Drift Tengoku — October 2013
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About this issue
188 available scans from Drift Tengoku — October 2013, in right-to-left reading order. Japanese OCR and English translation drafts are available throughout. Drafts have not received exhaustive image proofreading; unreadable source remains recorded in the archival data.
Page 49 — English draft translation
I added holes to the front crossmember and offset the lower-arm mounts outward by about 4 cm. I also installed an upper knuckle, so the tie-rod ends no longer reach. I cut up a broken driveshaft and welded it to the tie rod. Since it came from a driveshaft, it's strong, and it was scrap, so the material cost was zero! The tie rod isn't straight, but it drives without problems…
I used an RB transmission adapter to swap in an ECR33 transmission, along with a reinforced R34 rear crossmember, R32 rear knuckles, and other modified stock GT-R and Type M parts. I made everything myself except welding the driveshaft. But it hooks up so well that, despite having 400 horsepower, it won't spin the tires; an ordinary S13 is easier to break loose! Another point of pride: it passed road inspection in this configuration!
Captions and page details
Yukatsu Hirokawa
With extended lower arms…
…offset is the key!
Kanagawa Institute of Technology
(PS13)
Silvia
I extended the lower arms last year too; this is an evolution of that setup. I extended them by about 30 mm and welded them with an offset toward the rear. As a result, the tie-rod ends no longer hit the knuckle, so I can use the full steering angle of the two-turn knuckle! I used the school's TIG welder.
The mount…
Gar
Junya Kamiya
Junior College
Nakanihon Automotive
（ECR33)
Skyline
Not enough!
Taiki Kojima
SOUL OFGAKUDRIFTER
Yokkaichi Technical High School
High School
180SX(RPS13)
Tie rod…
Converting to rigid mounts makes it hook up hard!
Even worn-out tires get tons of traction!
I borrowed a welder and made a rigid conversion myself. I welded a piece of thick steel plate to the top bushing; on the bottom, I only added a collar because of the mounting constraints. The change was dramatic—people who used to say I couldn't keep up with other cars at the mountain roads now tell me, “You've got traction now!”
The rear tire pressure used to be 2.1; now it's 3.0…
Comment
It may cause a slight caster change, but at full countersteer…
Comment
He says he has to let some air out because it hooks up too much. If you have access to a welder, this is probably the cheapest way to improve traction. The bottle hanging below is a differential-oil catch tank.
The benefits of avoiding that interference may outweigh the drawbacks. It also makes over-center behavior less likely. TIG makes extending lower arms easier…
…that's something to envy!
Offset lower arms and driveshaft tie-rod ends!?
No need to extend the lower arms!
Even people who can't weld can offset the lower arms by drilling holes in the crossmember…
Comment
It saves money, too. Using part of a driveshaft to extend the tie rod is a clever example of eco-tuning through scrap reuse! The drawback is that the thick welds mean you have to cut the rack boots.
…perhaps!
Skyline-ized the drivetrain and rear end!
Kagawa University Graduate School
Kazufumi Makino
(S15)
Silvia
…might be…
Maybe that's a little too much
…!
He modified the Silvia coilover mounting points to match the knuckles, flattened the trunk floor with sheet metal for better aerodynamics, and adapted a tire-pressure sensor for the tie-rod mounting…
Comment
A great mix of ideas and hard work.