KKS-AAM Autocross 2nd November 2008

It has been 2 years since I last competed in an autocross event. I love autocrosses and had been doing it a lot during drivers training program with Sean but we’re never serious into competing.

Recently, there have been quite a number of autocross events going on. The KKS-AAM Autocross is one of them. Seeing that the Dunlop 32 and Dunlop 13 were under maintenance after Star Drift Challenge Round 3, we decided to give it a go with the red twins.

This event took place at the Shah Alam Stadium carpark. There are a total of 3 layouts to be completed throughout the day. Each driver was given one practice run and two timed runs in each of the layout. The best run out of the two for all 3 layouts will be added together to determine the placing. The key to winning here is consistency.

We were put together with the Toyota MRSs in sports car class. The MRSs were very nimble and quick with superb turn-in and throttle response to maneuver through the tight turns and slaloms. So it seems that the only advantage that we had over them is power, which comes at a cost of turbo lag and uncontrollable wheel spin when the torque kicks in.

The Hiper DCM Silvia is setup as an all-rounder, so only minor adjustments such as dampers setting and tyre pressures were altered. To compensate for the natural poor turn-in of a drift setup which is caused by the 2-way LSD, I’ve opt for bigger 245/40/17 tyres on the fronts. With the bigger contact patch, steering feedback and mid-corner grip were much better, especially on the sandy surface of the Shah Alam Stadium carpark. Although the turn-in sluggishness was still present, the car feels more neutral.

After completing 2 layouts, I realized that I’m in a close tie with Dennis Loo, a seasoned autocrosser in his MRS. I decided to give it a fight on the 3rd layout and clocked a 59-second run. That run bumped my overall position to 1st, winning Dennis by a small fraction of 0.1 second. Sean popped an intercooler hose during his 2nd layout run and realized that his times were quite far away, so he were practically smoking up the course. Sean came out 4th place in sports car class but was put to 3rd place in graded driver class due to him being an AAM license holder.

Star Drift Challenge 2008 Round 3

Star Drift Round 3 had a different course layout this time. Instead of the conventional high speed left hander, the first turn was changed to a quick left to a long right hander, which means a quick switch of direction on 3rd gear. Smaller cars will have a good advantage on this setup.




Dunlop32 had a small collision during Sunday practise with Heng driving a AE70. The collision had caused the passenger side front panel damage and the panel have to be removed for the car to run on.

Had a not so good run during qualifying session and only managed to qualify in 12th position. Was paired up with Chong Kin Lok in his AE70 during Best 16. Had a huge lead over him in the first run. During the second run, I was pulling away from him on the straights. While in the switching, the tail caught a little bit too much angle and has caused the knuckle to go into 'reverse lock' position. It couldn't steer anymore and the car went off course. Chong took the win.

I then realised that the collision had caused the lower arm stopper to bend and which in turns caused the 'reverse lock'.

Only managed to collect 5 championship points this round. While I still retain 4th place in the championship, 1st and 2nd place are already in the winning lead and the rest are catching up. Looks like more hardwork will be needed during the final round.

Star Drift Round 3 Oct 11-12

It is that time again to have some fun and compete as well in the coming event this weekend.

It should be good fun after a long break since the last round and after raya too....

See you guys there.....

Kampung Gajah Open Trackday - 07 September 2008

The Cari Touge Club of the Chinese Cari forum has organised this open trackday at the Dato' Sagor Circuit located at Kampung Gajah, Perak. It's a mini circuit which is about a kilometer long, with twisty bends and short straights which mainly cater for grassroot motorsports events.

I've been to the circuit a few times for events and drivers' training, but never have I drifted there all this long. Having inadequate practice and testing with the Hiper DCM Silvia since its last upgrade, I decided to give it a go, at the mean time meeting up with a few old buddies from the Chinese Cari forum.

7am Sunday morning, we set off to Kampung Gajah in 2 cars, with the Caldina carrying the tyres and all necessary spares. It took us about 2 hours to cover the 200km journey to the destination.


The trackday was basically a free run session with a time trial and mini race later in the afternoon. As there were not much cars on the track, I got plenty of time to test out different lines and setting, and also getting myself acquainted to the power of the current setup.

I must say, drifting in this circuit is very addictive. The 3 linking high speed turn on the opposite side of the grandstand is really challenging. First of all, the entry is moderately fast and you need to get a good angle on the entry in order to tackle the 2nd corner with a correct line. The transition point is also crucial. You’ll be grazing the grasses (yupe the run-off areas are basically grasses) if it’s too early or too late. A 4.3 final drive for the Silvia will definitely benefit here as with the 4.1, there’s a slight bog down on the 1st transition, and you’ll need to downshift for the final turn.


I met a few drifters there, some of which I took them for a ride and share some tips with them. The boys from the Cari Touge Club are a bunch of motorsports fanatics. I spent most of my time taking them as passengers and swirling around topics related to cars and motorsports. Hopefully this in some ways motivated them.

After the free run session, I decided to head back home early. Before I left, the organizers have decided to put me into the time trial session! Not wanting to disappoint them, I went for it. With the 255 Direzzas worn right up to the TWI at the rears, the car was struggling for traction. Once the power kicked in, the rear wheels were spinning on 1st, 2nd and 3rd gear. The recorded time, however, was 55 seconds. Power do play a part here, but there is much more room for improvement still.

Here's a short clip recorded by one of the member:

Photo credits to Jamie Oh and Alvan Yap

An interesting article, a friend of mine came across and passed to me. Was a good surprise to know that is was printed in the Tyreman magazine.

Judging Toyo Drift Malaysia Series Round 2

Due to the arise of several issues regarding branding and supply of tyres, and that the Dunlop 32 was still under preparation, I was asked to be the judge of the Toyo Drift Malaysia Series Round 2. Judging alongside with me is Nazrul Afifi from Team Toyo Drift.

This is a 3-day event held at the Carpark A of Kompleks Sukan Negara, Bukit Jalil.

As suggested by the organizers, the drift course was setup ‘SSO D1 Preview’ style. It has a curved entry and a bump near the initiation point, and an outer clipping point with almost zero run-off which permits little room for error. During the Friday soft runs, there were a few mishaps, the worst being Heng from Banting barrel-rolled his AE70 360 degrees. He suffered a few cuts on his right hand caused by a shattered front windscreen, due to the fact that he was not wearing a race suit and driving gloves. It could have been worse if not for the organizers insisting a rollcage as an entry requirement.

Seeing the danger that the setup posed, the drivers had requested that the track setup be altered to a straight entry.

Following the introduction of Best 32 Tsuiso during Round 1, the organizer has decided to carry it on. However, taking into account of having the best qualifier versus the last qualifier if we were to follow the traditional format, the level of driving would be too far apart and it makes it difficult for the best qualifier to adapt to the last qualifier. I have thus come out with a new format of Best 32 Tsuiso, whereby the top 8 qualifiers are seeded for best 16 while the rest would have to fight their way up the tree.



Tabulation of the scores was also automated this round to reduce calculation errors and speed things up. A simple computer program will do the trick.

Due to the difficulty of the drift course, only 28 drifters managed to proceed to the Best 32 Tsuiso round, leaving 4 spots empty. 6 drifters scored zero in both their qualifying runs.

The level of drifting in the country has definitely gone up, and it even amazes the GM of Toyo from Japan. There were some notable performances from Ivan Lim of Singapore with his aggressive styles, and not to forget Tengku Djan and Ivan Lau which performed consistently throughout the Tsuiso round. The boys from Team Toyo Drift were doing great too despite the lack of luck on their side.



All in all, it was a great event and I’m definitely looking forward for the next round, as judge or competitor.

Dunlop Drift Performance Encapsulating The Essense Of Drifting

Finally, the article is up and running in Motorsport Channel.



The interview was completed during mid of July and it is out. Check it out in full at.

http://www.motorsportchannel.com/2_archive/2008/drift/drift_dunlop_drift_performance_encapsulating_essense_of_drifting.html



Althought there are some corrections needed. I bought my car at RM39k only.. but all is good as it raises the sale price of the cars, especially after all the love and work out into it not to mention the upgrading done to it. Am sure all the Silvia owners would be happy with it. :) How could we put a price on our love ones.

Some nice picture taken by Motorsport Channel too.



Many thanks and appreciation to Motorsport Channel for the time taken to meet us and interviewing us and the great pictures taken.