Revving too high

[MARKDTN]

Originally Posted by leftybass209

...Engines used to turn at 3500 rpms regularly pre-overdrive. Some say that's how it used to be, but if that was the best way, why did things change?...

Not debating anything you are saying, but here is an interesting observation. If I assume a truck with 4.11 gears, direct transmission, and 265/70/16 tires (671 rev/mile) then the engine turns 2758 revolutions per mile. If I assume a 3.42 rear with 700R4 and the same tires, the engine turns 1606 revolutions per mile in overdrive. That is 58% of the direct transmission. If you rated engine life by total revolutions instead of miles, it may help explain why modern engines last about twice as long than the Gen 1 small blocks-before you take fuel injection into consideration. Also by keeping the RPMs down, you have much less inertia to stop each time the piston changes direction so will help too. Just a few random thoughts.