| LIFE OF A GT |
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 | |  | February 9, 2010 - I wanted to do an ergonomics check, so I installed the driver's seat to see how everything was working out.
The gas pedal was held in place by a vice grip, the brake pedal return spring kept that in the appropriate place and the steering column was clamped on. The initial fit showed that the steering wheel sits very low. That's odd, given that my various collection of test wheels are all significantly smaller than the original. When I checked the MG column against the Miata one, I realized the difference was due to the bracketry on the column. With that taken into account (as seen here), the wheel was just about perfect. It needs to come a bit closer to the driver to be ideal, but that's easy.
The shifter is perfectly placed and everything feels good. I think it'll be a good driver. Don't mind the steering wheel, that's just one of the testing units. Although it's not exactly offensive.
entry 279 - tags: ergonomics, steering | | |  | February 14, 2010 - I wanted to see how the Miata steering column would sit with the dash.
My concern was that the location of the column would leave bare metal exposed. Well, that's not a problem. With the length of the unmodified Miata column, the standard column shroud is an almost perfect fit! I'll have to trim the bottom a bit to clear the shape of the dash, but that's easy. I'd also been worried the Miata parts wouldn't match the MG interior, but I think it's going to blend in really well.
In the picture, it looks as if it's hiding one of the gauges a bit. It doesn't look that way in person, but this is a 1999-05 shroud. I can also use from from a 1990-97 model, which is a little bit more square and might give a little more clearance.
The steering wheel will need to be a bit of a deep dish style to match the MG distances. But that's easy to do later as I fine-tune the ergonomics.
entry 283 - tags: ergonomics, steering column | | |  | November 23, 2010 - Lots of miscellaneous work on the car so far today.
I welded in a dead pedal to make life a little more comfortable and to aid in driver retention under enthusiastic conditions. The battery box cover that goes under the rear seat got modified to clear the new bump for the rear axle - that's it in the picture, showing shiny wet paint on the new section. I also removed the parking brake cables for the time being so I can spend more time scratching my head on how to make it work, and built a tie-down for the battery.
Lots of small jobs, most of them rewarding and all leading towards a car that can be used for more than idling up and down the block!
entry 466 - tags: packaging, battery, ergonomics | | |
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