Gearbox
Gearboxes are devices used to change the speed, torque, or direction of rotation in a machine.
Direction
The direction of the gearbox component determines whether the gear increases or decreases speed. Using the blue triangle visible on the model as a guide, pointing the triangle "towards the engine" will increase speed while reducing torque, and pointing the arrow "away from the engine" will reduce speed while providing more torque. Gear reductions are frequently used in cars during lower gears.
The exact multipliers for speed and torque are:
| Ratio | Speed | Torque |
|---|---|---|
| -1:1 | x-1.0 | x1.0 |
| 1:1 | x1.0 | x1.0 |
| 6:5 | x1.2 | x0.83 |
| 3:2 | x1.5 | x0.67 |
| 9:5 | x1.8 | x0.56 |
| 2:1 | x2.0 | x0.50 |
| 5:2 | x2.5 | x0.40 |
| 3:1 | x3.0 | x0.33 |
Sizes
There are four different sizes for gearboxes: 1x1, 3x3x2, 5x5x3, and 1x2x2.
All gearbox types, however, share the same behaviour. It used to be the case that a large gearbox was required for especially powerful vehicles, although this is no longer the case. You can safely use a 1x1x1 gearbox for anything.
The 1x2x2 gearbox is deprecated and can no longer be found in the inventory, although it is still usable and frequently found on older vehicles.
Misconceptions
Power loss: Gearboxes do not lose 5% of all power that runs through them. They lose none.
Speed: Gearboxes do not make every vehicle faster. Sometimes, you might need to chose a slower gear. The primary limit for vehicle speed is engine power.
Fastest ratio: The strongest ratio is 3:1, although many engines cannot output enough power to sustain this. If you aren't sure which ratio to use, try all of them.