As some of you know, I am currently searching for a first gen. The ideal truck would be a 4x4 reg cab single wheel that I can transfer the body off of my 75' and put it on the donor truck. This appears to be much easier than swapping a motor and trans into the 75'. That said, I have been considering a two wheel drive in the interest of making a fuel economy machine as I don't have to have a 4x4.
The first question of the moment is this: is it possible to install 3.08s into a 3.54 or a 4.10 housing or would the entire axle have to be swapped? How available are 3.08s?
A diesel mechanic friend of mine thinks that it should be possible to get close to thirty mpg if I took a 2wd reg. cab 5spd and put 3.08s in it.
What do you guys think?