jeff_oner

i have a 91 na (completely stock) im just wondering what would be a good drift setup. mainly what should i start out with. any suggestions would be much appreceiated. thanx

Jerk_Racer

I assume you have a car in good mechanical condition. Make sure you have a LSD first. Tires are the next consideration. Cheap ones in the back and something decent up front. Strut tower bars (front and rear) with the front lower arm bar really tighten up the frame. Suspension is the main focal point, so don't worry too much about power. Coilovers are cool, but not needed. A strut/spring combo will go a long way. Upgrading the stabilizer bars will help. But a bone stock (with LSD) car in good working condition is good to start with.
The main thing you need to do is to figure out what you want to get next is get out there and practice. Dumping money into a car won't make it any better if you don't know the basics. A crappy driver could have the meanest drift beast in the land and still be outshined by a good driver in a completely stock car. No amount of money can buy skills, so spend time.

jerk_racer@hotmail.com

Mykl

Why is a LSD required to drift?

I don't have one and I can control the car just fine when the rear end steps out.

What difference do you feel?

go_speed_go

The LSD make is easier to induce and hold the drift. 2 wheels spinning is better than one .

baix2

yeah..even u have the shittest car in the world if u have the skill u can drift the **** out of it..
so just practise and spend time on it...(be safe though)

my advicejeff_oner:...i dunno how good u r at (drifting) right now..but here are just some general advices that i experience and heard)

start with hand brake drift.. and start to do left turn first..they tend to be easier for most ppl...
don't have to go that fast..30 mph would do it..

i imagine power-over drift for a 91NA FC would be tough...u probably need a higher speed.. and probalby need to rev it up real high..and pop the clutch to do it.. so i would suggest stay out of it for now
with low speed turn on my FC, rear would slip until 4k rpm full throttle (2nd gear)...so imagine a NA

go to empty parking and practise first...main point of this is just to get the feeling of losing the rear and balancing the car..

and then find some nice wide corner and try to do it...there's no point of doing it in the parking lot anymore..u can't improve by drifting in an empty parking lot...

most important... safety
enjoy

and for LSD, i thought if u take it out, the wheels will lose control easier..
i thought the LSD was suppose to make the car balance and not loosing control that much...
right??

Fc3sracer

Anyone who knows anything about drifting will tell you that you need an LSD because you cabt hold a drift without one. If youre drifting without an lsd one wheel with spin at a differnet speed or not at all. you cant hold a slide when youre only spinning one wheel. you can start a slide but you can hold it.

baix2

oic now..thx
i guess my my assumption was wrong

jeff_oner

so how do i tell if i have lsd? i did some in highschool(lol), but have no idea how to tell if its on my car.

Mykl

An LSD makes it easier to induce drift? hmm, I NEED one in that case.

I love drifting, but the most difficult part is actually getting the rear to step out when I want it to. I can do it, but it requires some really tricky trail braking and maybe a faint to the outside.

Oh, and I'm talking about drifting, not power oversteer. In my book theres a big difference between the two. Although I admit that a car with a tendency to oversteer is easier to learn in, a car with a bit of understeer will be able to go faster.

Bah, nevermind me, I don't know what I'm talking about...

David88vert

Mykl, if your vert's rear end is stock, you have and LSD. Everywhere I have read said that all the verts came with it. Mine did, and everyone that I've ever seen did also.

Mykl

You're certain? I didn't think it did, but I can't remember what it did when I checked it.

When you have both wheels off the ground and you spin one what should the other do? If I remember correctly it's an open diff if the other wheel spins in the opposite direction.

I guess I'll have to check that again.

HWO

two words:

LOCKED DIFF

Flamin' NOS

Either do a burnout and check that you leave 2 patches or the best way is to spin a brodie or go around a corner and pop the clutch. Have someone watch you and if you're inside tire lights up, you don't have lsd. Some open diff's (when at the end of their life span) will light both tires up on a normal burnout.

ryanj

If your rear wheels are off the ground. Spin one, if the other goes the opposite direction the you don't have a LSD, same direction+ you do.

Rotary Racer

A good drift set up should include these parts:
- LSD, you can drift with out it but it is more difficult, with out an LSD one wheel will turn slower than the other causing the car to grip. This defeats the purpose of drifting. But if you have an LSD both wheels will spin in the same positive direction allowing you to control the car with your foot.
- Racing Beat Upright Toe Eliminator (part # 14050, $40.00). Mazda put in a trick steering system in the rear end of the car. It is called Dynamic Tuned Suspension Systems (DTSS). What this does is allow each tire to have a choice of its own path of travel depending on G force conditions. When the outside wheel feels enough G force it produces 1 degree of toe-in causing the car to squat and hook back up. This idea was great to keep kids from raping there RX-7’s around poll but bad for Drifting. (go to Racing Beat’s web site it has all this 411, they rule!! )
- Depending on your car you will probably need a better sway bar set up. This will allow the car to react more on a flat plane when you are in motion. Unlike the stock set up that sways you around so much you can almost get sick .
- New suspension including struts and springs. Again helps in the geometry and attitude of the car. Try to get adjustable struts so you can stiffen the car a little more in the rear.
- If at all possible get caster camber plates for the front. Adjusting the cars camber (negative but not to much if you drive it on the street) will allow the front tires to have more grip when the tire is rolled over in the turn allowing you to actually steer the car with your foot because the car will not be all over the place with lost grip in the front tires.
- Last but not least up grade your brakes and make sure they are in good condition. Because remember you might be able to control the slide but “can you control the stop?”
Have fun and practice away from any public street and don’t harm others. Peace.

the_glass_man

iTrader: (2)

What about getting rid of the rear steer (dts)?

Jerk_Racer

I think the stock setup is fine to start out with. Just head out to a wide open parking lot (preferably when it's wet) with some cones (the little soccer goal ones do just fine) and have fun. If it's wet this covers two points. 1)You don't need as much power to get sideways. Practice at lower speeds and work your way up. 2)Reduces tire wear and noise. Nothing attracts cops faster than the howling of tires. Whether it's some do-gooder trying to save the world by calling the cops to kill your good time or whatever. The less attention the better. Once you get to know your car, you'll realize which area you want to cover next.
That DTTS(sp?) sucks. I hate the way it feels like I'm going to swap ends when it is in use, but as soon as it isn't the backend snaps back into shape. It used to mess me up a lot when I first got my car. I have the Delrin bushings from Racing Beat, but I can't install them. My rear end it too crudded up to be able to remove anything without ruining everything. I'll have to get another rearend out of a junkyard to work with. Bahhh! I used to slide around in a car with an open diff (coincidentally this is how I eventually crashed that ratty old Skyline) and it sucked. It'll slide, but it's really touch and go. With a good LSD, backends slide smoothly and under control. The stock LSD in these 7's is good, but they'll only take so much abuse. The time will come to get a new one. When that happens go for Kaaz or Cusco.

jerk_Racer@hotmail.com

Mykl

That's what I thought.

I checked it tonight, and I do indeed have a limited slip diff.

That would totally explain why this car is easier to handle when it's sideways as opposed to my '90 GTU. That car was twitchy as Hell when the rear end came out. The convertible is really smooth.



That makes me happy.

Actually, when I spun one wheel the other didn't move at all. On the GTU when I spun one the other turned the opposite direction.

Vicious

hahaha MYKI this isn't initial D hahahaha we spoke about this last night LOL initial D hahaha...........man i can't stop laughing LOL


Vicious

p.s INitial D hahahah i'm takumi LOL

Jerk_Racer

Mykl: you like to get sideways? The convertible has a 12mm rear bar whereas the Turbo2, GXL, and GTU models had 14mm rear bars. You probably could pick one up cheap if you haven't done so already. Just an idea.

jerk_racer@hotmail.com

Mykl

huh?

EL PAALO

i know the numbers on the sticker let you know if you have an lsd on the 91-95 mr2...........the sticker where the gvr and tire psi is listed on the doorjam............nobody's decoded the sticker for the rex? someone decode it. scan in/take pics of doorjam stickers and list the model it's from so we can finger this ***** out the right way.

Mykl

It's fun, the only problem I have is finding relatively safe places to do it. If I'm just out on some backroad in the woods I don't bother with it, I'm not suicidal. However, there are a couple places in town that I can play with it in relative safety. Meaning if I hit something it'll be concrete and it won't be bad, and I won't hurt myself or others.

I didn't realize my sway bars were thicker than in other models, that's interesting to know. I may have to get a thicker one just to see how it feels. A little more oversteer couldn't hurt at this point though.

I know driving theories and drift theories fairly well, I've been studying it for a while and have put a lot of thought into how the car's ballance and suspension geometry work together to learn how to go faster. My only block right now is finding a really good place to implement those theories and drill it into my driving style.

I guess the idea that I like drifting and wanted to learn how to do it better sounded a bit silly to Vicious, but I want to be a better driver. Yeah, by now I could have upgraded the convertible to something faster, but I refuse to buy better equipment to make up for a lack of skill. If I can't explore the limits of a slower car, why do I need something faster?

[/rant]

Mykl

I never thought to look at the doorjam sticker. I'll have a look at that tomorrow.

I did a burnout in front of a friend tonight, he said both tires were spinning.

Node

iTrader: (1)

Thanks for the info