a 1995 sportage SOHC type is? I am curious because mine seems to be awfully low geared on the hwy. Its well over 3000 when running 65mph. Is this normal. What size bigger tires could I put on it to up the speed for the same Rpm with rubbing, etc. I have a Ford ranger with a 2.3 litre engine in it and weighs close to the same and in 5th gear there is an incredible difference between it and the sportage.

my normal RPM for 65 mph was around 3,450 with stock tires. this is normal, BUT, i thought the '95 SOHC's had 4.44 diff gears (there is one guy on this board with this model vehicle). the rest of us have 4.78's in the diffs. 4.44's were only offered in the very few SOHC's that made it to the US, and this was ONLY for the '95 model year. there may actually be a couple '94's on the west coast with the same set-up, but then they dropped the SOHC for the US market and kept only the 4.78 ratio for the US market, while still offering both gas engines and a diesel for overseas markets, and a 4.625 ratio for europe. since yours is the SOHC and it's in the US, it is difficult to tell what you have without taking it apart and counting the teeth on the pinion versus the ring gear, but it is most likely a 4.44 ratio. yes, pretty low, but good for off-roading and moderately good for road and off-road power, since the engines offered weren't all that powerful and the weight of the vehicle doesn't help. it was also an emissions compromise, in my opinion, getting the engine to run faster, getting it hot quicker, burning gas more easily and more cleanly.

Now I'm thinking I should of went lower than the 5:71's I put in? Dave/Axe, do ya know what our/My 1st gear is = 5 speed? And is our T-Case 2:1 in low range?

1st gear 3.717:1

Tcase 1.98:1

your 5.7:1 diffs gives 42:1 low first.

rob, that's pretty much as low as you can go without swapping to a Dana 60 with a 6.17:1 max diff gear. my 5.89's are perfect for a 33" tire, going off the original diff ratio and RPM's. for a 35" tire, 6.17 would have gotten the RPM's almost exactly back to where they should be stock. t-case is 1.98:1. manuals have 2 first gear variations, not sure what they are, but the info is in here somewhere, maybe try the "search." the auto's first gear is something like 2.84, 2.88, 2.94, something like that. but the auto also gets the benefit of low speed torque converter multiplication of about 2:1. so my total crawl ratio will be about 67:1, which i figure is pretty good, about what most rock crawler comp buggies run these days.

42:1 aint so bad = I exspected a lower number for some reason. 67:1 is even better.

You could find some Ford 9" assemblies - they've got a 7.33:1 R+P ratio available. AND, Ford 9" can be built as strong as and stronger than D-60s. Third members, too. I may end up going that route eventually.

stronger than D60? i doubt it. a seller or manufacturer may say that, but in the really real world, i doubt it. with 35-spline and 40-spline D60 kits with CTM's, you'll never break it. and, i've never heard of 7.33:1 gears for a 9 unless it was a mog-9 or some variation of that. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/zombie.gif" alt="" />

The place that told me that was a professional rock crawling place and the R+Ps were found at Randy's, specifically for the Ford 9".