My girlfriend is going to get me either a whisper lid or a set of 3.73 gears. I am wondering which I should go with first. I have 3.23 gears now and I am wondering which I will get a better gain with?

 

I would go for the lid first unless you are prepared to pay for an installation kit and for someone to put it in for you. If that's not a consideration, then I would probably not go with the gears unless you plan on getting the lid soon anyway.

Actually, I'd go for a torque converter for your A4 before gears anyway. From what I hear, you might decide that you don't really need the 3.73's.

 

ALOT cheaper to buy a lid

gear = $$$
install kit = $$$
labor = $$$
something to recal the speedo = $$$$

tpical gears installs with like an HPP3 will run over $800.00

vs. 110-200.00 for a lid depending on what brand and style you buy

do the math and youl figure out whats best

 

What about anything else that would give me good gains?

 

Dude, your girlfriend is going to pay?! Get the gears!!!!! Let her pay for the more expensive mod, and buy yourself the lid!!!!

C'mon, that one should be obvious!!!

 

alright.. here is the straight skinny..
Gears are a good mod but you will want your PCM programmed for them.. I would suggest talking to your local dealers service dept to see if they will do that for you. I have heard that they could and it was done on my LT1 car. I didnt need the HPP for my gears, just for shifts..

Other than that, the gears are a wonderful mod but you will still be left with 2 wheels that tend to spin easily.

Perhaps if I were you, I would ask her to get me either 2 take off wheels from SLP (about $99 each) or a Drag radial. Then you pick up the rest to complete the traction stage 1 setup.
Stage 2 in my traction setup is ES tranny mount and Torque arm mount, LCA's, and Panhard rod.

Why start with the DR's? Cause from day one, you need it with these cars. Besides, I have a feeling that even with the stock TC in your car, by flashing it, you can get a 1.8 on DR's.


Lid is good if thats the direction you will be going. Heck, have her buy you the ramair and you buy the lid and filter (if you dont have one yet)! Thats a decent deal there!


Given my formula for better ET's of balancing power and suspension for traction mods, I have come to the realization that this car doesnt hook easily. My LT1 did. It also did have this much power. So I am looking at getting me some Drag Radials.. Most likely the BF Goodrich, only because many have said it is the hands down best DR.. and I am not ready for slicks.

After I get that done, I will add the lid and ramair kit. Essentially I want to see the engines absolute fastest ET in bone stock form. Then I will add the lid, ram air, and whatever else I choose to. But it makes no sense to sit here and tell you all, I want to see 12's so I am going to get all of these engine mods and NOS and a Jet propulsion unit and a photon torpedo when I still wont hook up.. And that is the KEY.. Get the most usuable power to the ground and once you have done that, then go ahead and add more power.. Till you find yourself thinking I need full slicks, then I need to tub this beotch out, heck, FULL ROLL CAGE TIME!

 

Take it from him, i switched gears in my a4, with 3.42s, but i had 2.73s stock. Your already ave a good gear ratio. If i were you i would get a 3500 converter and it would make you MUCH faster then 3.73s would.. and over all cost will be about the same... The onyl reason i changed gears is becaus mone had 2.73s stock and they HAD to go. LOL.

OPTION 1-
gear= $110 for ring and pinion +$30 seals and +$3 fluid
Labor= $55-$65 an hour for 3-5 hours.
HPP3 to Correct the speedo= $365

OPTION 2-
For a 3000-3500 stall, mabey $900-$1100 for the stall and labor... And i feel this would actually be your best investment out of the 3 options

OPTION 3-
OR, a $500 nitrous kit...

Sooner or later i would do both option 2 and 3 on my your car, my next performance mod will be a 3000 or 3500 stall..

Now tell your GF to just get you a whisper lid, i wouldnt let my GF spend hundreds of dollars on my car... But "i" would for myself..

 

KamaroL98,
how is he supposed to hook up at 3000rpm?

Just curious.

 

Lid, no question about it, its worth around 15-20 hp. I've seen too many guys do gears only to run slower 1/4 mile times...
TC is better than gears in an A4 and if you want to hook up go with Nitto DRs.

 

If its a street car, getting the converter will get rid of his deadspot at 40mph as well as making it a beast from a roll (gotta beat them M6'ers). He wouldn't be able to nail it from a stop obviously, but on the street how often do you do this anyway. With a stock TC and 2.73's, I can't nail it from a stop as it is.

 

Exactly my point.. so, given that none of us stock can hook (and I race at the track way more than on the street) would it not make sense to get traction first? Really... think about it..
For me I just makes perfect sence.. here is why...

Take my 13.6 time.. HOT.. Hot weather, hot car. babied off the line 2.1 60' time.. Now, lets say that I use some BF Goodrich DR's (only reason I say to use these as more have said they hook better with them.. sure they dont last (main complaint I have heard) but if you only run them at the track, they should do alright.. I will be asking that next..) and get 1.8 (although you should do better) Then HOT that makes my ET go down to 13.3. So with colder air and a cold engine, 12.9's dont seem too far off.. Granted there are a lot of variables, but traction out of the equation because you now have it, turns a bone stock engine into an almost 12 sec car.. add mods afterwards until you can hook anylonger.. Personally, if you do mods and tell me you run 12's fine.. if you run 12's with just tire.. I will be more impressed.. Sure this would help virtually any car, but I would rather know its full stock potential than worry about everyone I meet on the street (very few and far between). Besides, maybe my streets are just full of the races that a lid wont help you win.. Houston area is where the Pepper is at and there are many others that are freakishly fast.. so why bother on the street.. I would rather just do some fast highway cruises at 100+ on the way to the drag strip to see what the car can do.. with a stock engine..

Dont get me wrong, I was planning on lid and filter and all the works but after taking it to the track Wednesday, I realized that I was sitting there worring about tire spin and then to think about adding more power???! Goes against my very formula..

 

Psycho-you can never go wrong adding more power. Get some Nittos, the 315s fit on the stock rims perfectly, most people think they are 275s. But if you get the lid and some Nittos you'll be cruising, look at how well I'm doing in my sig. I have a few extra mods but nothing big, and I'm hitting the 12s in hot weather.....!

 

HE can hook with Nittos... Just roll on Nittos all the time, thats what im going to do... I wouldnt worry about hooking from a stop them, my friends 6speed Z28 with a 125 shot hooks off the line with spray with slight spin.... But it all depends ont he individual car i guess..