I used a '72 Chevy Nova. It had 3.36 gears from a 3spd manual trans Chev 350 car. It virtually bolted in. The springs on the truck are too narrow, but I actually drove it like that for several years.
It turned 2600 RPM at 60 mph. Turned 3100 at 70 mph. I drove it on a long road trip without overdrive. I got 16 mpg back in 1996. That's with about 26" tall tires.
You could stab the gas at a stoplight and either the Quadrajet 4 barrel or Edelbrock carb, depending on which one I was running at the time would howl. Burning rubber was no problem.
