Perfect handling skills?

[Abrax]

Surely You have seen this -> this is my favourite e30 vid...

The car is 300-350HP's S14 normally aspirated engine. The driver - Marc Fleury.

http://www.e30.kamieniwnetrze.pl/vids/Marc_Fleury.wmv
/right click and save as/

Feel free to comment...

[ecpreston]

well... it kind of seems like a waste of an expensive motor, but man, that takes some skill to do that on a narrow road lined with trees! :D

[D. Clay]

Good for a drifting video but that it's not the fast way around. There's one place where you could almost walk beside the car. I know drifting is a very popular form of motorsport but I guess I just don't get it. I keep counting "thousand one - thousand two, etc." as he lose's a tenth or two a turn.
The best drivers are sometimes the least interesting to watch. They're just so smooth. Prost, Senna, and usually Schumacher weren't really exciting to watch in that sense.

[Abrax]

Well - of corse it is not the fastest possible way of taking turns, but it is very spectacular. The question mark was there in the topic specially to discuss this...

There is very big difference in driving method between this and the post with race red M3 racing in the roads on the other post here.

I like drifting, but I do it just in winter for two reasons:

- too weak car,
- too fast car damage on grip surface.

And it is much more safe in winter as many drivers just don't drive at all when the roads are slippy.

On the other side good drifting abilities helps alot in critical situations as You know how Your car acts when sliding during acccelerating and braking...

Do You agree?

[e9nine]

Well - of corse it is not the fastest possible way of taking turns, but it is very spectacular. ........
....On the other side good drifting abilities helps alot in critical situations as You know how Your car acts when sliding during acccelerating and braking...

Do You agree?

I agree :D

[fabe]

That's pure drifting, don't think he bothers about getting fast time cos he's not fast. That reminds me of the japanese anime - Initial D....

[ecpreston]

but that it's not the fast way around.

haha really? You don't say! :rolleyes:

I think he's losing more than 10ths. It's pretty clearly for show. :p

[DZick]

That's pure drifting, don't think he bothers about getting fast time cos he's not fast. That reminds me of the japanese anime - Initial D....

x2 lol

GO TAK!!!

[ducatipaso]

my viewpoint on drifting: it's a basic motorsports skill... much like throwing or catching is in baseball.

anyone that expects to be a fast driver should also have the skill of being able to drive a car with the throttle.

so, who wants to go watch a throwing contest? I'll take the whole baseball game thank you very much.

[16v of Fury]

I agree :D

Of course YOU agree.... I've been in a car w/ you, and driven behind you.... crazy bastid :eek: :eek: :eek:

:p :D

[Abrax]

Basic motorsport skill... Right!!! We have plenty of "race" drivers here who want's to be like Kubica... Their driving habits are far from correct, and there is a sun to earth distance between what they drive and profi drivers... But they think they are fast as hell... And they almost stop at turns!

I like this movie because it is more like the show than the race... The fans they just love him at the end... It is lovely. And BTW it was done on dry road, so he was driving very fast... I like the car response and the driver humour :-)

[jetteman]

I don't care what some of you say the man has a lot of talent. For all of you that said what he does is just a simple part of racing, I would like to see some videos of you controlling your cars sideways on two lane roads at 80+. When i see these videos then I might respect what you say more. I agree its not how you go fast around a track, but it is still a challenging task and just a different kind of motor sport.

[n2motorsports]

he's alright, i suppose if he had more steering angle and going downhill, his drifts would be longer and more angled. that's the thing, drifting is subjective and based on what judges say, whereas in grip driving, fastest one wins. i enjoy both sports and they each have their own unique level of difficulity...

[Frankie]

Some rallying http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adeg-Ec0V9Y.... scary

[gearheadE30]

Drifting is interesting to watch, and it definitely takes skill, but I find it much more fun to see how well I can balance on the limits of adhesion, rather than going over them. Plus, my car has too much grip and too little power to drift ;).

I have no idea how that guy can see out of his windshield...

On the rallying side of things, that is IMHO one of the most fun forms of auto racing to watch. I really wish that there was more TV coverage in america...

[Master]

Kudos to the guy, that takes great skill.
To all the people that say their car is underpowered to drift, well I've seen people drifting with only ~115hp, and let me tell it was amazing to watch (and I can tell a bad drift from a good one)
Initial D FTW!

Also I'm a big fan of drifting, although I'm not that good at it…
Here are a few vids of me drifting:
In my BMW:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgRSWtuGcbE
In my friends VW Jetta (Front wheel drive!):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4LP8aKl8lE

[Bunta]

Too bad Marc wadded that car up.
http://www.imagehosting.com/out.php/i923434_fleurybooboo01.jpg (http://www.imagehosting.com)
http://www.imagehosting.com/out.php/i923437_fleurybooboo02.jpg (http://www.imagehosting.com)
It was suposibly one of the lowest e30s out. Ive heard the rockers where under 4 inches from the road. Plus the S14 in that souded so good:D



Hunter

[Cristian G in Oz]

I am in the don't quite get it crowd.

I think Drift has it's place in motorsport, just like drags, but I would rather get out on the track and see what I can do with adheasion.

That said.....hats off to the good drag and drift riders. I have no interest in them but drift is fun to watch every now and then.

[zav3n]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkQBD3eYADA
This has to be hands down my all time favorite BMW video show the raw power of the e30...

[Abrax]

Hey - those who say it is underpowered.. -> I'm feeling that You don't exactly know the power of 318is M42 engine...

I was able to drift sideways about 40m long with 160km/h on dry asphalt surface during downhill here around our city... So it is definately possible. On the other hand my car is equipped with short shift M3 tranny and it makes the thing much easier...

Of corse it has too less power to start the drift by just opening the throttle, but as You know drifting is going sideways, not pressing the right pedal... It is all about controlling the sideway with Your right foot, but initiating the drift is often made by pressing the brake, while accelerating in the turn... So the car doesn't have to have huge power.

M42 is just perfectly powered when it comes to snow drifting with stock tranny.

But the main thing here is the balance of the car. E30 with 6cyl engine has a tendency to dive into the turn with it's nose and on the other hand the back is very likely to dance right or left. The 4cyl engine has much better balance, because the weight is situated more into the center part of the chassis and this is why M3 is so good in racing. Our "underpowered" version of M3 has so good chassis that it can compete with much younger and more advanced cars. For example Audi A4 is not that fast in turns as M42 E30! Of corse when talking about stock setup.

I'm looking forward to place some of my videos here. I'm just waiting to put my car together once more... But definately it will be finished before the winter ;-)

[fabe]

Found this in my collection of videos. Just uploaded and thot I'd share here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=czp8gZzNmUc

It's actually me and my car in action during a drift clinic organised by the drifter bunch in Malaysia.. See www.drift.com.my

I was using a 3.73 LSD so was actually down on useable power. a 4.10 ratio would be a lot better. So I have to pop the clutch to initiate the drift. Then it's all about playing with the steering to hold the drift. My car was the least powerful car of the lot on that day, the rest of the participants were using japanese turbo'd RWD - Nissan 200sx, Cefiro A31 with RB25DET...

Didn't really do much drifting after that except for the occasionally sideways action on wet roads and also on the Sepang track (in the wet). I figured there's too much unneccesary flexes and stress on the chassis.

I recall my suspension was still soft as I was still on Eibach with Boge OEM springs. Since then, I have upgraded to APEX springs and custom front absorbers and rear Benz W124 absorbers. Would have been good if I had these in before the drift clinic.

What I learned from drifting is the almost absolute car control. I managed to save myself from visting the gravel trap on track especially in the wet. I tend to push the limit when I know there's a safe gap between my car and the nearest car behind during trackdays. Sometimes it's an intended oversteer, sometimes it's the lack of traction in the wet. I learn more as I get more adventurous. Of cos, being adventurous doesn't mean defying laws of physics.

Drifting is not just about countersteering an oversteer, it's the timing and how much steering angle to apply. and also the straightening at the end of the drift. Get it right, and it will straighten out smoothly without fishtailing.

Me no expert in this, just sharing my 2 cents on this topic. But I can vouch that the E30 318is is indeed a very well balanced car for drifting and also on the track..

[swiss318is]

Surely You have seen this -> this is my favourite e30 vid...

The car is 300-350HP's S14 normally aspirated engine. The driver - Marc Fleury.

http://www.e30.kamieniwnetrze.pl/vids/Marc_Fleury.wmv
/right click and save as/

Feel free to comment...


he is from switzerland and has a 2,5L s14, with 285 hp (7180 rpms) and 311 NM on 5060 rpms, wheight of the car is 1020 kg

he has now a new bmw, a silver one, he crashed the white one!!!btw the white one was a 318 with an automatique transmission.

[Abrax]

the white one was a 318 with an automatique transmission.
I think You are not talking about the white with the orange arrow on the side....


Everybody sometimes crashes...

But right, Mark used to drive s14 powered car :-)

[e30 4cyl]

+1 on more rally coverage in the US. It is one of the best forms of racing. For this video, it takes alot of skill to do that and his engine sounds amazing. It may be a waste of such a great engine though, any big six could accomplish the same thing for drifting.

[swiss318is]

I think You are not talking about the white with the orange arrow on the side....
It WAS a normal grandpa 318 with 100hp and a automatique transmission BEFORE conversion to m3 technique!show me one guy driving uphill with a 318 automatique like fleury in the video ;-)

[D. Clay]

I've sort of come around on drifting from a skill standpoint. I saw a drifting contest (not race) on a street course with two cars competing against each other in each segment. Still, and this is what hangs me up, the winner is determined by the judges and infrequently by a do over when the crowd reaction to a decision is sufficiently negative. An analogy that works for me is drifting is to auto racing as figure skating is to speed racing . I think the acceptance and growth of drifting is going to be even bigger than in the past. It pack's more of an entertainment wallop for the crowd than motorsport in the traditional sense. It is popular for the same reason as oval track racing. The audience can see all of it. A road race seen in person has very little value as entertainment. you can only see a small portion of it, usually one or two turns.