5 Automotive Wishes That Came True for Me in 2023

People often say, "If you can dream it, you can achieve it." What they need to say is that patience is vital. Thinking of my past, I've accomplished almost every single automotive-related dream I've had. But all of them took time: seven years before I graduated from the MyWay Drift School and my first SEMA event, ten years before my first trip to Japan, and 12 years before I finally bought a Mazda RX-7.

All these could have taken longer or never happened at all. But if you fight for your dreams and visualize them happening, you're in for a treat. That's why I set my New Year's Resolutions each year and try to accomplish as many of them as possible. Half of my wishes are related to cars or motorcycles and sound like this: "Go for a track day, visit a certain race track, start an automotive-related project, go for a long drive," and so on. But you know how life is: if you shoot for the stars, you may at least land on the moon.

And we should always appreciate progress in life, even if it's just baby steps. If you focus on dreams like: "Own a Ferrari," you might not be able to appreciate the fact that you already have a fantastic car at home. That doesn't mean you should settle for what you have, but focus on the present instead of just waiting for the future to happen.

Sim Racing Experience

In 2022, I spent hundreds of hours trying to improve at sim racing. Playing Assetto Corsa, I tested dozens of cars on the Nurburgring Nordschleife, trying to see how fast each one was. But I had to do so by using a keyboard. I spent Christmas of 2022 dreaming about finally getting a sim rig to immerse myself in virtual motorsports. One day, one of my colleagues called me to visit the office so that I could pick up my new Logitech G29 setup. But there was more: I got to experience Gran Turismo 7 on the PS VR2 for over 70 hours.

It was thrilling, and I spent most of the time either at Tsukuba, the Nurburgring, or a specific rally track behind the wheel of the Group B Quattro. Getting my first automotive wish of the year was terrific, at least initially. But I soon realized it would never be as good as the real thing. Sim racing will work fine in the off-season or if you don't have a car or a driver's license. But other than that, it's just not going to cut it. Still, I plan on doing more virtual tests in 2024 than I did this year, and I'll report back as soon as I have more exciting conclusions.

Trip to the Nurburgring

It wasn't long after my conclusion above that I received another incredible message: "Hey Dragos, I'm going to the Nurburgring Drift Cup in April. Do you want to come over and hang with us?" My initial reaction was something like, "Is the Pope Catholic?" I came close to attending a drift event at the Nurburgring in 2011 but ultimately had to participate in one in Poland scheduled for the same weekend.

I quickly booked a flight to Switzerland and the next thing I was speed hunting in Zurich. I can't remember seeing as many 911s in one day, but that was the beginning of my journey. My friend, Tobias Welti from Speed Industries, had initially planned to give me the keys to his newly acquired Nissan S14, but some paperwork issues meant that would be a no-go. Still, I got to hang around a 350+ horsepower Chaser and learned more about his race-ready JZX100. I thought I would freeze to death around the Schumacher-S Corner for two days at the Nurburgring, but I was happy to witness all the action. On one side of the track, I would see dozens of drift cars going up the hill in a cloud of smoke.

On the other hand, I saw my first endurance race, and all was well. Tobias introduced me to Mario, who owns a Nissan 350Z, and the plan was to go for a lap of the Nordschleife. But that didn't happen due to the fog; the marshals had decided to close the track for the entire day. Still, I remember almost crying into the main building at the Nurburgring after so many years of wanting to do so. I choose to see the half-full part of the glass and categorize my trip as a success. There's always time for a lap of the Green Hell next year.

YouTube Adventure

When I was younger, I always looked up to guys like Tiff Needell, Keiichi Tsuchiya, and Jeremy Clarkson. I dreamed about being a TV presenter and reviewing cars for a living. Hell, even Koichi Kijima, the RX-7 driver from Wangan Midnight, hosted a show called "Drive Go Go." So it's no wonder that by 2011 I was already hosting a podcast (before it became a widespread term) called "Drift Heroes."

I nurtured multiple channels focused on drifting and motorsports in general for several years. And I've always wanted a comeback to video production. Then came the third most incredible call for me this year. You might have noticed that autoevolution increased YouTube-related efforts in 2023, and I'm thrilled to have been part of most of them. I will cherish our trip to Kiskunlachaza for the International Drag Racing event all my life: there's no feeling like standing between two funny cars at "take off" as they warm up their tires for some much-needed traction.

Oliver Krautberger's Monte Carlo was one of my favorite cars there, and my teammate did a fantastic job editing the shots we took on a nearby landing strip inside the old airport. I've also decided to document more of my RX-7-related antiques on the social media platform, but more about that in a minute.

Road Trip Challenge

I've been so obsessed with cars that my friends have often jokingly asked me, "Why don't you become a cab driver if you love them so much?" I can appreciate anything with an engine and wheels on; it doesn't even have to be a sports car. The first car I bought was my FC RX-7 in 2018, but I soon realized I needed a daily one. I opted for a diesel-powered station wagon, perfect for long road trips.

Since buying it in 2020, I've already put almost 56,000 miles (90,123 km) on it. I love putting on my favorite songs or discovering new ones while driving. And I've done quite a bit of that in 2023. I started with a 500-mile (800-km) journey for the drag racing event in June. And I managed to break an old record of mine in September. 2015, I needed to go from the Essen Motor Show in Germany to the Bologna Motor Show in Italy. I covered about 700 miles (1,126 km) in 16 hours, as it was almost mid-December, and I faced heavy snow along the way.

I was alone for the entire road, with only Rammstein and plenty of drum and bass music to keep me going. And it was the most extended road trip I had ever embarked on until this year. In September, I drove my car for almost 900 miles (1,448 km) in one go, and the whole thing took me nearly 19 hours. Funny enough, as I arrived at the hotel next to the Mediterranean Sea, I decided to go out for dinner and drinks instead of just sleeping. It reminds me why #TravelLife defined my 20s.

RX-7 Life

But my biggest wishes for 2023 were all about RX-7s. Every year since 2018, I dreamed about finishing the project and taking it to the racetrack. But some of you may know that "finishing" and "project" rarely come together in a sentence when talking about cars. Halfway through the year, I had only taken the FC out for a spin in the backyard but needed proper insurance and an official tech inspection to go further. But the opportunity to go to the racetrack came in July, and my buddy Mike said we'd take the FD.

I offered to split the costs, and he kindly let me drive his big single-turbo RX-7. I had never driven it in this configuration before and could barely sleep the night before the track day. It was my ultimate driving experience and not something anyone could describe using words. A close to 500 hp RX-7 will either scare you to death, make you think angels are singing around you, or both concomitantly. I know I have yet to unlock more than 30% of the car's potential on track, but I also know that Rome was not built in a day.

If 2023 had stopped then and there, I would have still been thrilled about it all. But then, Mike spent two weeks getting my FC ready to get back on the road, and I lived my second dream by driving it at a smaller race track after so many years. Also, road-tripping with the two RX-7s through touge roads made me feel like Ryosuke Takahashi from Initial D in a second.

To top things off, we decided to shoot a Christmas movie with the crew featuring the FC, the FD, and three RX-8s. We bought Christmas trees, mounted them on the RX-7s, added some Christmas lights, and went for a late-night drive. So, Merry Christmas, everyone! I hope Santa Claus brings you that special gift you've been craving about! And if it doesn't happen on Christmas day, just be patient. Happiness is just around the corner!