Drift Tengoku — September 2004 · Page 152
Page 152 — English translation
The final uses tandem battles! The expert class was predictably the hottest contest. Local stars competed fiercely for slide distance and angle.
S14 driver Ando was exceptional. The subdued body color and mismatched fenders made the car look rough, but it was incredibly fast! From the top 16, the expert class switched to D1-style tandem battles.
Against turbo-upgraded cars with explosive exhaust notes, he matched their speed and impact, advanced decisively and won. ‘I meant to enter my usual Skyline, but it developed trouble, so I hurriedly prepared this car the day before,’ Ando said. The only competition-specific measure was increasing steering angle…
…and the Silvia was otherwise stock, without even a boost increase! His opponents must have been frustrated. Winning outright with that specification proves his skill.
Runner-up Nishioka drove the long-nose Silvia featured at the front of this issue. Its Grand Champion-style dress-up was excellent, and the driving just as aggressive. Against a conventional full-aero Silvia in tandem, it looked like a battle of good and evil, yet he kept winning—a great achievement!
Still, even Nishioka's sharp driving could not overcome Ando…
His usual car is the orange Skyline that has appeared several times in Drift Tengoku. Trouble just before the event forced him to enter this Silvia. It has a front-mounted intercooler, aftermarket air filter and exhaust, but no boost controller—the specification stayed as it was when bought. Before the event, he replaced the radiator with a two-layer unit. Power was probably only around 250 hp, though the driving certainly didn't look like it!
Captions and page details
Championship
Event
Always a full house! Many participants aren't just competing on skill; they also want to stand out through unique modifications…
On location
…the spirit of drifting's roots is right here!
REPORT
…that's how it felt.
33
DUNLOP
87 cars assembled…
…to become Ehime's number one!
Scramble's Ando conquers Ehime with an almost stock car!
Rear tires match the front in both brand and size. The slightly higher ride height might be the secret to easy control. He used Tein coilovers.
He used steering spacers to increase steering angle. ‘Without those, I don't think I could have won,’ Ando said; the final became a contest of angle. Front tires were RE-01s in 245/40-17. FRP wide fenders were fitted to prevent contact at countersteer.
Winner
Masaki Ando
…kun [name suffix]
Expert class top 16
150
Takahiko Fukushima, RPS13
Photography: Tatsuya Eto / Drift Tengoku
Yuichi Watanabe, HCR32
Yoshifumi Nishida, PS13
Yasushi Yano, FD3S
Takayuki Ishimaru, S14
Hitoshi Ando, A31
Ken Asaki, HCR32
Shinji Nishida, PS13
About this issue
ドリフト天国 (Drift Tengoku), September 2004, is a Japanese drifting magazine. This archive preserves 316 scanned pages in their original right-to-left reading order, including the covers.
English translations are available through the outlined text areas. Hover over a box on desktop, or tap it on mobile. The original photographs and Japanese lettering remain visible on the scan.
Reading the magazine
Use the page buttons or page number to navigate. On mobile, drag with one finger to move the page and pinch with two fingers to zoom. On desktop, drag a corner to turn a page. The zoom controls allow a closer look at the scans.