where they belong. That weight was just the loaded trailer weight. It does lose a little speed going up hills, no I don't run it a 5k trying to maintain 75 up a hill. And yet none of this matters. The point is the transmission setup correctly can handle it. That way you don't have to drive in 4th gear at 5k.

 

[Geotrash]

If it helps, towing a 7500 lb camper (large wind sail) with the 6L80 with 3.42 gears, I find 4th gear is about 2800 rpm at 65 mph. It's the sweet spot for towing with these rigs, in my opinion, and it will run that way all day and require very few shifts around here until I get to the mountains. Then I'll need 3rd once in a while and it's about 3800 rpm to hold 65. I don't bother with 5th because it's constantly dropping out of it.

This, with a modified 6.2L. I would expect a 5.3 to spend a lot more time in 3rd with 3.42 gears, so I suspect the 3.73 gears would be more beneficial for a 5.3 rig than a 6.2. That extra 250 rpms might just be enough to keep it in 4th much more.

 

[swathdiver]

I think he meant 10k total? so like a yukon xl with an empty trailer on it?

No, I meant a 10K pound trailer. My daughters pull dump trailers loaded with trees and whatnot with their 1500 Sierras with ease. We're in Florida where our hills are overpasses. They are the same as @buckwild27 but with 6.2 engines.