2012 4.0 V6 Regear tips?

So I've realized after adding a 4" lift and 32.6" tires that weigh 48 pounds each that my truck is very unhappy in overdrive, the gearing just doesnt work right shifts too early and sends the RPM way down low and she's hating it. That being said I know a regear maybe a 4.88 will be the right option for me? I never gave much thought towards gearing, can someone with a little

 

Also I have a 4.0 V6 with I believe a 3.91 ratio, driving city she hates OD and will stumble around so i have to limit it to 4th gear unless im above 45 mph, she also hunts at highway speeds when I want to speed up sometimes. Thinking of going for 4.88's or 4.56's. Nothing less, I want to make sure that the over drive never has a reason to be at 1100ish RPM

 

Sorry for the late reply, but you should get ahold of a company like ECGS or justdifferentials.com and talk to them. They should be able to get you situated and you might still be able to get a discount.

*Also realized there's another thread with more info:

https://www.tundras.com/threads/regear-questions.78583/

East Coast Gear Supply
10% Off ends 12/1 - code: THANKS
Excludes: complete axles & 3rd members
https://eastcoastgearsupply.com

I think based on your tire size, 4:56 would work well and still allow you to do 70-80mph with out having your RPMs too high. Something to consider if you're thinking to do 4.88.

 

Get a third member from a junkyard with a lower gear ratio.

The 4.0 uses the 9.5" axle? I dunno what ratios were available for that. Maybe you can find a 4.10 or 4.30 to put in there.

 

I started with a 4.0 in my first Tundra....too underpowered.

 

@Tundra234 no doubt it is. I think re-gearing could really make a difference and be worthwhile.

 

This may not be a popular suggestion but have you considered trading in for a slightly newer tundra with a 5.7?
I would find it hard to justify the cost of re-gearing when that cash could go to a more capable platform.
My mpg between my 4.0L Tacoma and my tundra 5.7l is a wash on the highway

 

Give Keith Carty a call at 760-877-4234. He knows everything when it comes to gears and suspension.

 

I'm pretty young, grew up with this truck since new and bought it off my dad, it was supposed to be something that would last me through college while I was studying construction mgmt and engineering. I'm in my first year of college and now is when the truck is having issues. I finally modified it to what I wanted and its having the washboard issue. I had the valve body upgraded by John at IPT which is the cause of my vibration from what we can tell but there's a chance the clutch pack is already damaged in the trans. I've put a lot of time and money into this truck and it would be a shame to trade it in for a 2020 when I am very attached to this truck in the first place. I'm gonna keep trouble shooting this truck has a lot of value to me and a trade in doesn't do it justice. Keith got me in contact with John who was the only person who has helped me at all since this vibration showed up a few months back. Monday he's gonna send me a trans additive to see if it helps or removes my issue but he thinks the clutch pack is damaged because of the A series valve body issue

 

Completely understand. I have put more in my Tacoma than whats its worth and couldn't bring myself to trade it in either.
Have you tried driving around in 4, not D? Does that improve condition?
Do issues only occur at high speed, high load? or across the board?
Gears help the most on boosting low end torque when the motor is in a low rpm range. Are your issues occurring between idle to say 1500rpm? only in OD?

 

OD is originally where it was most obvious but now it does it a lot, excuse my knowledge though I just had it put back together yesterday with the performance valve body so once I drove it in auto and had the issue again i took it home and parked it. also waiting for a tool to properly close the check plug because its not tight enough. I definitely can't bring myself to get rid of this truck I am pretty attached to it and I want to stick with it through the issues. Prior to upgrade driving in 4 made the issue non existent, problem would be obvious when you gave it access to OD, got progressively worse with time 4 month ago it was a small vibration at 35-40 mph that was not consistent with time it became a large shudder that dealerships did not want to touch with a ten foot pole which is what sent me to the forums. Valve body is supposed to be the source of this issue John told me it was extremely worn and almost to the point where it could not be bored out so the source of the problem is fixed, now I need to further think and diagnose. My brain is overloaded with this truck lol it really put my engineering theory from highschool to use.

 

I checked the vin i have a 3.91 9.5" same as the smaller V8 option I've never changed the oil in it though mostly highway miles. But I now know the issue I have is not gearing related as I thought

 

Based on the information provided above, I would agree with John's assessment of the torque converter may be shot
Driving around and letting OD engage, but not lock-up the TC will just accelerate wear of the clutch packs and heat up trans fluid.
Maybe the upgraded valve body will save the next one, but it seems the heavier, larger tires is really the root cause of strain on the system.
Swapping or getting a lighter set of wheels and tires seems like the easiest solution to reduce strain in the short term until re-gearing and/or confirming a new TC is required.
Most 4.0L tacoma owners re-gear at 33's avoid straining trans and to gain back drive-ability, and they are 1500-2000lbs lighter than a Tundra
Dealing with issues like this is definitely stressful, and frustrating, i would focus on ways to confirm if TC clutches are worn, and then go from there.

 

Trust me I believe the damage has been done, I will be putting an additive in the fluid that John will send me to see if it makes a difference, truck is parked I haven't driven it much to avoid any issues ever since I decided to upgrade the valve body, these tires are about 7 pounds heavier each than stock and are 32.6" in diameter. Not sure if I can get my hands on smaller wheels I already have alloy 18" with smaller diameter mud terrains that is how I confirmed that my issues wasn't an unbalanced tire. Also contacted a shop I know to see if they can run diagnostics to read info from the lockup area while driving. On monday when I give john a call I may ask him if this could be the root of the problem although he says this is a common issue with these toyota transmissions. I think there are even cases where this has happened within the first 100K miles

 

He told me before the wear that they could fix the root of the problem the VB but if the damage is done on the clutch packs there isn't much to do other than replace it. I wont bother him this weekend as I was enough of a nuisance last night when I got it driving again