Banpei's two door panda Trueno from Japan

[banpei]

This happened today:

The Dutch people over here probably recognize the place and people in the photo.
For non-Dutch people, the people in the photo are from the Dutch Autoweek car magazine. They have this Youtube feature of putting cars on a rolling road and comparing how much it differs from the official ratings by the manufacturer. I sent in the Trueno nearly two years ago, never heard anything, but got an invitation a few weeks ago

I explained to them I found it very interesting to learn how much my nearly stock engine makes. In Japan it was rated at 130PS, but the test was unstressed (without waterpump, AC, PS, alternator, etc). European cars with a catalytic converter and MAP were rated at 116hp. So, I was hoping it would be more than that. Also, having the Fujitsubo exhaust would probably help a bit.

The results:

122hp with a nearly linear graph!

As I had to drive about 45 minutes to the dyno this morning, I decided to make a stop and swap out the 330mm steering wheel for the original. I really can't see anything on the instrument cluster as the rim of the steering wheel is in my view. I found a cheap 350mm steering wheel that I will pick up this weekend and I'll probably put the Luisi up for sale again.

[decryphe]

That's some really good results, and a really fun experience!

[banpei]

Yes, that was definitely a fun experience!

Today I drove the Trueno to a British car autojumble, and it was great to see the Trueno in good company when I came back:

I noticed Jensen just swapped the wipers to the other side for their LHD cars and reversed the motor. That Interceptor must have terrible visibility for the driver with this layout!

Yesterday I also bought a cheap steering wheel to test the visibility on the gauge cluster:

After the drive to the autojumble, I actually got quite fond of this steering wheel. It's got a lovely feel for both 10-to-2 and 9-to-3. As you can see, it didn't come with a horn button, and the Luisi button didn't fit (inner diameter is slightly smaller). Also, the bolt holes aren't recessed, so I have to find a horn that fits and flat bolts.
The seller sold it as 35cm, but actually it's 34cm. The visibility isn't terrible, but 35cm would be the best for an AE86. I'll keep this steering wheel for now and see if I like it in the long run.

I also worked on the seat belt locks today. A comparison between the brown and blue seat belt locks:

As you can see, the blue ones are deteriorating badly. Also the brown ones have some wear, but they don't crumble to (sharp) pieces yet. No wonder my daughter cut herself on them!

I painted the outer sleeves with blue paint and then moved the inside (belt plus lock) from the old to the new sleeves:

I must say this certainly is a huge improvement in safety!