• Mustang Forums
  • 2005 - 2014 S-197 Mustang -General/Talk-
  • 2005 - 2009 Specific Tech

3.31 against a 3.55; The 3.31 was faster..

  • Thread starter Thread starter fox1x
  • Start date Start date Aug 3, 2007
F

fox1x

New Member
Oct 3, 2005
157
0
0
Northwest Ohio
Aug 3, 2007
#1
  • Aug 3, 2007
  • #1
Okay, so one of the guys that works out at the gym with me has a black '06 that looks EXACTLY like my '07. The ONLY differences in the cars are my window tint, SLP's, and I have 3.31's. We both have 5 speeds, 17 inch wheels, I mean these cars are identical. His car has 3.55's and I was asking if he had drivin' the 3.31's. He said he hadn't. I wanted the 3.55's but couldn't find one.

So, we were on our way home on a 4 lane divided highway around 60 mph. We decided to see how they would do against each other. I had the car in third at as best I could tell was exactly 60 on my car, he said he did the same. He honked three times, he got the slightest of the jump on me; but, I started pulling on him. Not super fast, and I would say more of a creeping on him. We tried it again and the same thing.

The last run we tried was a 4th gear run from 65. It produced almost identical results. By the time I had hit 95-100, I would say I was about 3/4 - 1 car length ahead.

I thought 3.55's were supposed to be better for performance. We both had full tanks of gas and we are 15 pounds of eash other weight wise. Maybe I'm thinking now that I don't want to get rid of the 3.31's? Any thoughts?
 
S

ski

Member
Dec 14, 2004
380
2
18
Aug 3, 2007
#2
  • Aug 3, 2007
  • #2
I can think of 4 possible reasons:

1- Your car may be producing more power than his. Due to slight differences in manufacturing and assembly tolerances, identical engines will produce different max amounts of torque and hp. I've seen SAE corrected dyno readings that vary anywhere from 255-275 hp for stock manual S197's.

2- He may drive his car conservatively, and you may drive yours aggressively. This will store conservative timing and A/F values in his ECU's memory, while aggressive values will be stored in your car's ECU. Aggressive values produce higher hp.

3- Your SLP's may be helping your engine to output slightly higher hp.

4- His tires and wheels may be larger than yours, which will increase his car's rolling resistance, and reduce its acceleration.
 
F

fox1x

New Member
Oct 3, 2005
157
0
0
Northwest Ohio
Aug 3, 2007
#3
  • Aug 3, 2007
  • #3
We both have 5 speeds, 17 inch wheels
Click to expand...

I know it's not the tires. And I thought the SLP'seally didn't do much but add sound. I guess reason number one could be it.
 

Pliskin

New Member
Jul 27, 2004
109
0
0
Aug 3, 2007
#4
  • Aug 3, 2007
  • #4
Could I unplug my battery and get rid of my driving habits on my ECU so I can make it aggresive? I know you can normally but I have no idea with a saleen tune.
 
S

ski

Member
Dec 14, 2004
380
2
18
Aug 3, 2007
#5
  • Aug 3, 2007
  • #5
Reason #2 can also be a factor.
 
S

ski

Member
Dec 14, 2004
380
2
18
Aug 3, 2007
#6
  • Aug 3, 2007
  • #6
Pliskin said:
Could I unplug my battery and get rid of my driving habits on my ECU so I can make it aggresive? I know you can normally but I have no idea with a saleen tune.
Click to expand...
It should be able to be done with any tune.
 
F

fox1x

New Member
Oct 3, 2005
157
0
0
Northwest Ohio
Aug 3, 2007
#7
  • Aug 3, 2007
  • #7
I was talking to a guy at work about it today and he said at higher speeds a taller gear set will allow you to pull in a certain gear longer. He said 3.73's and 4.10's are great for the 1/4 mile, but for higher speeds a 3.31 will be better. Does this make sense?
 

Pliskin

New Member
Jul 27, 2004
109
0
0
Aug 4, 2007
#8
  • Aug 4, 2007
  • #8
With the 4.10s top speed goes down. Faster acceleration but it cant go as fast because the RPMs will be like 1 to 1 1/2k more.
 

kooldawg6

mine works really well and can take a fair amount
Aug 31, 2006
1,679
2
38
Central VA
Aug 4, 2007
#9
  • Aug 4, 2007
  • #9
With the 4.10s in mine, it is very peppy when downshifting from O/D at 70+ and accelerates hard up until about 120. I stopped there as she was starting to run out of steam(didn't notice the RPMs). 3.31s vs 3.55s won't be much difference at all, so I believe it is all of 1, 2 & 3! Even if you nailed the gas a fraction of a second before him could have made all the difference if both cars are nearly identical.
 
R

ranger04

New Member
Jul 28, 2007
245
0
0
Aug 4, 2007
#10
  • Aug 4, 2007
  • #10
For sure, a higher gear (numerically lower) will give you more topend speed where as a lower gear (numerically higher) will give you better excelleration at the cost of some topend. With our roads in this country having set speed limits, excelleration would be more important than topend. Stop light to stop light is where it's at, 1/4 mile and so on unless your gonna run on Daytona.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

C
03 Cobra Low Fuel Pressure
  • CTsnake_03
  • Mar 17, 2026
  • 1996 - 2004 SN95 Mustang -General/Talk-
Replies
5
Views
280
1996 - 2004 SN95 Mustang -General/Talk- Mar 24, 2026
CTsnake_03
C
Z
Progress Thread zeth194 - New Guy on the Block
  • zeth194
  • Mar 19, 2026
  • 1979 - 1995 (Fox, SN95.0, & 2.3L) -General/Talk-
Replies
10
Views
583
1979 - 1995 (Fox, SN95.0, & 2.3L) -General/Talk- Apr 26, 2026
LILCBRA
R
Rcapri - 1980 Capri, bought new by inlaws
  • RCapri
  • Sep 18, 2025
  • 1979 - 1995 (Fox, SN95.0, & 2.3L) -General/Talk-
Replies
19
Views
912
1979 - 1995 (Fox, SN95.0, & 2.3L) -General/Talk- Oct 20, 2025
manicmechanic007
Progress Thread Progress Thread- From6to8's 95 GT/Saleen Supercharged 331 install
  • from6to8
  • Mar 22, 2026
  • 1979 - 1995 (Fox, SN95.0, & 2.3L) -General/Talk-
  • 2
Replies
24
Views
964
1979 - 1995 (Fox, SN95.0, & 2.3L) -General/Talk- May 6, 2026
from6to8
Progress Thread Progress Thread- From6to8's 1994 Cobra Supercharger install
  • from6to8
  • Sep 25, 2025
  • 1979 - 1995 (Fox, SN95.0, & 2.3L) -General/Talk-
  • 20 21 22
Replies
420
Views
10K
1979 - 1995 (Fox, SN95.0, & 2.3L) -General/Talk- May 6, 2026
from6to8
Share:
Bluesky Email Share Link
  • Mustang Forums
  • 2005 - 2014 S-197 Mustang -General/Talk-
  • 2005 - 2009 Specific Tech
Menu
Log in

Register

  • Forums
  • What's new
  • Media
  • Resources
  • Contact
  • Sponsor
X

Privacy & Transparency

We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:

  • Personalized ads and content
  • Content measurement and audience insights

Do you accept cookies and these technologies?

X

Privacy & Transparency

We use cookies and similar technologies for the following purposes:

  • Personalized ads and content
  • Content measurement and audience insights

Do you accept cookies and these technologies?