Drift Tengoku — September 2004 · Page 176

…with 16-inch wheels, lowered suspension, no wing, an FRP bonnet and a pure-white HCR32 . That's my dream! Then I'd take my girlfriend for a noisy, tire-squealing drive, and she'd say, ‘Ryo, you're amazing!’ Another dream!

Then I'd visit my old school: ‘Sir, I bought a car! Come for a ride!’ ‘Looks good! All right, just a little.’ Then revenge for my school days: more revving and squealing, while he cries, ‘We're going to crash!’ Ha ha!

Scared, teacher? Another dream! — Kit Takaki district, Nagasaki; Bakuon . Editors: rather inappropriate, but at least you're honest.

We recommend reading the comics of [author name damaged] and the novels of Haruhiko Oyabu . Keep following the path of the wild man! [Historical comic reader fantasy.]

Hello! I always enjoy reading Drift Tengoku with my boyfriend. He loves drifting and constantly thinks about his Onevia.

I study hard so I can talk with him about cars, but I struggle to keep up. I buy books and tell him what I learned each day. Recently, though, he and his friends looked coldly at me and said, ‘Don't act like you know everything!’ It made me terribly sad.

I love drifting. How can I learn more about cars? Please tell me! — Inaka-musume, Tottori.

Editors: perhaps he was embarrassed in front of his friends because his girlfriend is so understanding about his hobby, and said something cruel. He doesn't say that when you're alone, does he? Or are we wrong?

Perhaps you could…

Hello! I was delighted to be published in the July issue; it cleared up my uncertainty. This time I have a question: are all enthusiast drivers poor, like me?

When reading Drift Tengoku, I often wonder how young people can afford such cars. I work at a car company, am 27 and have just entered my third year there; the pay is far too low! Readers about my age spend millions of yen on JZX100-series cars, S15s and R34s, which are still expensive used models…

Hello! I'm an aspiring enthusiast driver: I have a license, but no car. Still, I feel I understand cars' feelings.

My boyfriend took me to the mountains, where someone was drifting an FD. Watching it almost made me cry. The FD seemed to be saying, ‘Stop!’ but the driver was forcing it.

I wish he had noticed what the car wanted. I wondered whether he was only pretending to be an enthusiast. I want drivers to pay proper attention to their cars.

Perhaps I'm not in a position to say so, but please care about the car's feelings too!

When a car shows signs that it can't cope, please stop! I got carried away, but I don't mean to insult enthusiast drivers. — Yui, who loves cars, Shikama district, Hyogo. Editors: we don't know the exact circumstances, but understand your point.

A car running well really does seem lively. However, hard-driven drift cars also make tire-squeal, wastegate and differential noises that may sound like damage to someone unfamiliar with them. To keep drifting with a valued companion, learn to distinguish those sounds and care for the car.