86 Hatch Drift Build; From VegasDrift to ClubLoose

IggyEGuana · 01:47:48 AM / 30-May-15

Alright. East Coast Bash was a success. 2 days prior my girl decided she was gonna go with me so that made travel easier cuz i could put stuff in her car and mine instead of cramming it all into mine. We got up early and left the house just before 6. drove 2 hours from Mays Landing NJ to Englishtown NJ. Everything went smooth with check-in and getting a spot in the pits. Unloaded the cars and setup our little area. Switched the front tires to the track pair and then got tech'd. They nabbed me for having worm gear clamps on my fuel line. Luckily I found a guy with extra fuel line clamps and got them switched and the car successfully through tech. Then waited for the driver's meeting and after that it was finally time to drive.

Anyone in the north east should consider doing a ClubLoose event. It was a blast. One unexpected side effect was the realization of just how much VegasDrift (now called Southwest Drift Series) is focused on competition and preparing drivers for it. Everything about VegasDrift was run like a mini FD event and the mentality was always to prepare for pro level drifting. Every event, even practice ones. All the drivers meetings are FD style. Even just the title of the practice days. Its a Practice Event. Practice for competition. Its not just for fun, its practice. Thats the mindset of the Southwest Drift Series and I cant fault them for that. If youre a driver who's goal is to get your pro2 FD license and compete at a higher level then I highly recommend SW Drift. They run a very professional ProAM and it will prepare you for the big leagues as best a ProAM ever could. I had to retrain my brain at ECB. They are all about having fun and it shows in ways I never even realized. At the drivers meeting they dont talk about line at all. There isnt even a course map. I actually raised my hand at the end and asked if we were going to do a parade lap to see the
course layout and they said "just take it slow and you'll figure it out. its easy." It was a complete drift culture shock but I had a ton of fun. They have 2 courses. Front and back. The front course is a little longer and has a more natural flow. The back course was a little more technical. Both were a lot of fun. If youre anywhere near here you should check it out. The guys I pitted next to drove about 5 hours. Its worth it.

S12_Lifer · 04:38:45 PM / 30-May-15

Awesome pics IggyEGuana! One of my goals is to actually watch an S12 drift at a track which I have never experienced before. I will have to travel to Los Angeles or Vegas to watch one.

Wonderingraven · 04:41:14 PM / 30-May-15

Soon as I get one of the 2 track cars ready, bring an extra helm and I will give ya a ride a long at one of the Vegas Drift events.

IggyEGuana · 04:45:26 PM / 30-May-15

Thanks. Thes a red mk2 running the Top Drift series at Willow Springs this year. Also you can see Gary (wonderingraven) in vegas doing the practice VegasDrift events.
Post Merge

Lol gary you posted right before me. DRIFTING!

Wonderingraven · 05:32:01 PM / 30-May-15

You can technically compete with out a cage right just wont be able todo the tandem part? if I even make it in the top 16.

S12_Lifer · 05:47:04 PM / 30-May-15

Cool! Give me the details as the date gets closer. This would be a trip worth driving (or flying).

8SixS12 · 05:21:06 PM / 02-Jun-15

Glad ClubLoose was a success! The main thing though is you had fun driving your car. That's what it's all about!

D-sport S12 · 01:14:06 AM / 03-Jun-15

Glad your out ripping again. Looks like a fun track

IggyEGuana · 09:17:41 PM / 30-Jun-15

Going on thurs to meetup with a S12 owner in Deptford NJ like 40 minutes from me. He has an SE that hes finishing up an auto to manual swap on.

My Alternator isnt charging for whatever reason. Gonna troubleshoot that this week. Need to count tires and order what I need real soon them mount them. Carlisle PA Nicofest is my next drift day. Its actually 2 days and its a bigass car show called Carlisle Performance & Style in addition to the Nico event. I'm already preregistered. I'm gonna be drifting and doing a little auto-x just cuz i'm curious how it'll grip with normal tire pressure plus it was no extra fee. Also gonna be hanging out with a crew from upstate NY area and enjoying the other festivities for the weekend.

Next planned drifting after that is Freedom Moves at ClubLoose E-Town in Sept.

iceageg · 05:57:40 AM / 01-Jul-15

Good luck Iggy. Go kick some ass!

IggyEGuana · 02:13:53 PM / 24-Jul-15

Well Carlisle was a success. Even tho I got heat exhaustion, wrecked my car, and blew up my engine. It was fun. We got 3 S12s an 4 owners together. Best east coast S12 meet in a while. Bonus points if you recognize who's cars these are.

At the end of the day Sunday I overcooked it in the manji coming downhill and got into the grass and found the water barrel safety barrier. The damage is all cosmetic. But immediately after the wreck I had a slight misfire at idle. On the drive home it quickly got worse and turned into a heavy rod knock. I had to pull off on the side of the PA turnpike. I think it sucked in too much water when I crashed causing it to hydrolock and slightly bend a rod. Thats just my theory for now.

Plan is to pick up a ca20 in time to get it ready for Freedom Moves in Sept.

rednucleus · 04:11:44 PM / 24-Jul-15

Gotta like the man still faithful to the mighty CA. Glad you are enjoying yourself after the big move!

IggyEGuana · 05:00:02 PM / 24-Jul-15

I'd love to do the FJ but its not in the budget. Budget is zero lol. I have a plan for it. Need to start with cleaning the turbo block and getting a set of standard main bearings and some plastigage to spec out the mains. I've got a really fresh looking crank. looks like it was cleaned and checked. possibly had its journals polished too. im not sure. All that FJ stuff is for another soon to be created thread tho.

Nebuchernezzer · 01:31:17 AM / 02-May-16

I've not been on here forever but it's always good to come back and read stuff like this. Even though it's an old topic in itself now. Still going with this?

iceageg · 07:08:27 AM / 02-May-16

Iggy doesn't come around here much anymore. After moving to the east coast his new job keeps him very busy. He still has his S12 but he has not made any big changes or progress on it in a while. Not that we know of anyway.

8SixS12 · 10:49:53 AM / 02-May-16

Yeah. Everyone hangs out on Facebook now.

Wonderingraven · 11:49:41 AM / 02-May-16

He does stop in every now and then, he is on vacation right now tho if you follow him on FB. He is enjoying the east coast.

Nebuchernezzer · 02:10:56 AM / 03-May-16

Ah yes facebook. I'm on the s12 group there but still prefer forums. Life does get in the way of cars sometimes doesn't it haha.