New guy with a steering wheel/column question - 2015 BDR

[intofx]

Just bought a "new-to-me" 2015 Backdraft with the supercharged 5.0 Coyote engine. As you might expect, it's completely insane. LOL... I've always wanted one and was knee-deep in my car search but in CA registration can be an issue so I had all but written off finding exactly what I wanted. As fate would have it, exactly what I wanted popped up on CL 10 minutes from my house... ALREADY SB-100 registered. What were the chances? It was meant to be. I digress...

So I've searched around and don't seem to see the question/answer anywhere. I feel like the steering wheel (Sparco in my case) is a bit too high as it obstructs my view a bit (I'm 5'10). At first, I thought that maybe my car was built for a tall guy but from the pics I see of other cars, all of them seem to be like this. I can certainly raise the seat a little to effectively "lower" the wheel but it also occurs to me that the distance between the turn signal arm and the back of the wheel is a bit excessive. IMHO, moving the wheel towards the dash would be a great improvement for both drivability and visibility as it would drop the wheel closer to the dash. Has anyone done this? If so, is there a proven steering wheel boss that would eliminate that distance by about 2.5 inches? I also suppose that I could buy a "flatter" wheel to further aid the issue... Thoughts?

Thanks in advance. I look forward to learning a lot about my car here!

[twobjshelbys]

Your shoulder harnesses are dangerous. The drivers side should be relocated to a cross bar that mounts on the roll bar so the high point is above your shoulders. There isn't much that can be done with the passenger side except to not use them. What you have is a calculated risk. In the event of a front or rear end collision the forward motion will force you forward in your seat and since the shoulder harnesses are lower than your shoulders, push you downward and will likely result in spinal compression.

For the passenger side the shoulder harnesses will keep you upright and in the absence of a roll bar, your passenger's head and shoulders, er, well, are the roll bar.... My wife refused to ride in the car for this reason. Truth be said, rollover accidents in a Cobra are not tolerated well by either passenger or driver, but the compression of the low mounted harnesses can be avoided...

[Cashburn]

First get a wheel with less dish. Then if you want to go further, machine the hub and retap the threads.

[bobcowan]

The steering column is attached at two places: under the dash, and the side of the foot box.

You really can't lower the mount under the dash without some cutting and welding.

But, you can raise the other end a little bit simply by drilling a new hole. This - of course - will change the angle, and move the steering wheel closer to the dash.

Be very careful about how much you move that mount though. There isn't a lot of space between the steering U-joint and the valve cover.

[intofx]

Originally Posted by Cashburn

First get a wheel with less dish. Then if you want to go further, machine the hub and retap the threads.

Thanks, everyone for the welcome suggestions regarding the seating position (and seatbelts).

Cashburn, we had the same thought. In addition to raising the seat a little (MUCH BETTER), I also ordered a flatter MOMO wheel - should be here in the next day or two... I think that will make the driving position and sightlines perfect.