Gear ratios & highway speed

[Richard Farrant]

Something else to think about, and I don't think has been mentioned, is raising the gearing with bigger wheels is fine for top speed, but it will mean higher ratios in low gears, and any hills may be more difficult, as the 216 is not blessed with a lot of power, I run a 28hp Bedford (72bhp) and is the British version of a 216, so know what this is like.

[Lang]

Richard,

First gear on the small CMP's is so low many people do not use it in everyday driving, I think that would not be a problem with upgraded final drive ratios. With any raising of gear ratios you certainly will have to change back earlier on hills but if Peter does not get too greedy and have to change down on the flat into a headwind he can drive normally.

Pete,

As for putting 20inch wheels on the vehicle in question it would dramatically change its appearance and make it look hotrodded. I have upsized the tyres and wheels on a lot of military and non-military vehicles over the years mainly to run on sand and without exception, on good roads they reduced road vibration but ALL handled and steered like c..p!

Taller 16 inch tyres are available but ANY of the above gearbox/diff suggestions would be cheaper than buying these in Australia. I have been trying to source some for my 4WD Mitsibishi Canter and find the very few brands available all add up to $2-3,000 for a set.

The modern Michelin radial equivilent of 9.00x16 which will fit your wheels are between $500 and $700 each depending on your source! The cheap and readily available MRF 9.00x16 non-directional that I have on my Dodge WC53 have done nearly 10,000km (much of it flat out on the highway going to and from Corowa) and all have over 80% tread remaining. A new set will get you around Australia easily. You might do some sums on getting tyres from Coker and others in USA but I doubt it will be an economic success.

[Phil Waterman]

Hi Peter

You started your thread "Ok - I know I'm going to get crucified for this but here goes!". But not to worry, most if not all of us have wanted to take a really long trip in our CMPs and are either envious or doubt your sanity (my kind of crazy) for undertaking a trip of that length.

I'd love to do the Alcan tour in 2012 but the distance to and from the start is to long to consider for my old bones. I suspect the C60S would make the trip fine.

Hope that you can workout all the details, carry a good video camera and still camera so that you can share the trip.

Hope you will keep asking questions and bouncing ideas of the rest of us.

Cheers Phil

[motto (RIP)]

I operated my Lease-Lend Chev for many years with a Five speed OD box from a CCKW. I found that it was not a success with the 216 as that engine just didn't have enough grunt to pull 5th gear except under favourable conditions. The 235 engine (still a splash feed) made all the difference but even then I could have used a few more cubes.

David

[lynx42]

Motto,

Didn't you upgrade your Dodge Weapons Carrier too 20" wheels as well? How did you do it and how did it go?

Regards Rick.

[motto (RIP)]

Hi Rick. Seasons Greetings to you and Jill.

Yes I had a set of White M3A1 Scout Car wheels modified by Austral Wheel Works to go on my 3/4 ton Dodge WC and used 9.00-20 ND bar tread tyres. I still have them but don't look upon them as being a success. I thought it an easy and easily reverse able way to increase road speed.

Where they weren't satisfactory was as Lang commented in relation to the C8AX, 20 inch wheels just looked wrong and added to that the 230 cu in engine is barely adequate anyhow so I was back to 3rd earlier. Another negative affect was the degredation of off-road performance that the single speed transfer case couldn't help with.

I currently have a Dodge 3/4 ton Command Car on the build in which I have installed 4.89 diff's and a two speed transfer case as against the 5.83 and single speed originals. We'll see.

David

[Mike K]

This is just rambling thoughts . You can buy a aftermarket gear set for the series Land Rover transfer case . The ratios are such that the high range road speed is better but the low ratios for off road use are hardly affected . At the Traf swap a few years ago, a guy had a land Rover FS with that aftermarket gear set fitted ...the complete car was $600 ..... cheap when you consider the special gear set is about $900 to buy . All that doesn't mean much for a C8AX ..but there were two diff ratios fitted on the C8A series ...