Looks like a beginners arc weld class. Probably trying to not set the car on fire while avoiding pulling the dash or removing wires. You'd have to examine the actual cars- pushbuttons had lots of differences to the production models. Maybe the various Parts Manuals would show something (there are 4 different in the POCA Archives).
Inside the steering shaft assembly is a plastic bushing that often cracks/ wears out so there's another thing to check & maybe replace with metal. And there's a thin poly shim inside the collapsible coupling under the dash that's always missing, so the steering is always a bit loose. Drilling clear thru for a cotter pin fixes the looseness and since cotters are mild steel, will shear in a big enough collision so the OEM safety aspect more or less remains.