Classic Corvette Interior - Reconsidering Your Line In The Sand

Here's the original steering column where the mounting bracket used to be welded. We've got small divots where the welds were, but they're minor. We haven't burned any bridges here, as the mounting bracket could always be rewelded in the same spots someday if you wanted to.

We won't, however, try to weld our mild steel mounting bracket to our new stainless steel tilt column. Instead, we'll screw it in place with No. 10-32 screws, external tooth lock washers, and Loc-tite. We measured and laid out the mounting bracket in the same location as it was on the original column. We then did a little bodywork on the original button welds of the bracket, drilled three new holes just for the screws, and tapped the threads in the column. Don't forget to slide the dash cluster escutcheon onto the column before installing the bracket.

This is the finished column painted, the mounting bracket installed, and the mounting pads in place on the bracket. This new tilt steering column will now bolt up the same way as the original column, with the same mounting bracket as the original column.

Mission accomplished, as the new Flaming River tilt steering column looks factory-installed, with the dash cluster escutcheon fitting over the mast jacket the same way it did on the original column. We chose the paintable "mill finish" stainless column as opposed to the polished one, thinking the polished stainless might be more appropriate in a street-rod application.

This is Flaming River's "waterfall" steering wheel, which is nothing short of awesome. It has a comfortable grip, just enough bling with its polished spokes, and a center horn button that matches the dash knobs of our '67 Corvette, almost as if it was meant to be.

Part of the ambience in the cockpit of a classic Corvette comes from the music that fills the cabin, and this is what we turned to: the Custom Autosound Corvette USA-6 with C/D controller and optional iPod interface. Custom Autosound's radios fit Corvette dashboards with zero modifications necessary, which is one reason we chose it.

We decided to run the iPod cord to the (non-smoker's) ashtray for convenience. All he has to do is open the ashtray door, connect his iPod, and enjoy hours and hours of music.

This is Custom Autosound's 60-watt dual dash speaker as it's installed under the dash in the stock speaker location. Custom Autosound has different fitments for factory air-conditioned cars as opposed to non-air cars.

The big news is Custom Autosound's answer to kick-panel speakers. The company has its own midyear Corvette kick panels with the speakers built in (KCV63/67). Here, we're test-fitting them before we paint them to match the rest of the interior.

They look great once installed, fit beautifully, and look like they belong. With these two kick-panel speakers and the dual-speaker in the dash, the house now rocks. The camera flash shows the speaker beneath the kick-panel mesh, which is not visible normally.

The finished project looks great. It's not over the top, but fresh, tasteful, and nicely updated. We increased the comfort level and upgraded the technology but didn't remove the classic aura of this beauty. Most importantly, everything looks at home in the overall package.