dstuff5 Posted September 11, 2015 Report Share Posted September 11, 2015 Does anyone know which tilt steering wheel can be adapted to my 73 Avanti II (non-tilt model) Someone suggested a Pontiac. Any help out there? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warren55 Posted September 11, 2015 Report Share Posted September 11, 2015 I wrote an article for the Avanti magazine a couple years ago about this when I rebuilt mine. They are basically all the same inside, but I never checked much on overall length. I would think anything GM made from about 69 to 79 that had a floor shift would work, but I would look at overall length and the distance from the mount to the steering wheel to make sure it's going to line up. A Google search will give you more info than you want. The Saginaw was used in everything from Jeeps to Javelins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfg Posted September 11, 2015 Report Share Posted September 11, 2015 I have a 1973 Avanti ll parts car (RQB 1967) with a tilt column in good shape which I'd consider selling....but I honestly have no idea what it's worth, and quite frankly don't normally sell parts. Do you want to make an offer on it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dstuff5 Posted September 12, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 12, 2015 Thanks, Since I live in Little Rock, Ar and you in MA I'm afraid the shipping and your time to remove it would be worth more than I could afford. That being said my offer of $100.00 plus shipping would not cover it. Please do not be offended by my offer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RQB1820 Posted September 12, 2015 Report Share Posted September 12, 2015 (edited) I have a 1973 Avanti ll parts car (RQB 1967) with a tilt column in good shape which I'd consider selling....but I honestly have no idea what it's worth, and quite frankly don't normally sell parts. Do you want to make an offer on it? What color is your interior mfg? ........since you opened the door! lol Not interested in the column, but I do need a rear seat bottom cushion as my seat frame must've sat in water for a while and has rusted away badly.... Edited September 12, 2015 by RQB1820 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfg Posted September 12, 2015 Report Share Posted September 12, 2015 dstuff5...I'm not offended by your offer...I figured it would be worth a bit more than that....but not much. The real issue would be the difficulty in moving this Avanti around, (which I sometimes need to do), without steering....as right now it's an engineless 'roller'. Give me some time to think about it,....It's not going anywhere else! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfg Posted September 12, 2015 Report Share Posted September 12, 2015 RQB 1820...I'd describe the leather interior color as 'oxblood'....I think that's what the Avanti people called it....The rearseat backrest has a tear in it...but the lower cushion is OK (I think.) I removed most of the interior from this car when I purchased it... as the car sits out.....I stored most of it in my cellar....over ten years ago!!!!! (No front seats) PS....If I remember correctly, rear seat lower cushions in 'later' Avantis like this '73 do not have the 'spring & wire' seat frame as, say, a Studebaker Avanti would have......the leather upholstery, I believe, was put over a shaped 'foam' material of some sort. My '83 and my '85 are made the same way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RQB1820 Posted September 12, 2015 Report Share Posted September 12, 2015 (edited) PS....If I remember correctly, rear seat lower cushions in 'later' Avantis like this '73 do not have the 'spring & wire' seat frame as, say, a Studebaker Avanti would have......the leather upholstery, I believe, was put over a shaped 'foam' material of some sort.... Well, if it'll fit, I'm not going to be picky about something nobody is likely to sit on anyway! haha... Interesting the changes from year to year - wonder why they decided to switch if indeed yours is all foam and no spring/frame. I like that oxblood color and had thought about going to it along with two-tone black/oxblood. Can you post some pics? Thanks! Edited September 12, 2015 by RQB1820 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunslinger Posted September 12, 2015 Report Share Posted September 12, 2015 In the early '70s Avanti Motors needed to find a way to reduce the thickness of the rear seat due to lost headroom resulting from power sunroof installations. About an inch of headroom was lost, and to make the bottom cushion thinner caused the seat to bottom out with springs. Avanti Motors found a company whose name I can't remember that had just developed a product they called "pneumacel" though that may be misspelled. They were looking to find a customer to sell it to and Avanti was their first customer. Using pneumacel allowed for a thinner rear seat cushion that not only didn't compress to the point of bottoming out it also weighed far less than the original coil spring and foam design. To look at the inside of the seatback and cushion it looks like blown spaghetti noodles but it definitely does the job. When I bought the Recaro bucket seats from a parted out Avanti I also picked up the pneumacel rear seat and after being reupholstered installed them all in my '70. More rear headroom, less weight in the car...what's not to like? A win-win all the way around. I have an engineering publication with story of pneumacel and Avanti Motors...just not handy at the moment to make sure of all of the details. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfg Posted September 12, 2015 Report Share Posted September 12, 2015 1820.....I'll dig that seat out as soon as I can....but, naturally, it's at the bottom of a rather large 'collection'!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RQB1820 Posted September 12, 2015 Report Share Posted September 12, 2015 Sorry to have hijacked this thread dstuff5 Very cool historical story Gunslinger. I had similar issues with a sunroof'd 928 I had... I'm 6'6" and my head always rubbed the roof on that one. lol I ended up letting my daughter drive it for a couple years. Thanks mfg. I'll likely need a lot more parts too, if you're willing to part with more just let me know. I appreciate it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warren55 Posted September 12, 2015 Report Share Posted September 12, 2015 Hey Ed, while you're at it I could use your mirrors and maybe the wiper switch, and,.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfg Posted September 12, 2015 Report Share Posted September 12, 2015 Hey Ed, while you're at it I could use your mirrors and maybe the wiper switch, and,.... Sorry warren...the outside mirrors were missing when I got the car.....and the wiper switch has already been 'liberated'!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gypzy Posted September 12, 2015 Report Share Posted September 12, 2015 I am restoring a 63 R1 Avanti. So there are parts for sale, like mirrors, transmission, and front seats. Is there a parts for sale page? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Avanti83 Posted September 12, 2015 Report Share Posted September 12, 2015 Hey Ed, while you're at it I could use your mirrors and maybe the wiper switch, and,.... Warren, I don't remember the year of your Avanti but a lot of the II's used AMC mirrors. They are usually available on Ebay although someone else will need to give you the years and model of AMC product that fit. Cost is all over the map. I adapted a set of Camaro mirrors to my 74 which are body color and, I think, look a lot better. I think 70-81 are the ones I used. Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunslinger Posted September 12, 2015 Report Share Posted September 12, 2015 Avanti Motors did use AMC mirrors for a number of years. Some time back I found a vendor that catered to the AMC crowd and had repops of that mirror, but I do remember they were E-X-P-E-N-S-I-V-E! I don't remember the vendor but a web search should come up with at least one. I ended up buying the repop Avanti mirrors sold by Studebaker International for my '70...kinda paying homage to its roots. At least that's my story and I'm sticking to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warren55 Posted September 12, 2015 Report Share Posted September 12, 2015 Yeah, I did a bunch of research on it a year or so ago. They are AMC mirrors like those used on Javelin's, but there are two different types. I think the base is bigger on one. I just about bought some on eBay last year, but they turned out to be the different base. Yes, the repops are expensive! Mine have some pitting in the chrome and the passenger's side mirror keeps dropping down every time the door is closed. It's one of those things that's not a high priority but I'd like to get some better ones at some point. Right now the biggest thing on my to do list is get the rear window sealed. I found out a couple weeks ago at the regional meet that it leaks like a chicken wire canoe. I'm hoping a glass shop can inject some sealant in there and avoid having to remove the rear window! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silverstude Posted September 12, 2015 Report Share Posted September 12, 2015 Years ago, ( and this is from the memory banks, so there may be some variances) I used a 69 Chevy panel truck column. Exact same length and steering box connector as RQB's . There was something about using a model that did not have a column shifter. I believe you can purchase the same column now, from hot rod shops. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRitz Posted September 12, 2015 Report Share Posted September 12, 2015 Perhaps one of these would work.....http://www.flamingriver.com/index.php/products/c0002 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ron@crall.com Posted November 17, 2015 Report Share Posted November 17, 2015 I have a 71 that I am restoring and it has a tilt column but it has been butchered. Looking for an early non-tilt column if anyone has one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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