e36 gear ratios

[The Lukas]

I have a 1998 318is.

It's a good car, a good allrounder. A slight annoyance however is the fact that when cruising on the motorway, at 70mph (+) she's reving at about 3400rpm which isn't very relaxed and can't be efficient. I have contemplated buying a 328, are the ratios any different? Thanks.

[clonmult]

I always found that my iS (99 model E36) was quite a relaxing motorway cruiser, and the throttle response was always instant.

iirc the gearing on the 328i is considerably longer, and of course there's the additional benefit of a much nicer engine note.

[griffter]

The Lukas said:

I have a 1998 318is.

It's a good car, a good allrounder. A slight annoyance however is the fact that when cruising on the motorway, at 70mph (+) she's reving at about 3400rpm which isn't very relaxed and can't be efficient. I have contemplated buying a 328, are the ratios any different? Thanks.

At 70, my 1997 e36 328 cruises at 2700 rpm (+-50)

[vsonix]

I have a 318ti with the same engine (M44) and although cruising at circa 4000 revs might seem a bit high, apparently the engine is absolutely fine with it, and something to do with the way the throttle is constructed (dual inlet, or something) means the car manages to remain surprisingly economical despite the RPMs. It's annoying, I read all this in an article recently that explained it properly but I can't remember what forum to provide a link - I realise my explanation sounds vague.

[vsonix]

also have a look at 318ti.org, there's a lot of M42/M44 gurus on there and loads of info that's common to the ti and is.

[E21_Ross]

don't think the diffs from a 6 pot would fit, though may be worth a try, as a diff from a 325i might be ideal, although acceleration would suffer of course. if it's annoying because of engine noise, by all means, change car or diff. if it's because you're worried about the engine not being able to cope, i wouldn't. your engine will sit at 5k rpm all day long if it's got pretty fresh oil in it etc., heck, my 28+ year old E21 sits at 85mph all day long without any troubles at all 85mph is 4000rpm - 70mph is about 3250 give or take.

[The Lukas]

Just came back to look at this topic

I'm not 'worried' much about the engine, it's just slightly annoying having that engine buzzing in a smooth driving motorway machine. I think I'll go for the 328 as I like torque