I just bought at 1987 pickup. Sits on 33's with a 3 inch suspension and 3 inch body. Its super slow and wont hardly get over 55 mph. would 4.88 be fine or do I need more?

 

4.88's are recommended...if you plan on going beyond 33's do it once and get 5.29's

 

depends on a couple of things

1) is it your daily driver or just a play toy? if you dont DD it, go 5.29s.. even if you do DD it, over geared wont kill you. i had 5.29s on 31s for a while on my DD'ed rig.
2) you you plan on going bigger tires? if you do, go 5.29s
3) are you going to SAS it? if not, you can find 4.88s that came stock in some rigs.

 

what kind of tire? should be able to do 65 on 33s no problem. 4.88 is the proper gear for that size tho.

 

I appreciate it. Will either gear make a difference on my gas mileage? because it is going to be my daily driver.

 

On my '85, I got better MPG w/ 5.29s and 33s than w/ 4.88s, but the speedometer is more accurate w/ 4.88s. Also I found 4.88s are more comfortable driving on longer road trips than the 5.29s. Winding out at 3300-3500 RPM for hour after hour gets tiring with the added noise and vibration.

 

Do you guys know what trucks came standard with 4.88s?

How do you check at a boneyard if a third is in good shape?

 

what was the difference in gas mileage between the 5.29s and 4.88s?

 

The difference may or may not be worth mentioning. It just depends on too many factors.
Is yours a 5 speed or auto?

 

I got ya. its a 5 speed

 

With 33's and a 3 in suspension get rid of the BL. If you stay with 33's do the 4.88.

 

Yea i was thinkin about gettin rid of the body lift we 33's I think it'd look better. what yall think?

 

I run 4.88 v6 diffs with 35's. No problems. I pull a kayak and aluminum boat frequently. 3000 rpm at highway speeds 70-75.