Welcome to DriftInJapan.com

For Sale - Cefiro Drift Car

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 12:23:00 +0000

Hi Folks!

I'm selling my beloved black Nissan Cefiro Ebisu drift taxi!

It's been an awesome car for me over the last 4 years but have decided to part with her and get something else.

I've always had a sweet spot for the 180sx so that's what I'm planning on getting next. So to make room for it, the Ceffy has to go!

It's ideal for someone coming over here to Japan and wants a cheap drift car for Ebisu drit matsuri or for a practice car while living/visiting here.

Registering and even exporting the car is possible but it's recommended you use it as a drift/circuit only car here in Japan. Storage at Ebisu can be arranged too.

Here are the specs:

1990 (91?) Cefiro
RB20 DET
Factory Manual 5 spd
Less than 100,000kms

Mods

Nismo 2-way LSD (overhauled in Nov 2009)
Coilovers (Tein Front - JIC rear)
Heavy-duty clutch
Bride bucket seats x 2
MOMO steering wheel
boost guage
Exhaust (cat-less)
Air filter (apexi?)
Front tower bar
Air-con removed

Good points

Super reliable - starts first time, every time. Engine and ecu are stock so no dodgy tuning to worry about screwing up.

The car is already at Ebisu circuit - if you want to do drifting while in Japan, you can't beat Ebisu circuit. This car lives at Ebisu so you don't have to worry about getting a car from auctions and getting it sent here.

It's got all the drift bits you need - it's not a D1 spec car, but it has all the parts you need to have fun drifting - LSD, bucket seats, coilovers.... and they're not broken!

Bad points

Exterior drift battle scars - The body has seen better days. Bumpers have been pushed, paint has been traded...and it's faded on the bonnet and front guards. It's definitely not a show car - but there's no major panel damage either...miraculously!

Speedometer doesn't work. The speedo broke about 18 months ago at 75,000 kms. Since I only drive it at the track, I'd say there hasn't been too many extra km's put on the clock...but you can't check your speed doing 3rd/4th gear entries anymore!

There are a few more things as you can expect from a 20 year old car..but nothing that can stop you having fun and drifting well.

Video in Action

Here it is in front of Dave's FC rx7 at Ebisu north course last December...

Price

￥290,000 ono (approx. AU $3,770 or US $3,190)

You can pay online via bank wire transfer, paypal or with cash when you're here.

There's nothing more to pay. This is a "get in and go" drift car that you can rely on, ready and waiting for you at Ebisu circuit.

Awesome Matsuri car!

It's perfect for anyone coming to Ebisu circuit for drift matsuri or who wants a good practice drift car while they're visiting/staying here.

What's drift "matsuri"? (matsuri means festival!)

If you don't know what drift matsuri is all about, it's basically a weekend of non-stop, no-restriction drifting on all 7 courses in Ebisu circuit. Check out this video to get a taste of it...

Ebisu drift matsuri dates for 2010 are...

Spring Matsuri: May 1st & 2nd
Summer Matsuri: August 21st & 22nd
Autumn Matsuri: November 13th & 14th

And, you can enter the new "G1 GP" - a drift competition for foreigners at matsuri, so there's loads of fun you can have while you're here.

Contact

Want to be the next owner of the black drift Ceffy? Got questions?

Email me at: stuart [at] driftinjapan [dot] com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/stuartstirling

Cheers,
Stu

G1 GP Gaijin Drift Comp In Ebisu 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 05:50:00 +0000

No doubt you have heard of D1 GP the professional Drift competition that started in Japan.

Well, hang on to your britches because the brand new G1 GP gaijin drift competition kicked of with the first ever round during the 2009 Autumn drift festival at Ebisu circuit!

Andy from www.powervehicles.com came up with the idea to have a mini drift comp between the foreigners who were attending the autumn drift matsuri.

When he mentioned it to Kumakubo and Suenaga from Team Orange, they were as keen as mustard to run it and be the judges for it!

So all 16 of us gaijin went to compete on the first ever G1GP at Ebisu Nishi course!

We did it D1 style - 3 runs each where we got judged and then the best 4 went head to head in tandem drift to finally decide the #1 Gaijin Drifter.

Andy and I, even though we're locals, didn't want to show off our skills too much (cough cough) which is why neither of us made it to the top 4. The winner was an Aussie guy who made it over for the matsuri.

G1GP gets media attention!

The first G1GP stirred up enough interest to bring out the Drift Tengoku video crew! They featured the mini gaijin drift event in the Drift Tengoku video released this December.

Check out the snippet of the G1GP from the Doriten video below...

There are plans to continue the G1GP series next year at each drift matsuri!

The dates for 2010 drift matsuri's are:

May 1 & 2
August 21st & 22nd
Nov 13 & 14

So if you think you have what it takes to take a G1 crown, make your way over for the matsuris next year.

Contact me or Andy at Power Vehicles to organize a car for your G1 entry and fun at the next matsuri!

Stu - www.DriftinJapan.com

Power Vehicles Taking Over Ebisu Circuit!

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 12:39:00 +0000

Hi drift fans! It's been too long since I've posted on this blog! I've been busy working (English teaching and selling stuff online) and hanging out with Andy and Emily from www.PowerVehicles.com

I met the drift crazy couple Andy and Emily at Ebisu around July this year and we instantly got on like a house on fire.

The same day we met, Andy took me to see his newly acquired garages at Ebisu where he works and keeps his collection of full-tuned, drift power vehicles.

First was his 500+PS competition JZX100 Mark II, then Emily's pink kouki s14 Silvia, show car/full drift spec wide body 180sx and Tsukuba time attack prepped FD RX7. And that was just what was inside the garages.

Outside looks like your local import car sales yard with street going drift cars all shiny and just wanting to be slid...which is because the main business he does at Power Vehicles is buy high performance JDM cars here and then sell/exports them to buyers overseas. Mainly Europe but they will export to any country in the world!

You can get a good idea of what Andy and Power Vehicles gets up to from this video...

Power Vehicles used to be based in Saitama but couldn't stay away from Ebisu circuit so they moved up here to run their business from the best drift track in the world.

Powervehicles.com 2008 Drift Highlights from Powervehicles.com on Vimeo.

Now here in Nihonmatsu, Fukushima Prefecture Japan, they have a good place to test (Andy loves to 'test') the cars to make sure they are 'driftable' and they were able to have me as their neighbour! How could anyone ask for more? ;)

Power Vehicles also started drift tour packages for anyone who wants to come over and experience drifting first hand. They can organize everything for you from cars to use, to a place to stay to a team orange drift lesson.

Recently, they helped a whole crew from Australia, NZ, and Europe with cars etc. for the Autumn Drift matsuri (festival) in Ebisu.

Thanks to Andy and his 'foot to the floor' way of thinking, he was able to convince Kumakubo and Naoto Suenaga to put on the first ever G1 GP (gaijin only drift competition) where we (myself included) got to battle it out D1 style on Nishi course!

More about the G1 GP later ;)

Learn more about Power Vehicles at the website: http://powervehicles.com and check out their Drift Life Blog to keep up with the latest news from Ebisu.

Fortunately, he updates more than me so you'll always get your fix of drifting there.

Cheers,

Stu - www.DrifinJapan.com

D1 Rd. 6 2009 Ebisu Sneak Preview

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 13:13:00 +0000

Here's a sneak peek!

Check out this short slideshow with a few shots and clips from D1 Round 6 2009 today at Ebisu circuit Japan.

Full article coverage coming soon!

But if you can't wait, check out my Drift In Japan Facebook group album with some more pics and vids.

Stu - www.DriftinJapan.com

D1 Japan Rd. 6 2009 Ebisu Results

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 11:38:00 +0000

D1 round 5 and 6 was held over the 2 consecutive days this weekend at Ebisu circuit.

Yesterday (Saturday) was Round 5 which I missed out on, was apparently sunny and fine. Today (Sunday), the day I chose was showering all day but that's not to say it was bad.

Rain + 600hp D1 cars + a tight Ebisu south course = plenty of hair raising slips and bent fenders!

Luckily it wasn't pouring down so I didn't get soaked but the showers got the track wet enough for some interesting drifting.

Some mentionable fender benders were Orido in his red Aristo and "drift samurai" in his blue Fc Rx7. But a slide into the concrete wall from them wasn't a big shock...they are crazy baka drifters..haha!

The Best 16 was filled with the usual crowd....Kumakubo, Nomuken, Daigo Saito, Kawabata, Hibino etc.

But a few rare entries such as Sakuma in the Toyo S15 was good to see too.

I've met Sakuma a couple of times before and been in the car with him while drifting (awesome drifter obviously) ...and now he's matching up against Kumakubo so good for him.

Other favorites like Tanaka & Suenaga from Team Orange didn't pass qaulifying which was a shame. It would be awesome to see Team Orange take out the final three places one day.

The final battle was between yesterday's Rd 5 champ Suenaga Masao in his white and green FD RX7 and Tezuka Tsuyoshi in the yellow R34 faced R32 skyline who barely scraped in the final entry over Kumakubo in a double "sudden death battle against Kumakubo.

It was Suenaga Masao's lucky weekend as he took the win again today!

Tezuka must have been worn out from the three runs before against Kuma...you could tell he was struggling when he went straight into the door of Masao's FD and lost his front bumper and headlight in the first run of the finals.

This weekend goes down to another great weekend of D1 drift in Japan. I had a great time but would have loved to see Kumakubo take the win...especially since Ebisu is his home track.

Stu - www.DriftinJapan.com

Ebisu South Course Drifting

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 00:10:00 +0000

Ebisu South course is notorious as being one of the most challenging drift courses in Japan, or the world for that matter, for its superior technical difficulty. Those who attempt it either have to have big steel balls, a crap car they don't mind getting banged up (that's me) or a gift for drifting, because Ebisu south course can be like walking onto a minefield if you are not prepared.

Here's a little run through of what it's like drift on Ebisu South course...

The high speed first left sweeper that you enter after coming over a launching pad and down a hill next to a bare concrete wall has you do a little piddle in your pants every time you kick the clutch and nail it down and around, usually in third gear.

There is very little room for error....oversteer and your rear end gets greeted by a not-so-soft wall of tires lined up against a totally-not-soft concret wall. Understeer and you've better have a good set of brakes and tires to pull you up before your front end eats it.

Once you've made it through the first corner safely, you have to throw out the anchor and throw even more angle on to get the car around the second corner which seems to creep up on you like a shinkansen. The wall to stop you plumeting down the ravine here is again a tire-less concrete one.

The rest of the main bottom section is pretty smooth sailing (if you don't mind stretching out the revs in second) back up the hill and to a tight hairpin. After you catch your breath, fix your helmet and wind the windows down for more cool air you get to do it all again.

Ebisu South course might be a challenge but getting through it in one piece is a good feeling, even if you don't get the line, speed and angle of Kumakubo and other D1 drivers. You may want to jump straight on to South course but be warned it may eat you up and spit you out! Beginners to drift....stick to Drift land :)

Cheers,
Stu - www.DriftinJapan.com

Lancer Evo 10 vs. Evo 9 Drift

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 08:06:00 +0000

Team Orange team mates Kumakubo (Lancer Evo 10) and Suenaga (Evo 9) show us their twin drift skills at Ebisu D1 Round 1 2009 during the lunch break.

Then in the Best 16 elimination round later that afternoon, Kumakubo in his lancer Evo 10 leads the drift against an S15 Silvia...Kumakubo went through this run but lost the next run against Tezuka in the yellow R32 skyline.

Stu - www.DriftinJapan.com

ps. Have you joined the Drift in Japan group on Facebook yet?

Stay updated and participate in the group over there!

Lancer Evo 10 - JZX100 - R34 (professional D1 drift pics)

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 04:06:00 +0000

A big shout out to Pete from www.peteleong.com for letting me use his pro shots of the 2009 D1 round 1 practice day last.

Pete is a fellow gaijin who lives in Fukushima and used to drift a purple FC RX-7 but could never quite match the awesomeness of the black Ceffy.

While it was a good match on the track, you can tell just by looking that I am no match for his photography skills.
The winner of the 2009 D1 Gp round 1 was Nomuken in his R34 Skyline sporting newly designed bodykit, graphics and sponsor.

D1 drifting in the snow...this Lexus didn't make the it through qualifying....it's got a supercharged motor of some sorts..sounds nice :)

Kumakubo (owner and 2006 D1 Champ) was debuting the brand new EVO 10 Lancer drift car built by team orange and JUN autos. He seemed to be struggling with oversteer on practice day but finished in 7th place in the first round.

Imamura Yoichi in the PRODRIVE S15 silvia...a good solid driver but the car suffered engine trouble in the final run in Round 1. He finished 2nd behind Nomuken.

Drift Samurai in his newly resprayed FC RX-7 (was yellow last season). Great sounding and performing car but didn't manage to make the Best 16 in round 1 this time.

This JZX100 Chaser from WELD is equally as much a showcar as it is a drift car. The engine bay is spotless and the polished alloy and chrome shines so much that you need sunglasses when looking at the detail.

Thanks again Pete for the awesome shots. See more of Pete's of professional drifting showcase photography on Flickr.

Enjoy!
Stu - www.DriftinJapan.com

D1 Drift Japan 2009 Round 1 Ebisu Results

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 14:47:00 +0000

The 2009 D1 GP Japan drift series kicked off with the first round in Ebisu over the March 28th 29th weekend.

A sell out crowd filled the Ebisu south course stands and braved the ZERO degree chills and snow to see the best drifters Japan has to offer!

To cut to the chase, here are the Top 8 results from Round 1 of D1 GP Japan 2009:

1. Nomura Ken (white R34 skyline)
2. Imamura Yoichi (red S15 slivia)
3. Saito Daigo (red JZX100 chaser)
4. Tezuka Tsuyoshi (yellow R32 skyline)
5. Suenaga Masao (white FD RX-7)
6. Kuroi (blue Toyo S13 one-via)
7. Kumakubo Nobushige (Evo 10 Lancer)
8. Koguchi (dark red 180sx)

All eyes were on Kumakubo in his new Evo 10 Lancer drift machine (7th place) so it was a shame to see him get knocked out against Tezuka in the R32. Tezuka was in fact drifting like a champ all day, so it was good to see him advance.

Another upset was Saito Daigo (last years overall champ - JZX100) getting knocked out in the semi-finals vs. Imamura (red S15)....Saito's car is an abolute monster and he was driving it aggressively all day.

The final round brought Nomuken and Imamura head to head.

Imamura lead the first run but his engine broke, stopped and he couldn't start it for the second run so Nomuken won by default.

It started snowing just before the final round so everyone was in a hurry to get home anyway...so thanks Yoichi, you saved us a few extra minutes of pain!

A great day of drifting even though it was freezing cold!

The next rounds in Ebisu will be round 5 and 6 in August (summer) so it will be nice and hot and I can watch it without shivering and catching a cold.

Ueno's Series 3 BMW drift car was in the pits but never made it out to the track. The car is beautifully made and will be great to see it out drifting amongst the Japanese cars.

Also, Saito Daigo's Mustang was on display but not driven...that car is supposed to be prepped and ready for the track during this season some time. Keep your eyes peeled for that!

Round 2 of the 2009 D1 GP Drift season will be held in Autopolis on April 26th.

Unfortunately, it's at the other end of Japan and as much as I'd like to go, I'll have to skip it. But I'll keep you updated on the results from that and the rest of the 2009 D1 drift season!

Live hard - Drift safe!

Stu
Owner of www.DriftinJapan.com

D1GP Japan 2009 Event Schedule Calendar

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 01:14:00 +0000

Ok, it's well into the new year and the 2009 D1GP Japan drift calendar is out so I'd better post it up here.

And then there's even this video that introduces each round and circuit.

Mark your calendars because this year's D1 in Japan is bound to have lots of wild turns with the new variety of drift cars appearing.

Notice how some of the rounds will be held back to back in one weekend? That means great for spectators who can watch 2 rounds over 2 days straight. But bad for drivers if they crash or break their cars on the first day.

Let me know if you're planning to make it for rounds 1 , 5 or 6 at Ebisu. You'll see me there so give me a shout out.

See ya aorund,

Stu
www.DriftinJapan.com

New 2009 D1Japan Drift Cars Revealed - Mustang, Evo X, BMW

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 07:34:00 +0000

It's a brand new year and a new 2009 D1GP drift season is about to begin here in Japan!

With the new season also comes a few new D1 drift cars. It's always cool to see a new line up of cars from your favorite D1 GP Japan drivers.

Kumakubo's New Evo 10 Drift machine!

Kumakubo from Team Orange has yet another orange Evo drift car. He will debut in his newly prepped Lancer Evo X which he tested out at Tokyo Auto Salon earlier this month.

Rumors have it that Suenaga Naoto will be inherting Kuma's old Evo 9 to drive in the 2009 D1 season. Naoto was driving the orange GC8 Impreza for the last couple of years.

2008 D1 Japan Champion Daigo Saito Switches to American Muscle!

2008 D1 GP Japan champ Saito Daigo will be driving this red Ford Mustang in the 2009 D1 Gp Japan drift competition adding some "international" spice to the D1 mix this year.

Daigo won last years D1 GP Japan championship in his dark red Mark II Chaser.

It'll be interesting to see how this torquey American v8 machine handles on the Japanese drift circuits against the Japanese turbo units.

Some other changes to watch out for....

The color scheme of Suenaga Masao's FD Rx7 which used to be wrapped in the sky blue Amemiya colors will be racing in white, green and black...still the same car though by the looks of it.

Another change is the blue Toyo 180sx behind him which is what the 2007 D1 champion Kawabta will be driving in 2009. He used to drive a S15 Silvia which won him the trophy in the

This slick new 355i BMW is Ueno Takahiro's new drift machine!

Quite a radical change from the old red Vertex Soarer he was know for for so many years.

Apparently, the soarer is one of the hardest cars to drift. Good luck to him in his new "expensive" European weapon.

With a broad variety of new drift cars entering this years D1 season, it makes for some very interesting battles!

Can't wait to go to the first round in Ebisu in March.

Stay tuned as next I'll be posting the D1 GP 2009 Japan season calendar.

Cheers,
Stu

:)

Do-It-Yourself Mid Engined Luxury Car

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 12:27:00 +0000

I just came across this video on youtube and couldn't stop laughing. It's not about Japanese drifting but if you like cars and funny videos, then this will be right up your alley.

I guess this is one way to make a mid-engined car easily.... ROFL.

Now we know where some of the backyard ricers learn how to do some of their cool mods.

Stu

RC Drifting In Japan

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 17:12:00 +0000

RC drifting is gaining popularity across the world. It's always been big in Japan here but it's getting even bigger!

I bought my RX-7 FD 1/10 scale drifter last spring and have recently been playing with it more and more since a new RC drift circuit opened in the next city, Koriyama.

I've been twice in two weekends...I tell ya, the better I get at RC drifting, the more fun it is!

This isn't my RC car but my mate Sakai san's, who is also a mechanic at the local GTR Skyline and Nissan specialty workshop. He loves RC drifting even more than real cars.

Check out his JZX100 Chaser with the Weld graphics!

I'm not the best photographer..it's hard to take small cars going fast!

Enjoy,
Stu - www.driftinjapan.com

:)

Drift Car Exposed: Nissan 180SX or 240SX

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 12:31:00 +0000

The Nissan 180SX or 240SX as it's known in USA and Canada has to be very close the most popular drift car. Every practice day or drifting event you go to, you are sure to see a 180SX!

The light weight chassis and sleek styling make it a favorite drift car, basically, it has all the right bits in the right places to make it a popular choice for drifters.

Turbo engine, rear wheel drive, good balanced chassis and curvy styling will have the 180SX a famous drift car for the rest of time.

Let's take a look at the basic specs of the Nissan RPS13 180SX or 240SX:

Produced from 1989 to 1998
Sister car to the S13 Silvia
Features fastback roof, hatch back trunk (boot) and pop up headlights
First models came with CA18DET (non-turbo CA18 not offered in 180SX)
Later was sold with SR20DET and SR20DE

Engine specs:

CA18DET - 1.8l turbo engine - 127 kW (173 hp)
SR20DE - 2.0l non-turbo engine - 102 kW (137 hp)
SR20DET - 2.0l turbo engine - 153 kW (205 hp)

There are 2 main versions we go by here in Japan. "Zenki" and "Kouki". Early and late model respectively.

The main differences to tell them apart is when the 180SX got a major facelift in 1992. It got a new front bumper and rear tail lights. It was then facelifted again in 1994 but not severely.

The 180SX is so popular and good for drifting despite it's age that there are several 180SX's still being drifted in the D1 drift league in Japan and of course other countries.

The 180SX is a great and affordable car for the beginner drifter right through to the professional.

One more thing is that drift parts are everywhere and cheap! I might be making one of these bad boys my next drifter ;)

Stu
www.driftinjapan.com

Leave your comments - YOROSHIKU!

:)

New GTR R35 Skyline Crashed

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 14:20:00 +0000

In a local hotel parking lot here in Fukushima a few weeks ago I stumbled across a nasty sight of a new GTR Skyline dented all down one side of her beautiful shiny black body.

Looks like he got a bit to close to another car and exchanged some paint while rubbing tires.

Done when racing? Who knows...but it's a shame to see a new car and expensive one, get damaged like that.

Gotta love the paint pen drawings on it. Kinda makes it look like the dents are on purpose, but shows that the owner probably has enough money to buy a new one anytime he wants!

Stu - www.driftinjapan.com

AE86 Toyota "Hachiroku" Drift Car

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 07:37:00 +0000

Perhaps the original and most wanted drift car of all time: the classic Toyota AE86 or "hachiroku" as it's affectionately known. "Hachiroku" means "86" in Japanese.

The AE86 was made famous by the Japanese manga turned TV/DVD cartoon series "Initial D". The main character would use his dad's panda black and white AE86 trueno to deliver tofu and then sneak out to race the mountains in the middle of the night.

The car was manufactured by Toyota from the years 1983 - 1987. There are two different models of the hachiroku and two different body styles for each made for the Japanese domestic market.

The "Trueno" has pop-up headlights and the "Levin" has rectangular headlights. I'm sure there are a few more slight differences but that is the easy way to tell them apart.

The two body styles they come in are the coupe (sometimes known as the wedge) and the hatchback.

There are different engines for different grades on AE86 but the most common engine you'll find in a "hachi" is the fuel injected 4AGE non-turbo double overhead cam 4 cylinder. This power unit produces around 130PS (128 hp) in the JDM models.

So why is the AE86 so popular for drifting?

There are a lot of good thing going for the 86. For one it's rear wheel drive, which is essential for drifting.
It's reliable. Toyota got it right with the chassis and engine set up. The engine is strong and will rev and rev! The other drive train parts like gearbox, diff and suspension are up to scratch to take the beating while drifting.
It's light (approx. 940 kg or 2072 pounds) which makes it easy to throw around without the need for a turbo engine.
It's stylish. Two doors, the option of a coupe or hatchback. I like the style but some may hate it.
They used to be cheap. You could score a low km AE86 in Japan for less than \100000 or $1000 before they became getting super popular with drifters. Now, you'd be lucky to find a rusted out one for that price. Look near the \500000 mark for a nice clean AE86.
There are heaps of drift parts made for them. You'll never be stuck without parts for the AE86. From body kits to suspension and engine parts, there are plenty to choose from.

So do you want to drift a AE86 yet? I do.

Cheers,
Stu www.driftinjapan.com

2008 Drift D1 GP Ebisu: Leaked Video!

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 02:50:00 +0000

With the help of some insiders, I was able to get my hands on this footage of the last D1 GP round 6 at Ebisu. If you look closely, you might be able to make out the source of this video...

Kumakubo in the Orange Lancer Evo took the win on the day. Unfortunately, his overall series points ranking is still out of the top 10.

Thanks and stay tuned for more drifting action from Japan.

Stu

D1 GP 2008 Japan Round 6 Ebisu Circuit

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 06:29:00 +0000

The final round of this years 2008 D1 GP Japanese drift competition was held in Ebisu circuit Nihonmatsu city Japan. The same place they help round 1 this year. But the results were different this time around....

With Ebisu being right in my back yard, (5 mins drive) there was no way I was going to miss it. I actually took my video camera because I wanted to take some video footage of the drifting and put it up here and Youtube to show you but, I had some bad luck and the battery went flat before I could even use it.

I only had my mobile phone camera with 2 bars of battery so my photo taking was limited by that too. Anyway, I was able to take a couple of "ok" photos.

To cut straight to the point, the winner of 2008 Round 6 D1 GP in Ebisu was none other than the owner of the track, Kumakubo Nobushige in his TEAM Orange Lancer Evolution 9.

This 2008 D1 GP drift season was tough for Kumakubo and his team. He hadn't had much luck with rankings, but the weather held off at Ebisu and he was able to score a win and boost his rank in the D1 points table in the final round in Japan! He was very pleased and it showed with tears of joy at the podium!

The final and closing round of D1 GP 2008 drift competition season will be in Irwindale USA in November. But as for me (and the monkeys) and drifting in Japan, I'll still be going to Ebisu from time to time and I'll be able to bring you more D1GP coverage next season!

SAYONARA - from Stu!
www.DriftinJapan.com

:)

Drift in Japan Group on Facebook

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 01:25:00 +0000

Hey Drift Fans! Stu here with a cool update.

Are you on Facebook?

If you are, then Join the Drift In Japan Group!

So then you can get updated more frequently with news and pics etc from my website here.

You can even see a dodgey home made video I did when you go and visit the group page.

Ok, thats all for now, so see you on Facebook!

Stu - www.DriftinJapan.com

"Facebook. A place for friends...who are bored with Myspace."

...

Palm Size RC Drift Cars Really Drift! by Takara TOMY

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 03:16:00 +0000

Just released in Japan by Takara TOMY!

Palm-sized build it your self RC cars that REALLY DRIFT!

Check out this short promo video....

Just like the bigger 1/10 version....so cool hey?

They make them in 4 different body styles.

Toyota Corolla Levin AE86 (everybody's fav) in Red
Skyline GTR R34 in Yellow
Mazda FD Rx7 in Black and White
Nissan 180 SX in Blue

For everyone who wants to get into RC drift but can't afford the hundreds of dollars to fork out for the usual drift RC package, these new palm sized RC cars are the perfect way to go!

Want one? Check my auction out on Ebay!

I expect these to be hot sellers so if you have any personal -requests, please email or message me.

Cheers,
Stu

;)

Drag Racing Meet in Sendai Highland 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 12:25:00 +0000

Hi guys and gals, long time no hear!

Sorry this post is not to do with Drifting but its still got some very cool Japanese speed thrills..this time its Japanese Drag racing!

Coming from Brisbane and the nice drag strip at Willowbank Raceway and the high level of cars such as Top Fuel that Willowbank attracts at events like Winternats etc. I was a interested to see what type of line up good old Sendai Highland drag raceway would get.

My vote: 8/10

They had a good variety of high-performance Japanese cars there....not just all Skylines like I thought it would be. Apparently, drag racing has lost a lot of its popularity...now everyones likes Drifting..but who can blame them?

There were some fast cars there and then...not so fast cars. The fastest car of the day was the full-tube chassis R32 GTR Skyline from ESCORT. It ran a 5.3 seconds over the 1/8the mile. Why it dod not run the full 1/4 mile I don't know..car too fast maybe?

Super loud and impressive to say the least! 1000+ HP RB26

RB26 Nissan Ute

Thanks for reading----leave a comment if you like!

Stuart

ps. I out a few more pics from this day up on Facebook - check them out here!

2008 D1 GP Series Schedule Japan

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 06:55:00 +0000

This is late coming I know....sorry guys. But after many people asking about drift events, I figured I'd better post at least the 2008 Japan D1 GP schedule up here.

2008 D1 GP Japan Schedule

Round 1: Ebisu Circuit Fukushima Prefecture March 30
Round 2: Fuji Speedway Shizuoka Prefecture April 27
Round 3: Suzuka Circuit Mie Prefecture May 24-25
Exhibition Round: Tokyo Drift in Odaiba Odaiba Metropolitan Car Park Tokyo Bay June 7-8
Round 4: Okayama International Circuit Okayama Prefecture June 27-29
Round 5: Autopolis Ōita Prefecture August 3
Round 6: Ebisu Circuit Fukushima Prefecture August 29-31
Round 7: Fuji Speedway Shizuoka Prefecture October 26
World All-Star (non-championship) Irwindale Speedway California November 30

Hope this helps to keep up to date with the D1GP series over here in Japan. I know I'll be going to round 6 in Ebisu. Look for a full report on that soon!

Drift safe, Live hard!!

Stu - www.DriftinJapan.com

:)
Stu

Tokyo Drift In Odaiba June 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 02:28:00 +0000

Odaiba Tokyo, the popular Tokyo bay-side suburb in Downtown Tokyo is not commonly known for drifting - rather it's known for it's TV studios and big shopping complexes.

But for the first time in 3 years, they brought Drift back to Downtown Tokyo with the D1 Drift Exhibition Match held on June 7th-8th 2008.

The Odaiba drift course is large parking lot converted to a decent size course much of the likes of a mirrored Ebisu circuit in shape and speed (120km/h). As the center of Tokyo is packed tighter than a tin of sardines, a permanant drift track is next to impossible so a wide open car park is the next best thing. Nothing wrong with that, I say!

Reports say that all the usual D1 drivers (30 all up) were out showing their best drift machines and drifting skills to the Tokyo crowd.

Team Orange also put on their crowd pleasing drift show from the 4 drivers - Kumakubo, Tanaka, Suenaga and new member Hiraoka. Some of their drift stunts included twin drifting, 4 car drifting and the famous "taimen" drifting (head on drift) with all 4 cars (2 x 2)! Wow! Would have loved to see that!

As it was a real D1 match, they had the usual tournament of Best 16 then Best 8, Best 4 and The Final Round.

The champion of the Odaiba Drift Exhibition for 2008 was Imamura in his new drift machine - red Prodrive Silvia S15 after defeating reigning 2007 D1 champ Kawabata in his (not usual) blue Toyo 180sx.

There is a rumor that this may be the last event in Odaiba - but knowing the growing excitement and fan base for drifting in Japan, I hope we can see more drift events in Odaiba like this!

Stu - www.DriftinJapan.com

:)

The R35 2009 Skyline GTR Can Drift! ...well sorta

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 05:45:00 +0000

Browsing Youtube this morning I found this video of Nomuken try to drift the new GTR skyline....

We all know Nomuken from D1 and his Blitz R34 Skyline 4 door...so you'd think he could just about drift anything..even the R35 GTR!!

But as you can see in the video, the guys from Nissan didn't have drifting in mind when they built the R35 GTR....

Have a look at this!

So...it doesn't look like it will be making it to the next D1 GP round but who knows..maybe they can shake the computers and AWD soon and we can see it drift like a real Japanese sports car.

Later,
Stu - www.DriftInJapan.com

:)

Some of the worst looking tuner cars ever...

noreply@blogger.com (Stuart S) — Thu, 15 May 2008 04:59:00 +0000

Hi hot & sexy and sick & ugly car fans alike.

In my journey's through the internet, I stumble upon some pretty funny and often disturbing stuff. I found this collection of ugly cars and had to share it with the drift world.

Why do people have to do such a thing to their cars?

I can't imagine this Hachi drifting at any local tracks here in Japan.....

Everyone please take a lesson here...PLEASE DON'T DO THIS TO YOUR CAR!

My "favorite" ugly car here would have to be the Toyota AE86 at the top...I love them but when I saw one that looks this crap, I didn't know whether to laugh or cry :(

Enjoy,
Stu - www.DriftinJapan.com