Gears would be faster and cheaper, as long as the rest of the axle is in good condition. In that case you can fit almost any gear in to it as long as its from a similar model year. It depends on the size of the rear end to, not just the ratio. For instance my '05 has a 3.55 gear ratio and the size is 8.8", they also offered a 9" rear end during the same year. Find out the size of your rear end and that'll help you figure out what ratio you can fit in there.