Drifting with the boys from Kinzuru

When I was asked whether w’d like to run an article on car dirfting, I have to be honest I I wasn’t too interested, images of chavs handbreaking around carparks came to mind. An orgy of burberry, over sized exhausts and out of date drum-n-bass. I couldn’t have been further off the mark, this is a sport and something these guys take seriously. Drifting is apparently one of the fastest growing motor sports in the world with a lot of coverage in the USA. Considering I’ve don’t have a clue about this scene I’ll hand you over the Rob Smale who shot the photos and the guys from Kinzuru, who really do know what they’re talking about, right after this video by Ben Walton of the guys doing what they love to do.

To set the scene, I’m the protégé of my father’s latest business venture, as I’m briefly introduced to the organiser of Drift-incs track days, the briefing is short, we don our hi-vis jackets and press on towards the track. My father pauses momentarily to meet other team members before calling me to follow. We quickly cross the pit area and pass the start line leading onto the circuit.

On first impressions, I’m stumped by the excessiveness of it all. But it seems to me that there is a need for that as perfection can only be obtained through practise. Drifting is a combination of (obvious) technical genius, and loutish gentlemanly defiance against the hum drum normality of current day racing formats. Perhaps not so intended, yet received gratefully nonetheless.

From a spectator and amateur journalist’s point of view, this sport offers a dramatic slant to a genre which has little coverage in a world obsessed with reportage. And in all honesty, it’s hard not to appreciate what’s going on here. Also, what I wasn’t expecting to find was something as refreshing as this. Not in the same sea breezey kind of refreshment bullshit, but in the sense that it re-awakens one’s childhood imagination. What’s also refreshing is the open attitude these guys have to public interest. There’s no wonder it’s one of the UK’s fastest growing sports.

The smell of burning rubber was most prominent at the circuit which goes without saying, along with the spray of rubber and gravel as the cars drifted round the corners.

My respect goes out to these guys and I hope it gains as much from the rest of us.

Rob Smale

So what is drifting? for those of you new to this form of motorsport it is currently the fastest growing form of motor sport in the world, enjoying a massive following in Japan and now in the USA to with competition series like Formula drift gaing a huge following there with large ammounts of money from sponsors and uninteruppted tv coverage of every event.

As a sport it originated in the hills around tokyo when the locals would go out racing down the fast weaving hillside roads in there modified rear wheel cars like toyota AE86’s etc. Drifting has been in the UK for a good ammount of time time and is growing in popularity year by year.

In this article we are focusing on a team that competes in the British Drift Championship (BDC). Held around the country this 5 event championship takes place on some of the most recognised circuits around the country from Donnington to Knock Hill in scotland. Run with three classes, semi pro, pro, and super pro, the competition is run on a knock out basis, once qualified the drivers will ‘battle’, basically this is where two cars twin around the track, the followoing car has to mirror the moves of the lead car and vice versa on run two.

Here we see 3 cars from the Kinzuru Auto Salon/Gtec BDC team and one car from the ODC (an amateur drift series). Kinzuru Auto Salon is a car tuning shop based in Carmarthen in West Wales, specialising in supplying high quality tuning equipment to the more serious car modifier/ drifter. As well as running its own clothing brand which can be seen on several of the BDC drivers. Gtec Garage services also based in Carmarthen is a car tuning/modifying Garage undertaking Full car builds to a customers specification right down to MOT’s.

This shoot took place at a Drift-inc practise day at Pembrey race circuit, these are held monthly by drift-inc. Drift-inc is a drift event organising company run by kinzuru and gtec together to promote drifting in wales and the uk, set up to provide a regular practise day, in a safe controlled environment, to help push the sport forward and encourage people to drift in the right places and not get in trouble for doing it where they shouldn’t.

Kinzuru

Car specs

These cars are far from standard spec, the guys into this seriously and sink some serious money into their sport. Here’s a breakdown of the modifications they’ve made to their cars.

MX5 driven by Jamie Kenyon, BDC Pro driver
SR20 DET
GT28R Turbo
Greddy I/C
Custom polished pipe work
HKS adjustable actuator set to 1 bar of boost
Greddy Rocker Arms
Custom Baffled Modified Blendini motorsport sump
Blitz SUS Induction kit
Purple Rocker Cover
Walbro fuel pump
Custom Weld in cage from Nickson Motorsport
Secret Element track rod ends for extra lock
Depowered Steering rack
HKS Coilovers
14” Kenlow fan
Flocked Dash
Snap off Kinzuru steering wheel
Apexi SAFC
2 Corberau Sprint Bucket Seats
FIA harnesses
SR20 gearbox
SR20 Short Shifter
Razo gearknob
Pulsar diff (welded)/ drive shafts/ modified hubs – 22mm wider rear track
Stealth Performance engine and gear box mounts
Customised front and rear subframes
Custom wiring loom
Plumbed in fire extinguisher
Electric cut off switch
Braided Clutch line
Lightened Doors
Stripped interior
Modified Mazda rear disks

Green Nissan S14A driven by Luke Ellard, semi pro
full works vx body kit
50mm wide vented front wings
carbon fibre rear wing
Apex 6 point roll cage
Cobra monaco seats
sabelt harness
defi gauges for oil temp/ oil pressure/water temp
greddy profec boost controller
FIA fire extuinguisher,
FIA battery cut offs
Engine SR20DET Big front mount intercooler
Horsham developements stage 2a chip
1.2 bar boost makes approx 320 bhp
car sits on Tein coilovers, fully adjustable, adjustable camber arms front and rear
Wheels are ROTA GTRs 17×9.5 et 12
Sponsors – Kinzuru auto salon, gtec garage services, cube hosting, rota wheels, sfs hoses.

Green Nissan Skyline r33 GTst driven by Gordon McIsaac, semi pro
RB25DET engine
yellow jacket coil packs
60mm external waste gate with wing vented screamer pipe
large front mounted intercooler
gauges for water temp, oil temp, boost pressure, oil pressure
FIA kinzuru seat by motordrive
FIA cut offs
FIA extinguisher system
TRS 4 point harness
Apex 6 point cage
Hydrualic handbrake
Carbon bonnett and boot
full Jun body kit 50mm wider front wings
Rota GTR’d wheels in electric blue, 18×10 et 12 rears, 18×9.d et 12 fronts
toyo r888 tyres up front for grip
Solid sub frame bushes
welded diff
Adjustable front traction arms
kinzuru rack spacers
adjustable camber arms
front and rear strut braces
bc coilovers

R32 4 door Nissan Skyline driven by Kinzuru auto salon
RB20DET engine
front mount intercooler
oil cooler
oil filter relocation kit
sfs hoses
trust air filter
manual boost controller running 12 psi
bailey dump valve
screamer pipe
full decat exhaust system.
Exterior; GTR bonnett with flush fit pins
GTR front bumper
Side skirts and rear spats
Rota GTR’ds in matt black 18×9.5 et 20 all round
rolled and pulled rear arches
nato grey paint.
Interior : fully flocked dash centre console and door cards.
FIA kinzuru GRP bucket seat by motordrive
Kinzuru steering wheel
Kinzuru harnesses in green
jdm gear knob
vibe black air install with sony head unit (no one likes to drift in silence)
sticker bombed gauge holder in centre vent
greddy turbo timer
boost gauge
oil pressure gauge
oil temp gauge
water temp gauge
pivot shift light

Team sponsors:
Kinzuru Auto Salon
Gtec Garage services
Rota wheels
SFS hoses
Motordrive seats
D-sign Studio
Blendini motorsport
Qube hosting
Touge speed shop

Team kinzuru/gtec would like to take this opporrtunity to thank our BDC team sponsors, sfs performance hoses, touge speed shop, etnies, cube hosting, motordrive seats and jono at the d-sign studio, your help and support is very much appreciated.

www.virtualmotorpix.com
kinzuru.co.uk