I Drove the World's First Production Drift Car and Felt Like a God

Trying to get close to the big man upstairs only made me realize that my allegiance stands with science, and so I became an atheist. I still embrace the values of Christianity; I just don't ever go to church. Well, I guess racetracks are churches, too. I usually frequent them on Sundays, free my soul of any burdens acquired during the week, and rid myself of my inner speed demon there.

Drifting is my religion

So, I guess you could say that motorsport is my religion. Drifting is my go-to place: it makes me happy to look at it, talk about it, do it, and think about it. It helped me see the world, meet my idols, make new friends, experience foreign cultures, and develop multiple skills. Graduating from MyWay Drift School over 10 years ago is still one of the highlights of my life, and I'm turning 35 in just a few weeks. I've recently had the chance to return to the school's base in Tokol, Hungary.

And what I experienced there made me cry tears of joy. My teacher /friend Adam Frank has been working for the past ten years, building the world's first production drift car. I discussed the It Is What It Is project in a recent story but just scratched the surface of the scale of the whole thing. MyWay Drift School operates on a 40,000 sqm area inside of an ex-Soviet airport, and their pad offers a safe yet exciting environment to practice drifting.

On the first day, I was the first to arrive on site with my team, eager to see the IIWIIs. The school has been using BMW 3-Series E46 cars for over a decade now (they used to have E30s and E36s). These cars are just what you need for drifting: roughly 300 horsepower, a steering angle of over 60 degrees, and a relatively low weight of about 2,645 lbs/1,200 kg. After the first six Bimmers rolled in, I noticed three formidable silhouettes approaching me from several hundred yards away.

Watching the IIWII from afar, you may think it's a sibling to the Ariel Atom or the KTM X-Bow (that's what one of my close friends thought). But once you get closer, you realize you haven't seen this vehicle. You can tell it uses a tubular chassis and minimal body panels, and it's almost like it has an exoskeleton around it. If you're familiar with what a drift event looks like, all of these features make perfect sense. Otherwise, I will explain shortly.

I had been waiting for that moment my entire life

Light travels faster than sound, so I soon heard the V8 rumble from the three cars. The IIWIIs now use a BMW-sourced 4.0-liter V8, but you can expect to see a Chevrolet powerplant shortly. I was lucky enough to experience 300 horsepower on a 1,720 lbs/780 kg chassis. If you're unaware of how amazing that is, let me compare it to other machines on the market. The Polaris RZR Pro R packs 225 hp while weighing 2,187 lb (992 kg). A Series 1 Lotus Elise is slightly lighter but has less than 200 horsepower.

The It Is What It Is drift car will make an AE86 look fat and somewhat heavier than a Suzuki Cappucino kei car. But let me tell you what it feels like before I discuss more technical aspects. After watching my friend Luca driving for half a day (his first day of school), my blood was already boiling to test the IIWII. Adam told me to take the red one out for a session and see what it can do. I felt like a little kid on Christmas Eve. I was so enthusiastic that I tried climbing through the "roll cage," not realizing that the sidebar goes up for easier access. Silly me!

Once inside, it all follows the KISS (Keep It Stupid Simple) philosophy. First, you strap yourself in using the harness. You flip the power switch to On and then push the Start button, and the monster comes to life. There are no windows or doors so that first cold start will get your adrenaline flowing immediately. "Start in second gear, and then use third for the whole track." Those were my instructions, and I felt I had been waiting for that moment my entire life.

I must say that I had to deal with some anxiety, as I hadn't been in a proper drift car for almost a decade. "What if I lost it?" I thought to myself. I went for a reconnaissance lap my first time, just to see how I should approach the layout. And I discovered the drive wasn't intimidating at all. Anyone driving a manual car will find it easy to operate the IIWII. Feeling the wind in your face is like riding a motorcycle, and I immediately remembered testing a CFMOTO Side-By-Side a few years ago.

I felt like a drifting God

Sitting inside feels relatively similar, but the IIWII is so low that it feels like a go-kart. Once back to the start line, I started accelerating smoothly, and even so, the rear end already wanted to slide out. Shifting into third and turning the wheel, I stepped on the gas, and the IIWII easily went sideways. The power-to-weight ratio is phenomenal, and I was surprised at how smooth the transitions are. There is so much angle to play with, and with constant throttle inputs, I could hear, smell, and feel the rear tires releasing clouds of smoke behind me.

After a ten-year hiatus, I only needed two laps to properly understand how to operate the IIWII. I won't lie to you; after just eight laps, I felt like a drifting God; that's how empowering the IIWII was. "Keep drifting fun" is not something Adam Frank and his team have forgotten, and I knew then and there that this platform could revolutionize the sport as we know it today. After all, why would you need the stress of maintaining and operating a pro drift car and competition time when you can simply have a vehicle like this and enjoy its freedom?

Using 500-treadwear tires, Adam mentioned that you could technically have fun an entire day on a single set of tires, which is almost mind-numbing in this sport. Easy to operate, affordable to maintain, and extremely fun? That sounds like a recipe for success. Adam also pointed out that the car would be considerably faster on semi-slicks, which I experienced on my last day at MyWay Drift School. There was a new layout for each of the four days at the event, and they kept getting faster and faster.

Anxiety once again took over for day two after doing the customary track walk, and I wanted to avoid washing out onto the grass. But once I got back in the car, all my confidence returned. I could feel how stable the chassis was mid-drift, and Adam's explanation afterward further sustained that idea: "We designed it to have a weight distribution of 45%-55% while standing still. Once you're drifting/accelerating, it changes to 50%-50%." As Keiichi Tsuchiya once said, Balance is key!

Drifting the IIWII feels like dancing

Drifting with the IIWII feels like dancing: you must free your mind of thoughts and synchronize with your partner. Once you achieve that, everything will be fine. Another of my old drifting friends, Nicolo Rosso, was onsite as he has been a MyWay Drift instructor for many years. He noticed me spinning when transitioning into the last section of the track and told me to be more gentle when letting off the gas before switching directions: "It will put less load on your front tires, and you won't spin anymore."

His advice worked like a charm, and I found myself going faster, with a bigger angle and a better line lap after lap. Interestingly enough, drifting through the entire layout takes less than 30 seconds. But it was as if time slowed down when I was doing it, and that's a sensation I cannot describe in words. The IIWIIs will serve as excellent tandem battle practice vehicles, as the exoskeleton provides excellent protection against crashing. Having students train with a regular car can lead to body pannel and chassis damage, but this platform could render crash damage obsolete.

I was impressed that one of the early designs featured a shock absorber on the roll bar, but it ultimately added too many lbs to the build to be effective. During one of the days of shooting, I was just outside the Drift School's hangar when I heard something exciting. One of the mechanics had fired up a blue IIWII, but it sounded more aggressive than the red one I had already driven. I soon discovered this sported a slightly more modern, larger engine, albeit still a BMW V8 at heart.

And Adam told me to try it out on my last day. It sounded more aggressive and felt a bit more modern as it had a slightly different setup. With semi-slicks on and more steering angle, I needed a few laps to adjust to the driving style. But I soon began initiating like a madman, throttle pinned to the floor in third gear. I never came close to reaching its full potential, but I'm certain I'd be much better at driving it after a few more days of practice.

Some of the students who had driven the car that day had supercars in their garages at home, and they were still impressed with the IIWII. I don't remember seeing so many people grinning from ear to ear at once as I did during my drifting trip. The It Is What It Is Drift car swept away all of my sadness caused by being unable to drift over the past decade. And I feel this is just the beginning of a much more exciting adventure.