Can't climb hills worth ****, Any ideas?

[MileHighMadness]

I have a 92 Ford Bronco 351W with 225,000 miles. I live in Colorado and use it primarily for pulling a trailer with 3 Quads on it. It has the hardest time when we head up in the Mountains. I'm talking about having to keep it in 2nd while climbing through the steep parts, (which is most of the drive). I don't drive it long distances, I do drive it daily around town etc... Would changing gears help? Any suggestions would be great. I understand it has a ton of miles and the motor isn't what it used to be.

 

[Bully Bob]

Could be the altitude...(going "UP" fr. 5k feet) RU fuel injected..?

If that trailer is a dual axle/steel..., that's a lot of weight.

Assume your talking 2nd gear on the highway not an up hill dirt road..?

Do a compression check....easy/cheap & tells you volumes.

 

[MileHighMadness]

It's a single axle trailer. I've got a Polaris Outlaw 525IRS, Yamaha Blaster & a Yamaha Raptor 90cc loaded on it when headed up. So, a little bit of weight. I'm driving on paved roads, it's basically driving from about 5,100 feet to 8,520 feet in about 25 miles. Gears wouldn't help? Going to a 4.10 or something along those lines. It is fuel injected....

 

[Bully Bob]

"Gears wouldn't help? Going to a 4.10 or..."

Sure...., but that's not cheap...you gotta do the front as well if you're using the 4wd at times.

Smaller tires would help as well... you didn't say what's on there.

 

[Bebop Man]

What transmission do you have in it? 92's are all fuel injected, which should eliminate altitude as an issues, the computer is supposed to compensate automatically.

2nd gear in a manual, that is really crappy. In an E4OD, that's pretty normal while towing a load. What gear ratio do you have now?

 

[MileHighMadness]

It does have the E40D and stock 3.55 gears. I have 33x12.50x15's on it. I've looked at some of the other gear ratio threads with similar issues. Auto Trans, Bigger tires, sluggish Accel etc. They suggest 4.56 gears? I appreciate your help, let me know what you think. THANKS!

 

[Bebop Man]

Try this link : http://www.grimmjeeper.com/gears.html

You can plug in your trans, gear ratio, and tire size, then it'll tell you what RPM you're at for what ever speed, even calculating the crawl ratio and speed for low range. Plug in different ratios and see what RPM you get at highway speed (55 or 65), keeping in mind that your peak torque will come in around 2000 RPM, and max HP comes in at 3800 RPM.

I punched in the numbers myself, and I think 4.10 gears would be a better match than 4.56, and here's why. When you're pulling loads, you want the trans in 3rd gear, not OD. 4.10 gives the best RPM range for 3rd gear, with OD reserved for flat and downhill with decent fuel mileage.

 

[MileHighMadness]

I will get this project underway and let you know how the 4.10's work. Thanks again!