After the position of the four mounting holes has been determined, the firewall is cut with a 3-inch hole saw to make room for the steering column. Look closely and you'll see that the upper mounting holes are marked just below the saw blade.
If you measure correctly, like David did, the coupler will line up correctly with the steering column. As we forewarned a couple of photos ago, the coupler's two lower mounting holes extend below the firewall, so a bracket will have to be made.
From underneath, it's easier to see that about half the part extends below the firewall. Dave is thinking about offering the product in two or three different lengths, which would help solve that problem.
For now, the solution is an angle bracket built to tie the bottom of the coupler to the floorboard from underneath. Notice that the proportioning valve and brake lines were relocated to the bracket, which gets them out of sight and helps clean up the firewall.
There isn't a lot of daylight between the lower shaft and the header, but compare this setup requiring only three U-joints, to the extreme U-joint angles of the previous setup.
Improvements to the interior are especially noticeable with the dash out of the way. A piece of rectangular tubing with a raised notch extends the length of the dash to support the column.
The triangular Lokar column cable shift linkage bracket, clamps, and neutral safety switch are clearly visible from this bug's-eye vantage point, but are invisible from normal view.
When the job was done, the improvements to the interior of Ron's sedan were huge. The brake swing pedal is still in place but has been curved to the left to bring the brake closer to the center. The accelerator pedal has been relocated a few inches to the left.Not only do the new positions for the steering wheel, brake pedal, and gas pedal look a lot better, they make the car a lot more comfortable, and a lot more fun to drive.