Collapsible steering column options ?

Calling a collapsible column collapsible is not really accurate. While its true that they can collapse about 2" on the center shaft and 4-6 inches on the housing (both approximations but they are very different) in a straight on crush, they're real benefit is that the center shaft "collapsing" coupler can break away allowing the column housing and the portion of the center shaft attached to the steering wheel to move to the side or up as the front of the car is crushed thus preventing driver impalement. Safer in the strictest definition of the word, but functionally a shoulder belt is much more effective and more economical. That said a '62 manual column is 38" from the tip of the steering box coupler (when collapsed not extended) to the edge of the turn signal housing where the steering wheel meets it. The OD of the '62 tube is 1.13 and the OD of the collapsing tube is 1.19.

I've never found drum brakes to be lacking in normal driving but don't usually stop as quickly as disk brakes would. But as some have mentioned here, from high speed say 100 plus you only get 1/2 to one full stop on them and they are useless after that until cooled. With disks you can get more than one stop from high speed. How many more than one is dependent on many factors like pad friction material, rotor material, speed of vehicle, caliper clamping force, and on and on.