Thread: Camaro Column to Floor Shift Conversion

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Well the thread was dormant for over two weeks and close to my problem so I don't think I hijacked it much. Anyway I can answer Brian's question and I am surprised to be able to help him in any way since he is usually way ahead of me. I finally got my brake lines double flared and soon will have a 3.55 rear to go with my new 700R4 trans, so maybe in a year of so I can drive up and visit Brian. Well anyway to answer his question, Speedway makes a nice sleeve to cover the hole in the column when you remove the column shifter: PN 910-32600, $21.95 as well as a wiring pigtail kit PN 910-64039, $29.95. That is pertinant to the original thread topic of converting a column to a floor shift. However, I am not sure whether the sleeve removes the tilt ability of the column, but if it is too long maybe it can be trimmed to cover the hole without covering the tilt joint? My column does not have the tilt feature, but then again I don't have the column shifter either so no need to cover a hole there. Thanks again to 1stGenCamaro for offering to look at his column, but if he has a stick shift the column may not be the same as the automatic version???? On my old '93 LeBaron with a similar column lock I had to put the shifter into park before the starter could be used and it looks to me that that that lever at the bottom of the Camaro column must hook into the shifter somehow. My next move will be to have a chat with the folks at Lokar. Maybe the automatic shifter of 1stGenCamaro's friend is the thing to look at?? I have enjoyed Brian's pictures of his hood and deuce shell as well as the neat roll pan he worked out! Maybe with some experts tuned in I can now ask a really dumb question. I did not mark the column when I took off the wheel and the turn-signal return plate and now I wonder how to reorient the return plate relative to the center position of the wheel. I haven't messed with a steering wheel since my old '47 Ford back in the '50s so I just assumed I could reposition the wheel on the splines when I buy a new wheel and orient it according to the position of the front wheels, BUT if I position the return plate wrong I will also have to take the whole top of the column off again when I orient the wheel?? The very helpful guy at AUTO ZONE said that the signal return plate only goes in one way but so far I don't see how, I should have marked the spline position with a marking pen before I took it off. So Brian when you get around to it make sure you mark the spline position of both the wheel and the position of the splined turn-signal return disk as well. Maybe I am overlooking something simple, but I do not know how to get the signal-return plate oriented. Maybe there is no problem and all I have to worry about is making sure the wheels are straight and the steering wheel is straight when I hook up the d-shaft to the Vega box. Any helpful comments will be greatly appreciated even though this is surely a dumb question!

Don Shillady
Retired Scientist/teen rodder