US Gear Overdrive

[Archive]

I've made up my mind on which O/D I want to
go with,and it's the US Gear. Camping World sells them for $1,800 uninstalled. Has anyone seen a better price?

-Mike

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99QC2500,4x4,5spd,LB,LSD,3. 54,Amethyst
(pat. blue Y2K on order)

 

[Archive]

Mike R.
Please tell me what were the deciding factors in your decision to buy a US Gear overdrive unit? I have been thinking about putting an overdrive on my 95 Turbo Diesel and have been considering a US Gear unit. I had installed a Gearvendors unit on a previous vehicle and it worked fine. As a matter of fact I kept the unit when I sold the vehicle. Somehow I get the feeling that a conventional gearbox with a sliding synchronizer design, like the US Gear unit, would be more dependable in the long run due to simplicity. The planetary gear design with clutch arrangement of the Gearvendors strikes me as a more failure prone design than the US Gear unit. Curiosly, the Gearvendors unit comes highly recommended by a number of people I have talked to lately. Unfortunately, all those people only have experience with the GVendors unit.
As far as price goes, I have been in touch with US Gear directly in the past couple of years and it seems that in the past they have put their units on sale at the end of the year, around December and again mid year, around June. I'd really appreciate hearing back from you about your thoughts on this matter. You can reach me directly at the following E-mail address: skywagon@alltel.net
Thanks... ... John Kosik

 

[Archive]

Hi John,
My decision to are two things:
The US Gear is the only unit that can be installed to use in 4x4. It installs between the trans and t-case(the GV unit mounts behind the t-case,use in 2wheel mode only), so in 4x4 mode you can engage it if you need the overdrive ratio to go to both axles.

The second reason you've already answered.
The all-gear design of the US Gear unit, versus the planetary thing. Just like I prefer a manual trans to auto trans. I want the ability to overdrive my low gears. You can't overdrive 1st or 2nd with a GV. You have to be cruising more than 20-25mph before engaging the GV. So splitting grears isn't happening with GV.

If I continue with my 2000 Ram 6spd order,I won't be in a hurry to install one. But if I keep my '99 5spd(which it seems like I'm going to),then I'll be looking in the very near future.

-Mike




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99QC2500,4x4,5spd,LB,LSD,3. 54,Amethyst
(pat. blue Y2K on order)

 

[Archive]

The US Gear auxiliary transmission can be purchased as either an overdrive OR underdrive unit. The Gear Vendors is an overdrive unit ONLY. It can only underdrive by overdriving the next lower gear in your main transmission.

You will have to lengthen the front driveshaft and shorten the rear driveshaft (on a 4x4) with the US Gear unit. And there is the question of the transfer case shift linkage... I'm not sure if lengthened linkage accompanies the installation kit or if they expect you to cut another hole 11" back from the present hole. Does anyone with the US Gear unit installed in a 4x4 have the answer to this?

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'98. 5 2500 QC 4x4, (black) SLT Sport, ISB, LWB, 3. 54 LSD, auto. , 275 hp. injectors, Glasstite Vision II "canopy", 285 BFG A/Ts on 16x8 M/T Challengers, Warn 4X Boards, Mopar fender flares, front and rear NW Custom stainless steel/rubber mud flaps, Mag-Hytec diff. cover and trans. pan, Edelbrock IAS shocks, VDO Vision gauges, BD exhaust brake and TorqLoc.

 

[Archive]

MikeR

Give Ted Jannetty a call -- he sells them. I don't know what his price is, but he may be able to beat the one you have.



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Rob Spading
TDR Webmaster

1996 Dodge 3500 CC, Cummins, 4X4, Loaded SLT, Mag-hytec diff and trans covers, Rickson 19. 5s with Cooper C140s, Westach pyro-boost-trans temp, etc. , etc.

 

[Archive]

Thanks Rob.

-Mike

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99QC2500,4x4,5spd,LB,LSD,3. 54,Amethyst SLT
"Rattle & Hum"
(pat. blue Y2K on order)