Automobile and Introduction A. Drifting Essay

I. Introduction A. Drifting is one of the fastest growing motorsports in North America. B. I first came across drifting in 2004. C. Drifting is one of the most extreme and exciting forms of motorsports. D. Some of the things to know about drifting are: 1. The history 2. The cars 3. The techniques II. Body A. History 1. According to answers.com drifting is actually defined as when a car is in a controlled slide through a corner. 2. Drifting got its start around the early 1970’s in the JGTC racing circuit by a driver named Kumitsu Takahashi. 3. However, drifting did not hit the street racing scene till 1977 by a local Japanese street racer named Keiichi Tsucjiya, who had a video produced of him drifting in the mountains of Japan. 4. In 1988 the first official drift event was organized by legendary driver Daijiro Inada in Japan. 5. Drifting since then has spread all around the world. B. The cars 1. Basically all drift cars are rear wheel drive because you have to be able to control the rear of the car through the corner. 2. Most of the drift cars used in comp. are FR cars, but MR, and RR are starting to make their way into drifting. 3. The main reason most people use FR is because the less weight you have in the rear, the easier it is to break the rear tires loose. 4. The sport is dominated by JDM cars in the top drifting series, but the American and even Euro. Cars are starting to challenge the JDM car now.(See visual aid) 4. The only necessary modifications you need to do to a car to drift is a aftermarket suspension so the car does not flip during a drift, and a roll cage for safety reasons. C. The techniques 1. According to D1GP.com there are essentially 2 different techniques to make a car drift: A. Beginner techniques which are basically techniques where you lock up the rear wheels to make the car slide and then follow through the corner with throttle control. B. Weight transferring techniques are for more advanced drifters. 1. Weight transfer techniques use the actual weight of the car by moving side to side and brake the rear wheels loose to start a drift. III. Conclusion A. as you can see, drifting is one of the most extreme and exciting forms of motorsports by its: 1. History 2. Cars 3. Techniques B. So if your looking for some comp. completely different from anything else, check out drifting. Bibliography Answers.com Oct. 8, 2007 D1GP.com Oct 8, 2007.