This is the Taurus steering column complete with shroud and wires attached
This is the column mounted to the modified stock mount. You can see the original Taurus column rear mount which is circled in red.
This is the Taurus column with the shroud, multi-switch and wires removed. |
One of the things I always hated about my Maverick was the lack of adjustment of the steering column. It just never seem to sit at just the right angle. The answer was to install a tilt steering column. I have seen tilt wheel swaps done on hundreds of cars and figured it wouldn't be that hard to do. I didn't want a column that just adjusted at the head of the steering wheel, I wanted a column that the whole thing moved. The donor was a 1986 Ford Taurus.
Wiring was fairly simple. Most of the colored wires were the same for the Maverick and the Taurus. I did need a wiring diagram for both. Let me just say that the Taurus has a HELL of a lot more wires that the Maverick. When I removed the donor column from the Taurus, I also took as much of the wiring harness as I could. Then I graphed the Taurus wires to the matching wires of the Maverick column. I did have a few wires left on the Taurus harness when I was done, but I'll be sure to use them when I add other electronic components.
The Taurus also has what is called a "Multi-Switch". It's a big plastic component that contains the turn signal, Emergency Flasher switch, whippers and bright switches in one unit. I suspect that other Ford vehicles have the same thing.
In order for the Taurus column to fit, I needed to remove the side support for the Maverick column. The was accomplished by drilling out the for spot welds that held on that piece. The front mounting holes are wider apart on the Taurus column than on the Maverick. This requires creating new holes right next to the old ones on the Maverick mount. The Taurus column also has two mounting holes off a hanger in the back. These are about one inch from the Maverick mount so a bracket is required.
All is need now is to install a Mustang II/Pinto rack & pinion steering system and install the linkage. |