https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ntu_paGoeF4
YouTube motorsport archive legend ‘RocketPencil’ has uploaded some excellent AE86 Cup videos from the eighties. Featuring two of the rounds of the 1985 AE86 1000km race at Fuji Speedway, the footage is addictivley good!
Above is Round Two and below is Round Three.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=145PfO210PA
Let’s hope soon RocketPencil can find Round One hiding amongst his retro motorsport contacts!
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That’s right, our favoure panda Trueno and it’s aloof driver return for the fifth installment of the series that truly made the AE86 infamous.
Japanese readers can get more information on when to watch live here.
For the rest of us, we will have to wait for fansubs after November 9 to get our Project D fix!
Excited to announce HR will be attending the “Fuji 86 Style” event on August 5th and private 8/6 drift event the following day!
We will be bringing you updates through the day as well as a full report Sunday night so stay tuned to the facebook feed and the blog!
Check it out! – https://www.fsw.tv/freepage/620/
Some choice grassroots AE86 drifting straight outta Japan from the DRIFT SURVIVAL event in SUNAGAWA on the 22nd of July. Cheers to Ryota Sakaguchi for the video!
All of us here at HR Blog have been long time fans of Irish motorsport photographer Paddy McGrath, but his latest works might just contain some of the most iconic images of the Drift King yet! However they didn’t come without a great deal of personal anguish from Paddy!
He writes:
Those of you with an interest in drifting will surely recognize the name Keiichi Tsuchyia, also known as the ‘Drift King’. Tsuchyia-san is the godfather of drifting, and without doubt one of the most important people in the history of the sport. CAR (magazine) wanted to celebrate his history whilst also exploring his involvement with Toyota’s new GT86. The brief I received illustrated clearly what CAR wanted from the shoot, and allowed me to plan in advance what equipment I would be relying on.
Unfortunately, on the day of the shoot my appendix decided it no longer wanted to be a part of me. Shooting in much discomfort and pain, I was limited in my movement and abilities. It was pretty upsetting, as this was something I wanted to deliver 110% but I just couldn’t. I pushed on as much as I could and once the shoot was over, made my way to a local hospital where I was admitted for surgery.
I knew beforehand that there was a tight deadline, so I started editing the images a couple of hours after surgery. It probably wasn’t a great idea editing them in a hospital ward (under fluorescent lights) and under the influence of many amazing drugs, but sometimes you have to push on. All things considered, I was happy with the product of the day’s work. I just can’t help but think what could have been though …
With a tenacious work ethic like that, it’s easy to see why Paddy has come so far in the world of motorsport photography in just a few short years!
Hit this link here to see the full set of amazing images and the whole story, and be sure to pick up the August issue of CAR magazine for the article!
Those lucky Kiwi’s over the ditch always get the best stuff and now they have the best local ‘special edition’ of the 86 too!
Only 20 New Zealand TRD Special Editions will be built as part of the initial production run and each car will be numbered and supplied with certificate of authenticity. The car is a NZ ’86’ Spec (similar to our base model ‘GT’) with the TRD 18″ Black Forged aluminium wheels and Michelin Pilot Sport 3 225/40 tyres.
To go with the extra grip the Michelin’s provide, Toyota NZ are also fitting the TRD Special Edition with the now-infamous TRD Mono-block Brake Calliper Kit. The contents of which are: Front Mono-block Calliper (6-pot), Rear Mono-block Calliper (4 pot), 2-piece Front Brake Rotor (355mm), 2-piece Rear Brake Rotor (345mm), Stainless Steel Braided Brake Hose (Front / Rear) and Brake Pads (Front / Rear).
Obviously, the styling isn’t exactly standard either. This special 86 is fitted with the TRD Aero package containing a Front Bumper and Side Spoilers, Rear Spoilers, Under Bumper (Diffuser) and Boot Spoilers. The car also sounds the goods with the fitment of the TRD ‘quad-tip’ rear muffler too!
At NZ$63,486 (Roughly AUD$48,795 at time of writing) it’s not exactly cheap – an 86 (GT) spec car can be had for NZ$41,986 (AUD$32,269) – but you do get a hell of a lot for your money. A similarly priced TRD-Spec in Australia would cost roughly $46,000 – Would you pay the extra $16,000 for the TRD treatment? Hit the comments and let us know!
Check out the full details here and hit our flickr here for more wallpaper-sized images of the NZ TRD Special Edition.
Leaves me wondering though, why hasn’t Toyota Australia offered a similar limited-edition TRD version here in Australia? Surely at even 50 limited edition cars, they would be snapped up super-quick!
Germany’s AUTOZEITUNG take a stock ZN6 Toyota 86 to the ‘Ring to do a lap of ‘the green hell’.
In the middle of the Norwegian summer, Gatebil at Rudskogen sees more than 45000 car enthusiasts from all over Scandinavia, England and even Japan making their way across te world to make this event one of the biggest car festivals in Europe!
Rudskogen is located about 1.5 hours drive south east of Oslo, close to the Swedish border, but that didn’t stop New Zealand’s MadMike Whiddett and Ireland’s Darren McNamara from joining their Norwegian squadmate Fredric Aasbo for the first group smackdown of the Speedhunters super-top-secret drift team.
Hit up the Speedhunters post HERE to see a close up profile of each of the cars and some of the trademark antics of the down-to-earth crew.
