The Cal-look Lounge

As the title says..... I'm at the point of buying a new gearbox for my 2017cc bug.... just don't know what kind of ring and pinion and fourth gear ratio i should choose. The car is stock weight '68 with IRS. Now i'm running a stock AT gearbox (3.88 ring and pinion and 0,93 fourth gear). It drives great an the highway but it feels a little bit long on curvey roads... I would like to keep the way it runs on the Highway but i think it feels stronger with some shorter gears.... Also want to do some week end drag racing... what gearbox would you recomend?

Reinforced Pro-Street Transmission with 3.88 ring & pinion.

1st Gear: 3,78
2nd Gear: 2,06
3rd Gear: 1,26
4th Gear: 0,89

Reinforced Pro-Street transmission with a modified fourth gear.
It has a 4.12 ring and pinion ratio with the following shifts:

1st Gear: 3,78
2nd Gear: 2,06
3rd Gear: 1,26
4th Gear: 0,82

Reinforced Pro-Street transmission.
With 4.12 ring and pinion ratio and the following shifts:

1st Gear: 3,78
2nd Gear: 2,06
3rd Gear: 1,26
4th Gear: 0,89

Thanks for feed back!!! Dennis...

the same but different would be the last option.

4.12 RP and a 0.89 4th gear, the first three are just that  bit closer and have a nicer feel to them. even having said that there is still a gap going from 2nd to 3rd compared to 1st into 2nd. and 4th gear is also a gap, but great cruiser gear. look at the post for a gearbox recently posted, i think you are looking at the same kind of option.

Tire?

205/70/15  ;)

I need to mention that i drove an AM gearbox before (4.375), too short at fourth gear in my opinion. I've got no experiences with the 4.125 (AH) gearboxes.... Does anyone drove one of these (perhaps with the modified 0.82 fourth gear)?

4.375 is short. the 4.12 is something in between 3.88 and 4.375, but the long 4th gear that is said to be in 3.88 gearboxes is in fact the same lenght as a 4th gear in a 4.12.
the 0.82 in a 3.88 is overkill and even a 0.89 is a bit tall. same with the 0.82 in a 4.12. there will be a gap, but it is a nice gearbox.
with the 4.12 you can enjoy rowing through 1st, 2nd and 3rd and keep 4th for highways.

I am running a 4.125 with 0.82 4th, with 205/70/15 rear tyres.

This is with a 1776 and approximately 90-100 hp.

As has already been said this is good for ripping through 1st 2nd and 3rd and keeping 4th for the motorway. 4th will give you 70 MPH at 3000rpm.

However there is quite a gap between 3rd and 4th so it can be a pain cruising at 40-50 mph, either high rpm in 3rd or low rpm in 4th, this may be less of an issue with your 2017 engine.

Thanks for input guys!! :)

4.375 is short. the 4.12 is something in between 3.88 and 4.375, but the long 4th gear that is said to be in 3.88 gearboxes is in fact the same lenght as a 4th gear in a 4.12.
the 0.82 in a 3.88 is overkill and even a 0.89 is a bit tall. same with the 0.82 in a 4.12. there will be a gap, but it is a nice gearbox.
with the 4.12 you can enjoy rowing through 1st, 2nd and 3rd and keep 4th for highways.
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So Nicolas, when i understand well i should go for the 4.12 with 0.89 4th gear, and i will have a shorter 1,2 and 3 and the 4th something simulair like my 0.93 in my  original AT (3.88) gearbox?

Kind Regards, Dennis

yep. that's it.

You can also stick an early 1.32 3rd gear (stock is 1.26) in that 4.12 box to tighten up the 2-3 gap.

That`s what I did. But I haven`t made a meter cause the 2.2l isn`t finished yet...

R&P: 4,125 (more solid than a 4,375 and not to long)

1st: 3,78
2nd: 2,06
3rd: 1,32 (mod. early raw teeth/ syn.welded)
4rd: 0,89 (mod. early raw teeth/syn.welded)

For me the best combination you could make with original VW parts.
Good acceleration 1-3 and 4th for cruising.

Sounds good to me Felix......,but what i just don't understand is  that there is a gap between 2nd and 3d gear...(with use of the 1.26) I compair this with the feel of my 2nd and 3d in my 3.88 (AT) gearbox. I have too long gears, but can't say i feel a gap between 2nd and 3d ??? Is it the cause of the combination of the 3.88 ring and pinion and the 1.26 compared to the 4,125?
Thanks for sharing experiences!! D.

if you don't feel the 'gap' it's OK then. i have a 1776 and i feel a difference between 1 - 2 and 2-3 which feels like a gap to me. but it isn't indeed that much of a drop.