The M46 was installed in a car that weighs a good 500lbs more than the 122 and around 300 more than a 140--so they lowered (by a lot) 1st gear to get the 240 moving and made the diff ratio longer for lower revs on the highway--a little bit on early 240's (3.91) and later a lot (3.31) for mpg's. One thing I've always loved about the M40/41 is the relatively long first gear -- not so great for doing burnouts but much more comfortable for driving in traffic. Seems like a good time to consider converting to a disc brake rear from an 1800E so that you can then fit the more moderate gears from a 240 or 260 --the choices would range from the 3.31 to 3.54 to 3.70 to 3.90 -- The much longer ratios than the 4.10 you now have will make the car less lively in the upper gears but give you more flexibility in the lower gears -- the 3.7 would make a very noticeable difference but should allow you to drive the top gear without too much shifting in and out of OD on the hills. Redoing a rear with used parts is very doable if you have the know how. You can't really do anything about the long jump from 1st to 2nd. The other tact would be to just forget about 1st except for starts on a grade--use 2nd-OD--sort of like the 4-speed truck transmissions with the stump puller 1st. -- Dave