Console....

Yea or Nay


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    25
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j par

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I really haven't seen a console that I liked in an a body.,. Just kind of wondering how others felt? When I see them I personally think they look like a massive afterthought and would just be too rough and not comfortable in the car...
 
The last duster had a bench seat with a fold-down armrest..
I've had those too, and they're nice. I like bench seats, but I really liked my console. And so sure when you held out the gears and went to the next one
 
I really haven't seen a console that I liked in an a body.,. Just kind of wondering how others felt? When I see them I personally think they look like a massive afterthought and would just be too rough and not comfortable in the car...

Yeah, I really never understood the design of the A body console. Skinny at the back and wide at the front. Plus, no raised area for an arm rest. If they were flipped around they would make more sense. Wide between the seats, narrowing at the shifter.

Exhibit A...
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But, no worse than the console in my Challenger, there is no good place to rest your arm on this...
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Consider some of the competition's offerings...

Impala
lrmp_0806_06_z-1964_chevrolet_impala_ss_convertible-shifter.jpg


GTO
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Chevelle
Console-Assembled.jpg


Mustang
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Galaxie
1964-ford-galaxie-460-enhanced-coupe-lhd.jpg


I guess MOPAR was just worried about going fast!!!
 
I love them, I have a complete setup I'm going to install in my car steering column and all, someone before me already installed bucket seats and it just doesn't seem right without one.
 
I really haven't seen a console that I liked in an a body.,. Just kind of wondering how others felt? When I see them I personally think they look like a massive afterthought and would just be too rough and not comfortable in the car...

BEST PLACE TO KEEP UR pistola , IF U DONT HAVE A HOLSTER AT THE MOMENT ! I likem .
 
My Dart had no console when I bought it. It was optioned for the Center Console with the N85 console mounted Tachometer.
Researched with previous owners, it was removed for racing, and thrown away during a divorce.
Alot of work finding a decent 4 speed console, shifter assy, handle, prepping and painting. Re welding brackets, fitment and getting tops, hardware, even down to the ashtray, which I just recieved (thanks to DavesCuda, he helped provide me with the hard to find items). It took a year from when I decided to bring it back to original (shout out to Gary Rogers).The only thing I want to do is get the better colored woodgrain decals now available.
Overall, like it alot.
It looks and feels complete now.
Before and after pics:
Screenshot_20200703-082131_Video Player.jpg

Screenshot_20200703-082316_Gallery.jpg
 
I put a console in my '70 dart. I loved the way the console looked. Its a heavy useless thing... BUT it looks cool. Its hard to imagine that it weighs as much as it does. I wish it had a provision for an arm rest. Im 6'2" so the arm rest would have to be pretty tall to be useful.
 
The bench seat before seat belt laws... Lots of accidents and deaths were caused by passengers interfering with driver in any car or truck with a bench seat. Separate bucket seats in sport/performance models got the girl friend out from under arm and back over there where she belongs. Full center consoles were purposely designed to be uncomfortable to sit on. That e-body console with slap stick shifter had a short wall on right side to help prevent passengers accidental contact.
The seat belt laws that we once rallied against ( just like todays face mask mandates ) keep the human beans where they belong and allow interior design freedom.
No I don't love the center console in my classic. I could mention other things I don't love about it. I do understand it. It is what it is.
 
I have always liked the look of the factory console. Functionality, not so much. I love the shifter itself, they are super reliable and work great. My biggest gripe is there is nowhere to put a damn soda can in an A body.
 
I like the look of the A-body console. My car came with factory bucket seats but column shift automatic. Converting to floor shift so I could add a console was the first thing I did. Buckets with nothing in between made zero sense to me. I don't usually need the arm rest - I have a habit of keeping my hand on the shifter even though it isn't a stick shift.

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Have a 71 demon that was on the column and shifted that bad boy like a stick. I liked it being there at the wheel as 2 hands at the wheel were better than 1 with the way that I drove it.
Eventually swapped to 4 speed but the 4.56 gear was crazy with that so I went back to auto as times were more consistent at the track but those damn cables always seemed to fail at some point.
My 72 was console shift and it stayed that way till I totaled it.
My 68 fastback has the console and I like it but modified the shifter to the cheetah scs so no issues going to neutral by accident and I like that alot.

20190904_192908.jpg
 
I am one of the few that never liked consoles especially in A-Bodies.
On the other side of the coin, I love them in E-Bodies and '71 and up B-Bodies.......
 
The A body console's are more durable than the B body and E body's, the A body is SMC fiberglass and the B and E are injection molded plastic, I've always had trouble with B's being cracked at the rear top between the seats and the E's warp up in the thin section next to the driver. The A body console is my favorite of the 3.
 
I like the looks of the console because it reminds me of my barracuda in my youth. However it is pretty useless. I would like a couple of cup holders and a padded armrest added to mine in a non destructive manner so I could remove it. Maybe take the lid off and build something that fits in the storage area for anchoring? Anybody done that?

I don’t know how I kept from spilling my beers in my youth.....
 
Console!
(I need to put my carpet back on. Wonder what I did with it?)
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I like the look of the A-body console. My car came with factory bucket seats but column shift automatic. Converting to floor shift so I could add a console was the first thing I did. Buckets with nothing in between made zero sense to me. I don't usually need the arm rest - I have a habit of keeping my hand on the shifter even though it isn't a stick shift.

View attachment 1715555446

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I suppose you figured out that front bracket is upside down.
 
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