Dingle to Cliffs to Galway ?

Last summer, we left Dingle at 9:15, stopped at Bunratty for a 2.5 hours, drove to the Cliffs spent an hour or so there and pulled in to Galway around 7:15. A long day but so much fun and very doable

Agreed. It's a long and tiring day but you can do it if you get an early start. One thing to bear in mind is that the view from the cliffs is extremely weather-dependent. If the weather doesn't cooperate, it's do-able to drive back from Galway one evening, especially in the summer. I drove down from Galway to see the cliffs at sunset and it was beautiful; I combined it with dinner in Lisdoonvarna.

Just curious...We are basically doing the same drive but to LaHinch and then the cliffs and then Galway. Would taking the ferry in Tarbert shave off some driving time? Don't mean to hijack your thread!

Greetings from Ireland
I'm one of the worlds biggest advocates of NOT taking the Tarbert Ferry and going to the cliffs from Dingle via Adara and the Limerick bypass Tunnel.
Better road, better attractions, better that you choose it in my opinion :)
Le meas/with respect
Stephen McPhilemy
Rick Steves Ireland tour-guide
Dingle, Derry & Dublin

ps I may have taken this journey more than any other Irish citizen - 150 times and counting

So by not taking the Tarbert ferry, what kind of time does that add

Actually, taking the ferry probably adds time to the journey, so if your goal is to just "get there" the quickest way possible then the motorway via Limerick is indeed the preferred route.
That said, we preferred the ferry and the leisurely drive up the coast thru Kilrush and Kilkee (and Lahinch) for the scenery. Probably added an extra hour to our drive but it was worth it for us.