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Berny Herrera

@rotor_bern

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THE 200 PS LADYBUG

What you’re looking at was never meant to be this unhinged.

The Subaru 360 began life as one of Japan’s smallest and simplest cars light, fragile, and built for postwar practicality. But somewhere along the way, this tiny machine was pulled far from its original purpose.

Now the little Tentōmushi carries something far more striking behind it.....

A turbocharged rotary.
Roughly 200 PS.
And a presence no Subaru 360 was ever supposed to have.

BEFORE IT BECAME A MONSTER

Long before the boost, pipes, and the madness, the Subaru 360 was Subaru’s first mass produced automobile.

Introduced in the late 50's , it was a kei class people’s car powered by a tiny rear mounted 356cc air cooled two-stroke twin. (Already a strange engine in a car) Lightweight, economical, and almost toy like in appearance, it earned the nickname Tentōmushi aka the Ladybug.

It wasn’t built to intimidate.
It was built to be a working class car in the era .
Which makes what it became even more impressive.

MORE THAN A SWAP

This wasn’t just an engine change. It was a complete transformation.

The body was opened up, the structure reworked, and the chassis adapted to live around a drivetrain it was never meant to contain. Reinforcement, packaging changes, and a radically altered rear section turned this once humble Subaru into a machine that feels closer to an experiment than a commuter car.

That’s what makes it unforgettable.
It still looks odd.
Still looks tiny.
Still looks harmless.

But inside lurks a formidable force
with a chassis 1/4 of the weight of most
Modern passenger cars.

A postwar people’s car, rewritten into a rotary fed fever dream..

#Subaru360 #13BRotary #RotaryTurbo #JDMHistory #GoukiArchive

THE HEART TRANSPLANT

The original two stroke oil burning soul was erased.
In its place sits a turbocharged Mazda 13B rotary, reportedly derived from the FC3S RX-7 a powerplant completely out of its element with the body surrounding it.

The article describes a package producing around 200 PS in a chassis weighing roughly 500 kg. That alone is enough to make this thing feel unnatural.

A machine once defined by modesty and economy was turned into something

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The roll out of some amazing Mazda Motorsport history for the demonstration sessions at Mazda Fan Festa 2026! 😎🤩😎🤩😎
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#Mazda #MazdaFanFesta #787B #4rotor #RX7

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55, 18 & 202 Mazda 787B’s on display at Mazda Fan Festa 2026!!!
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#mazda #787B #r26B #4rotor #mazdafanfesta

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Mazda 787B - 202 doing some laps in preparation for #MazdaFanFesta 2026! 💪💪💪💪
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#Mazda #787B #R26B #4rotor

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What an absolute hoot driving @hideyuki.kubota.10 12A PP powered Oscar SK90 at Mazda Fan Festa 2026 in the Demonstration Runs. 🙌🙌🙌
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#mazdafanfesta #mazda #oscarsk90 #rotaryengine #zoomzoom

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What majestic pieces of Mazda Motorsport history! 😎😎😎😎
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….that I got to circulate Fuji Speedway with at Mazda Fan Festa 2026!
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#mazdafanfesta #mazda #787B #792P #oscarsk90

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RE AMEMIYA - BEFORE 300 KM/H
And Before the Rotary Empire

1981 | The Early Rotary Years

(1981 OPTION Magazine cover)

Before the 300 km/h barrier was broken, before the legendary race machines, RE Amemiya was already challenging the limits of Mazda's rotary engine.

Featured Cover of OPTION's December 1981 issue, this striking SA22C Savanna RX-7 represented an era of experimentation, when Japan's earliest tuning pioneers were beginning to redefine what these machines could achieve.

(81' Tuning Car , Best Catalog)
THE EARLY 12A TURBO

Technical photographs
Beneath its tasteful period red, white, and blue exterior sat a turbocharged

12A rotary, with boost increased from 0.45 to 0.6 kg/cm² (approximately 8.5 psi). Additional modifications included Weber carburetion, dual CDI ignition units, and a lightweight flywheel.

The body received Pantera style overfenders, aluminum side skirts, a custom front spoiler, recessed Marchal lighting, and a large rear wing.

Gold Volk mesh wheels wrapped in Pirelli P7 tires completed the period look, while extensive interior stripping reduced unnecessary weight.

THE ROAD TO 300 KM/H

Front and side views of the SA22C
By late 1981, RE Amemiya was already making its presence known in Japan's growing top speed scene.

OPTION's December 1981 rankings documented two distinct RE Amemiya 13B configurations: a peripheral-port RX-7 recording 258.06 km/h,

alongside a side-port turbo RX-7 achieving 254.40 km/h.

The workshop was already exploring different approaches to rotary performance, from aggressive port development to forced induction.

Just a few years later, in January 1985, RE Amemiya would break the 300 km/h barrier with a 13B twin-turbo SA22C, achieving 307.42 km/h.

The groundwork had already been laid.

THE MAN BEHIND RE AMEMIYA
Isami Amemiya, photographed at age 35 (1981)

ISAMI AMEMIYA (雨宮勇美)
Born March 3, 1946, in Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan.
Long before becoming one of rotary tuning's most recognizable figures, Amemiya began his career in automotive bodywork and painting.

In 1976, he established Amemiya Jidosha in Tokyo, combining his experience in fabrication with an obsession for the rotary engine.
Photographed he

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We had such a good time catching up with our Mazda family from many corners of the world who made it along to #MazdaFanFesta 2026
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#mazda #rotaryengine #mazdafamily #zoomzoom

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SEVENSTOCK 28
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DATE
Saturday, November 14, 2026
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LOCATION
UTI - Universal Technical Institute
9494 Haven Ave,
Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730
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#sevenstock #7stock #rotaryengine #wankel #mazda

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👑 Mazda Rotary Racing Royalty at Mazda Fan Festa 2026 👑
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#mazda #rotaryengine #mazdafanfesta #rx3 #rx7

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