Tanner Foust’s V8 RWD Scion tC Formula Drift car unveiled
While all eyes were on Scion unveiling its take on the Toyota iQ city car at the New York Auto Show, the youth-oriented Toyota division quietly let slip a batch of photos of its latest challenger for the Formula Drift championship. But if these photos are any indication, it’ll be the last time this insanely modified Scion tC will be doing anything quietly.
Although the drift car you see here looks like a tC, underneath it’s anything but… heck, it doesn’t even use the tC’s floorplan, it’s so heavily modified. As previewed last week on video, this latest Scion drifter, prepared by drag racing and drift veteran Stephan Papadakis of Advanced Engine Management (AEM), packs a V8 courtesy of Toyota’s NASCAR racing program, pumping 650 horsepower and 450 lb-ft of torque through a four-speed shifter to the rear wheels. Of course, there’s only one driftsmith who could handle this much machine, and that’s Tanner Foust.
The two-time defending Formula D champion – who has some extra time on his lightning-quick hands since Top Gear USA got canceled – ditches the Nissan Z he’s been fielding the last few years in favor of this modified Scion, and takes his sponsor Rockstar Energy Drink along with him. The car debuted this weekend at the Formula D season opener in Long Beach, California.
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RMR Hyundai Genesis Coupe starts Formula D season with Nissan power.
http://www.autoblog.com/2009/04/15/rmr-hyundai-genesis-coupe-starts-formula-d-season-with-nissan-po/
When Rhys Millen debuted the new Hyundai Genesis Coupe at the season’s first Formula Drift event at Long Beach, not all was what it seemed. When the factory-supported drift program was announced in February at the Chicago Auto Show, it was still in its formative stages. The original press release noted that the car would be powered by a stroked and turbocharged 4.1-liter version of Hyundai’s Lambda V6 cranking out 550 hp. However, Hyundai didn’t give final approval for the drift program with Millen’s team until mid-January, at which point work began in earnest.
The car shown in Chicago and later at the press introductions for the Genesis Coupe was a stock car with modified bodywork to show what the race car would look like. As it turns out, the three month span between program approval and the Long Beach event wasn’t enough time to get a brand new car and powertrain ready. A reader sent us a tip letting us know that the car that ran in California did not, in fact, have a Hyundai engine installed.
As the opening event in Long Beach approached, Millen and his team came to the realization that the new engine wouldn’t be ready in time. This is where the Formula D rules came in handy.
Unlike NASCAR, where every car is virtually identical, the rules governing drivetrain modifications in Formula D are far more lax. That’s why you’ll see such oddities as a Lexus IS running a Chevy small-block or a Scion tC with a NASCAR engine under the hood. Drifters mix and match all manner of hardware, although most of the teams are independent and don’t have manufacturer backing. That’s where Millen and his association with Hyundai is different.
It’s not unheard of for race teams or manufacturers having difficulty with performance or the timing of their programs to go elsewhere for help. Perhaps the most recent example was in 2004-05 when Chevrolet, which had been struggling with the performance of its in-house developed IRL engine, decided to scrap it and go with a re-badged Cosworth engine. Cosworth, of course, had long been associated with arch-rival Ford.
Which brings us back to the present. After we got the anonymous tip about the non-Lambda engine, we contacted Hyundai who put us in touch with Millen. Millen told us that when it became obvious to the RMR crew that the new Lambda V6 wouldn’t be ready in time, they opted for Plan B. Instead of delaying the launch of the car, the decision was made to proceed with a different engine until the Lambda was ready. The closest thing they could find in terms of size was a Nissan VQ35.
According to Millen, he made the decision not to inform Hyundai of the change and he takes full responsibility. Millen said that the crew is working full speed to get the Lambda engine ready and expects to have it in the car within the next two to three events. That means it should be racing by either the New Jersey event on June 6 or the Las Vegas round on July 10.
