This past weekend I took a trip to Las Vegas, NV for Super Lap Battle exhibition race. Competitors included a couple of the top contenders from each class.
TEIN was well represented with 4 of the 9 cars running Super Racing coilovers. This was an invite only exhibition race held along with XDC drift and Remix car show. There were a good amount of drift competitors, spectators, show cars, and vendors during the one day event held at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The 2.39 mile road course consisted of a good mix of high and low speed corners.
I was out there to support our sponsored vehicles and check out the action. TEIN sponsored vehicles included:
Each of the cars are using Super Racing Coilovers. Crawford and Evasive are both using custom valved setups with increased spring rates. SportCar Motion and Zenkai are using off the shelf kits with higher spring rates (spring rate based on vehicle setup and tire choice). With more testing and feedback we can revalve the off the shelf kits if needed which is a service made available to all TEIN users.
This past weekend was the World Time Attack Challenge held at the Eastern Creek Raceway in Australia. Although this event was new to my ears, it is unquestionably not new to the racing industry with many of the industries top manufactures and drivers present.
The car that really caught our attention was the world famous TEIN sponsored Mitsubishi Cyber Evo 9 driven by Mr. Eiji “Tarzan” Yamada. The Cyber Evo currently uses a custom valved, Super Racing coilover kit and previously used our HT kit.
The Cyber Evo took home first overall with a lap time of 1:30.5870 (0:01.2970 seconds faster than 2nd place).
This past weekend I attended the Oregon Trail Rally as a crew member/ mechanic for the 0-60 Rally xD. This was my first rally ever and it was a eye opening experience.
Arrived in Portland on Thursday night for our first ever team meeting. This was the first time that the entire team was able to meet at one time. Going into this event everything was new: new unproven car, new transporter, new crew, new co-driver, etc…
On Friday we were at Portland International Raceway for the entire day. For the first half we were setting up the car and making changes so that we could pass tech inspection. My job was to fabricate rear rubber guards to protect the suspension, brakes, and shocks (little did I know that I would end up making about 5 sets of these throughout the weekend). Rally competition started around 7PM which were Special Stages designed for spectators.
Saturday had us in Dalles which is about 1.5hrs from Portland and then in Dufur for the second half of the day. We would stay in Dufur for the remainder of the Rally which ended Sunday afternoon.
There were basically four mechanics for the car which included Lenny and Ben from Design Craft, and Mr. Nakai and myself from TEIN. Gordon and the 0-60 crew were cleanup and kept the car clean for the entire Rally. Other crew members included photographers, videographers, and volunteers willing to help anywhere needed.
(picture is missing three crew members who were hiking back from the best photo spot – pickup 0-60 magazine to see the amazing photos)
During each day we had 1-2 services between the stages. This is when the cars come back into the service park for crew members to repair, clean, refuel, adjust the car. Most services are about 40mins which was enough time to:
Remove and inspect all 4 wheels, Rotate wheels, check all fluids, repair any damage, inspect and torque check all suspension components, inspect and clean brakes, clean the entire car inside and out, refuel and get the car back out.
Each service is organized chaos. It must look like a swarm of bees attacking from a spectator point of view. Any delays in service and the car is hit with time penalties. At the end of every service I was covered in dust/ dirt but I was glad the rain held off until the rally ended – mud would have REALLY made it messy.
At the end of every night we performed a longer more thorough service which added changing fluids, bleeding brakes and more extensive repairs. A Rally car has many components which preventative like the mud flaps, inner fender liners, underbody body guards, etc… During service these parts all need to be inspected, repaired or replaced to ensure nothing is damaged in the following stages.
Crewing for a rally car definitely has its stresses. While the car is out running you have no contact so you never know what is going on. Then when the car arrives it is a rush to get all service completed. Once the car leaves it is time to cleanup and prepared for the next service or grab a bite to eat. At the end of the day there is service and then teardown of the pit for the night. The next day it all starts over again.
The underpowered 1WD (due to open differential) almost all stock xD SHOCKED many teams and spectators alike with its quick times which were mainly due to driver Chris Duplessis (2007 & 2008 2WD Champion) and co-driver Ron Zaras (0-60 editor, 2nd Rally ever).
Driver, Chris with the helmet hair. Co-driver, Ron with the Sparco suit, and 0-60 girls.
The attrition rate of the rally was high with about half the field out or slowed due to damage. The durable and reliable Scion completed the entire Rally with no incident. Stock engine, stock transmission, stock brakes = no problems. Yes, more power, clutch type differential, upgraded brakes, shorter gears, etc… would all make the car faster but the goal for this first event was to finish. With the hard charging Duplessis behind the wheel the car was able to finish 2nd in 2WD, losing to a veteran turbo charged Ford Focus.
Visit 0-60 Magazine’s website for videos and a complete story of the event.
Just got back from Portland Oregon. Myself and Mr. Nakai went out to support 0-60 magazine rally entry for Rally America – Rd. 4 Rally Oregon. The three day event started Friday and ended Sunday afternoon.
Gordon T. of 0-60 had a Scion xD modified for Rally competition. It features custom TEIN HG dampers which are designed for rally usage.
The kit features external reservoirs, two-way adjustment, extra large piston shafts, and other internal parts made to handle the harsh conditions.
The team was quite large with many support personnel who are here to ensure this experiment is a success. This is the first time the car has been run. It was completed by Design Craft only a few days before the event and put on the trailer immediately after. The support team is comprised of Rally virgins besides Mr. Nakai who has supported rally worldwide for the past 3 years.
The car has a stock motor, stock transmission and no testing. Major modifications are the roll cage, HG dampers, Volks, and plethora of Sparco parts. The car was kept simple for a reason – so that it would finish.
I will post a more detailed account of the weekend in the days to come.
Here is a short video clip found on YouTube. Not bad considering the car is one wheel drive (open differential).
Awesome video of Vaughn Gittin Jr at Formula Drift – Long Beach. You can see the dual EDFC controllers mounted in the dashboard. ASD did an awesome job building this car in a short time. Everything about the car is all business especially the interior – So fresh and clean.
TEIN would like to congratulate JR Gittin for winning Rd. 1 of the 2010 Formula Drift Championship. Even more impressive is that this was the debut event for JR’s new ride which is the Monster Energy/ Falken Tire 2011 Ford Mustang built by ASD and featuring TEIN 2-way coilovers with dual EDFC.
JR unveiled this car on Thursday night at a special Falken FD pre-party at Rod Dyrdek’s Fantasy Factory in Downtown Los Angeles.
TEIN does not produce an off-the-shelf 2-way kit for the Mustang so the kits on JR and JTP cars’ are from our Specialized Damper program (SPD). The SPD program allows any customer purchase a made to order kit from our Yokohama, Japan factory.
TEIN was out at Rd. 1 in Long Beach with a small booth. Thank you to all the people that stopped by to say hello and purchase some TEIN goods.
Special thanks to Marc M. of Auto-Tech Interiors for the action pics of JR’s Mustang.
From 2003 to 2009 TEIN USA supported the following cars/drivers:
TEIN 350Z – Murao TEIN/ OS Giken S14 – Murao
TEIN JDMRice S13 – Murao DRFT FD3S – Utsumi
DRFT S13 – Utsumi Team Falken S13 – Koguchi
Team Falken S14 – Yamamoto Team Rotora S13 – Ken Gushi
Team Rotora S13 – Ernie Fixmer Team Falken S13 – Gittin
Team Falken/ Discount Tires – Young Team Falken EF – Hatakeyama
Team Falken Camaro – Hampton Team Falken FD3S – Yamamoto
Team Falken FD3S – Angelo Team Falken G35 – Wan
Team Falken Mustang – Gittin Team Falken S15 – Forsberg
Star Girl Racing S13 – Mei Team X Mustang – Beckford
Honda R&D Element – n/a Milano Auto – Kregorian
Team Falken/ Discount Tire IS300 – Sumida Team Falken/ NTB RX-8 – Yamamoto
Team Falken/ Boso Garage S13 – Petty Team Falken Sky – McNamara
Team Falken 350Z Convertible – McQuarrie Team Falken 2010 Mustang – Pawlak
Monster/ Team Falken 2011 Mustang – Gittin
Ross Petty’s ride back in 2007 which used custom valved Super Drift coilovers.
Falken IS300 from 2007 which was driven by Hiro Sumida. Utilized mono tube TEIN coilovers and EDFC.
2008 Falken Sky driven by D-Mac. Using TEIN Super Street coilovers and EDFC.
2009 Falken 350Z convertible driven by Tyler who finished third overall in FD last year. Utilizes a Super Racing coilover kit with custom valving and dual EDFC.
2010 bodied Ford Mustang driven by JR in 2009. TEIN 2-way coilovers and dual EDFC.
For the 2010 FD season TEIN will be used on 4 Falken drift cars which include:
Falken Sky driven by D-Mac
Falken 350Z Convertible driven by Tyler
Falken 2010 Mustang driven by JTP
Monster Engery/ Falken Tire 2011 Mustang driven by JR
Driver Patrik Flodin of Sweden took home his 5th consecutive Rally win this past weekend at the Jordan Rally. This marks his second 2010 class win in P-WRC competition.
Patrik Flodin on left with co-driver Goran Bergsten on right.
2010 Rally Results for driver P. Flodin and TEIN Gr. N coilovers:
1st Production Class at Rally Sweden (WRC Rd. 1)
1st Group N – China Rally (Rd. 1)
1st Group N – Russia Rally (Rd. 1)
1st Group N – Swedish Rally (Rd. 2)
1st Production Class at Jordan Rally (WRC Rd. 3)
*Flodin did not enter WRC Rd. 2
Note: all wins were while using TEIN Gr. N coilovers
For P-WRC competition Flodin has been piloting the Uspenskiy Rally Technica Subaru STI equipped with TEIN Gr.N dampers. The Gr.N dampers have been working well as the Sweden Rally was in snow and the Jordan Rally was in the desert. Gr.N dampers include a Temperature Compensating Valve (TCV) which is a mechanical system that changes oil flow based on oil temperature. This allows the damping force to stay more consistent as the oil temperature changes.
As the 2010 Formula D season opener soon approaches I took a look back at when TEIN USA starting to get involved in the US drifting scene.
For TEIN USA it all started back 2003 when D1 first came to the US with a non-points event. We sponsored a few cars that came over from Japan including the DRFT FD3S, Falken S13, Falken S14 and we even entered our almost stock 350Z street car. Way back then Falken Tire boss, Nick Fousekis, saw the potential in Drifting and put together a small team and TEIN jumped on board as a product sponsor. Over the years TEIN has sponsored a few other teams, entered a few cars of our own but has mainly supported the teal and blue.
TEIN 350Z lined up against DRFT FD3S at the Inaugural US D1GP in 2003. 350Z driven by Murao and DRFT FD3S piloted by Utsumi. The sunken in wheels and skinny tires on the rear of the 350Z were the only way it could keep a decent slide since the only power adders were a K&N intake and Greddy exhaust which still got the car into the top 16.
Koguchi’s Falken sponsored S13.
Back in 2004 Team Rotora had a multi-car team and one of their drivers was a high school student named, Ken Gushi.
TEIN USA’s 2004 US D1GP entry. Driven by Murao and KA Turbo power.
This is JR’s original S13 in the old Falken livery. TEIN has been a proud sponsor of JR since 2004.
We want to congratulate Evasive Motorsports and SportCar Motion for their class wins in this past weekends Redline Time Attack held at ButtonWillow Raceway.
Evasive Motorsports campaigned two vehicles. Their well known EVO 9 in the Super Modified Class and a Civic Si in the Enthusiast FF class.
Driver Tim Kuo piloted the EVO 9 to second place finish with a time of 1:47.987 on Yokohama slicks. There is still lots of time left in the car and we will be working with Evasive to dial in the Super Racing coilovers.
Driver and vehicle owner Mike Chang pushed the Civic Si Sedan to a 2:04.085 for the class win in Enthusiast FF. Expect this car to get faster as we will be making changes to the rear Mono FLEX suspension (soon to be using parts from a TEIN N1 racing kit).
SportCar Motion debuted their Integra Type-R in the Modified FF class and driver Renzo Marsano not only took the class win with a 2.00.055 but beat the next top finisher by 4 seconds. The crew at SportCar Motion will soon be testing out new spring rates and new valving to make the ITR even quicker.
Driver Renzo Marsano of SportCar Motion accepting his trophy for the Modified FF Class win.
On track photos by Duane Uyeda – The Octane Report. You can checkout more pics from the event at OctaneReport.com
