Shakedown, Breakdown, You’re Busted!

This past weekend I brought my car out to the season opening event at Summit Point Raceway in West Virginia for some shakedown runs to make sure all of the improvements would hold up to the abuse of drifting. I arrived at 7am to unload and stage the car so I could help get the rest of the event set up and going smoothly. I am one of the main organizers of the Drift Nirvana events held at Summit Point on a regular basis so I had additional responsibilities that day.

One thing that I was extremely thankful for was the gorgeous weather that we were blessed with, it was sunny and warm all day, perfect for a drift event. We had a ton of drivers in attendance at the event, 73 registered, and countless spectators, which had the paddock area teaming with activity and excited fans. I had the car looking good and I was ready to get back into the driver seat to see what the new power plant was capable of.

So I suited up and pulled out of the pits to warm the car up and see how comfortable I would be in it. The first run I just warmed the tires up and goosed the throttle a few times just to see what I could expect from the newly acquired LS6 V8. It was quite grunty and had a lot of torque off throttle. My second run I gave it a little more as I gained speed for the left hand sweeper on the course and effortlessly drifted through the turn and into the next. I was impressed; this is going to be a lot of fun. Having gotten the needed information, I pulled back into the pit to look over the car and make sure everything was working well and checked for leaks. I did find a significant power steering fluid leak, but it turned out to be just a loose line. So with that tightened and the reservoir full. It was time for more runs.

The rest of the day went extremely well. The engine coolant temps stayed well in check, thanks to the Mishimoto radiator, fan and shroud set-up. The Falken Tires held up to a beating, were smoking and had tons of bite. The Enkei Wheels were performing flawlessly as usual, and the Sikky Manufacturing engine mounting kit lived up to its reputation as being the best on the market. I am ecstatic about the upcoming drifting season and how well the car is performing. Thanks for all of the support from the fans, ASD Motorsports, Falken Tire, Sikky Manufacturing, Mechanix Wear Gloves, Race Design Graphics, Mishimoto Automotive, and Enkei Wheels. Here’s to a great season!