Hello fellow Ford fans.....I was just pondering something..... .....My '71 still has the fuel tank in the cab, I've been wanting to remove it to have more room in order to replace the bench seat. From what I've been reading, you don't gain that much, if any, room. Could the steering wheel column be shortened somehow? There's quite a gap between the top of the steering wheel and the top of the dash. (I have no dash pad, I removed it and I liked the white metal look) Any ideas???
The only way to shorten the column is to cut and splice the column housing, shift tube and steering shaft. Not impossible but does require some welding/fab skills. You didn't say if it was an automatic, manual column shift or floor shift? Ididit sells custom columns but typically for automatic or floor shift applications. You could also swap in a '79 tilt column. http://www.fordification.com/tech/tilt.htm There is some adjustment, but not much, in the bracket that mounts the column to the dash. However, the steering shaft to rag joint to steering box is the limiting factor.
Randy
1970 F100 Sport Custom Limited LWB, 302cid, 3 on the tree. NO A/C, NO P/S, NO P/B. Currently in 1000 pcs while rebuilding. Project thread: http://www.fordification.com/forum/view ... 22&t=59995 Plan: 351w, C4, LSD, pwr front disc, p/s, a/c, bucket seats, new interior and paint.
1987 F-150 XLT Lariat, 5.0/C6 auto.
It is an C6 automatic, column shift.....is the '79 tilt column the same length? Or is it the fact that it can be tilted good enough to give you a little more room?
.....My '71 still has the fuel tank in the cab, I've been wanting to remove it to have more room in order to replace the bench seat. From what I've been reading, you don't gain that much, if any, room. Could the steering wheel column be shortened somehow? There's quite a gap between the top of the steering wheel and the top of the dash. (I have no dash pad, I removed it and I liked the white metal look) 
Any ideas???
