AZSpeed Report post Posted May 20, 2018 Considering replacing the front and rear axle gears in my '13 Silverado. Currently running factory 3.08 gears and want to switch to factory 3.42s to bump the towing capacity. Recommendations for reputable shops in East Valley? Any idea on what i should expect to pay? Thanks Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hoss50 Report post Posted May 21, 2018 Call Andrew at Letzroll Offroad. With gears I always say go at least 1 step lower the. You think you need. If you want 3.42 look at 3.55 or 3.73. If you have OD 3.73 is a good gear with 30-32 inch tires. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
257 STW Report post Posted May 21, 2018 No coast differential by Tempe market place talk to Ray they did lockers and gears in my jeep they do good work at a reasonable price Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ZJARCHER Report post Posted May 21, 2018 AZ Differential on Weldon. Not the other AZ differential. Best service and prices in the valley. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mesajeeper Report post Posted May 21, 2018 Call Andrew at Letzroll Offroad. With gears I always say go at least 1 step lower the. You think you need. If you want 3.42 look at 3.55 or 3.73. If you have OD 3.73 is a good gear with 30-32 inch tires. +1 for Andrew at Letzroll. He replaced my differential on my silverado and has done some work on my jeep as well. He uses high quality Yukon gears at a great price. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PowellSixO Report post Posted May 22, 2018 Not worth the money to go from 3.08's to 3.42's imho. You should bump up to 4.10's. If you have bigger tires than stock, then you should consider even maybe 4.56's. I'm running 4.88's with 35's and wish I would have gone 5.13's, but I let the shop talk me out of it. My two cents. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hoss50 Report post Posted May 22, 2018 I agree with Powell. I used to have 3.73's with 32's in my old K5 blazer. I bumped to 4.56's because I was planning on 35-37" tires. I loved the 32" tires and 4.56's and once I went to 37's I wish I had went to 5.13's. If you have 3.08's you should really consider at least 3.73-4.10's. If you plan on taller tires like 35-37's you should really think about 4.10's or more. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lucafu1 Report post Posted May 22, 2018 it all depends on what tire you want to run. After you figure that out you can worry about towing, rpm, and all that to figure out what gears you get. Also the lower you get (ratio) the smaller the pinion gear becomes. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hoss50 Report post Posted May 22, 2018 For most axles that are in full size vehicles pinion gear size & tooth contact area doesn't matter until you get into the deep gears like 4.88 or lower. I have done things to a 1/2 ton blazer front axle (GM 10B) with 4.56 gears and 37" tires that would make most well versed offroaders wince in pain for my axle and never broken a R&P gearset, and that is on the coast side of the gear. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AZSpeed Report post Posted May 23, 2018 Thanks for the replies for far. Im running stock LT265/70R17 tires with no plans to change tires sizes. The truck has the 5.3 Vortec with a 6-speed auto trans, the heavy duty cooling and trailering (not Max Trailering) packages. Im looking to improve the vehicle towing performance. The travel trailer I plan to tow is 34 feet long Grand Design. The trailer sticker claims an unloaded weight of 7,300 pounds and a GVWR of 8,995 pounds. GM claims a tow rating of 9,600 lbs with the 3.42 gear. Id be more comfortable with more gear to keep from taxing the engine and tranny more than necessary. Im thinking 3.73 is the minimum gear I should pick. Is that going to be enough? Thanks again. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Hoss50 Report post Posted May 23, 2018 Minimum 3.73. Check and see if you are allowed to tow in OD. Then calculate the cruise RPM while at towing speed and find the gear ratio that will keep you in the powerband of your motor. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PowellSixO Report post Posted May 23, 2018 I'd still recommend 4.10's. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lucafu1 Report post Posted May 23, 2018 yes 4.10s at a min. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites