On road driving

I have a problem that might seem backwards to a lot of jeepers out there. I have a 1968 CJ5 mostly stock. has the stock 225 V6. has a not stock T-18 tranny in it and low gears. not sure what they are ,I just know that they are low. My happy top speed in this rig is about 50mph, any faster and it's screeming! I would like to change the Tranny and gears so it would get a little better gas milage and to run easyer on the road. I was just wondering if any of you experts out there would know of a good tranny and gears to replace what I have now. or would it be better to change the whole drive train altogether? HELP!:v6:

 

Changing the tranny will do nothing for speed unless you fit one with an overdrive. The cheapest thing to do is put a warn overdrive behind your dana 18 transfercase. This is a 25% reduction in gearing.
What year is your jeep? Is your v6 factory? If your v6 is stock your gears should be 4.88's which should still allow you to run 70mph, we really need more info. What size tires you running?

 

It is the stock V6 225. I would like to put the taller skinnyer tires on it. I already tried the overdrive rought and it was a waste of time and money. it wore out in less than a year.

 

Mike is right, get an overdrive. This is assuming you have the optional stock 4.88 axle gearing. The other stock axle gearing is 3.73. With the gear ratio 70 mph is easy to attain, but I find 70 mph to fast for a comfortable cruise.
You might find a set of 3.73 axles for less money than buying an overdrive. These will set you back anywhere from $600 to $800 and may not be as easy to find as 3.73 axles.
Herm the overdrive guy sell new overdrives but they go for $950, or a rebuilt housing and all new gears for $875.

Don

 

You must have used a bad overdrive from the junkyard, there are guys on here that have them that are 25 years old and stil lrunning. Did you get your overdrive from Herm?

You have 4.88 gears.
At 3000rpm you should be doing 55mph with your current setup and 30" tires.
Your motor will run fine at 3500rpm all day long.
Take your overdrive and have it rebuilt something was wrong, either it was never rebuilt or someone installed it wrong.
Did you use the clutch when shifting the OD, was it a saturn unit from Advance adapters or a rebuilt Warn from Herm the overdrive guy (Herms are better). What wore out inthe overdrive? You really need to be more specific, regearing axles is expensive if you don't know how and overdive transmissions are not really an option, cost and length.
The overdrive twas the right solution something was wrong.

 

Thanks for the info. not sure what gears are in it. I'll have to check.

 

WOW! a lot of questions I don't have answers for just now. I will though! I think the overdrive that S&H 4wheel drive put in was some aftermarket one and it just wore out real quick. I will check my gears here soon so I know what I'm dealing with and repost the info. thanks for the quick responce.

 

I've been running a Warn overdrive that I bought used for 10 years with no problems and my dad put a brand new one in his Jeep in 1979 and it's still there. If you wore one out in a year, it was already bad when you installed it or something else was wrong-that's not typical.
If you have 4.88's you could probably find someone with 3.73's who'd like to trade-that would be your cheapest option. You'd lose a lot of off road capability, but with a 4 speed it might not be a big issue depending on how you use it.

 

Blue,
Where are you located?
You mentioned S&H 4WD, is that the shop here in Sacramento?

Don

 

yes it's in sacramento. I'm not saying anything bad about those guys at S&H. they fixed my steering and did a great job! I think I just didn't do my homework before I put the overdrive in. Live and learn! So this time Im trying to get all my ducks in a row before I start spending any more money on my money pit. LOL

 

changin the diff gears to 373s would be the cheapest route probably.
my 68 will run all day at 65 /70. but i like 60 better.

 

well then something was seriously wrong with it......
the OD in my Jeep has been there since 1974 when we got the Jeep....
yes it's been rebuilt once or twice

 

I don't like to talk bad about someone but I feel if you're going to make a big purchase you should have all the info. I'm sure others have had great service but I have had nothing but grief from Herm. He sent the wrong bearings w a T14 rebuild kit, gave incorrect info over the phone when I tried to source them locally, sent the wrong TO bearing w a "matched" clutch kit, and the OD I purchased from him was history after 3 months ( bull gear separated from the planetary ). I recovered only $200 vs $850 paid when he offered to buy the parts back. I suggest if you go the OD route, spend an extra $150 and get a new Saturn from AA. I did and have been quite happy. Just wish I had done so in the beginning.
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