12 of the weirdest ever drift cars
Ferrari 599
Drifting is, at heart, a Japanese discipline, but when Federico Sceriffo set about competing in Formula Drift America, he decided he needed a more patriotic mount. A twin-s’charged, 800bhp Ferrari 599 with a hydraulic handbrake.
Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow
Fair play to Shane Lynch. The Irishman decided, post Boyzone fame, that sliding about in a 6.7-litre V8-powered, three-speed ’79 Roller was much cooler than crooning love songs from a bar stool surrounded by dry ice.
Nitro Circus School Bus
Nitro Circus can be relied upon for vehicular mayhem. Stripping a US school bus of its fittings, adding a giant roll cage and setting it loose on a flooded carpark? We’d expect nothing less. More a spinner than a drifter, but a noble effort.
Ford Transit Van
An aggressively driven Transit van? Wonders will never cease… Next time there’s an angry builder tailgating you to oblivion, count your blessings it’s not fitted with a 440bhp V8 and a locking diff, like this prototype.
Toyota Prius
You’d expect a sideways Prius to be an immature riposte to the Toyota’s holier-than-thou values, perhaps with V8 power, right? Think again. This is actually a full-EV conversion with Tesla-baiting, tyre-shredding abilities.
1968 Dodge Charger
Tip of the hat to Alexandre Claudin, who decided to go hillclimb drifting in a 5.3m-long Dodge Charger boasting a tuned BMW V8 and exhausts protruding from the tops of the front wings. Yes, that sounds perfectly safe.
Ford Focus RS Mk1
The Focus RS had a problem with torque steer. In 2002, threading 212bhp through the front wheels of a car was… sketchy. A solution, then, from Kugel Street Rod Components. How about a 4.6-litre Mustang V8 conversion and rear-drive?
Lamborghini Murcielago
Japan likes to do mad things to Lambos – usually LED fairy lights and wild liveries. Pro drifter Daigo Saito prefers to strip one out, add a drift steering rack, and attack mountain passes looking out of the (rather pinched) side windows.
Jaguar E-Type
Project Purist (hah!) is the result of a rotten E-Type being renewed by Brit brothers Nick and Charlie Seward. Thanks to a 450bhp Toyota engine and BMW M5 V10 running gear, it’s not welcome at Jag concours events, and all the better for it.
Ford Sierra Estate
Completely stock, save for the welded diff and hydraulic handbrake.
Isuzu Piazza
Pretty cars these (work of Giorgetto Giugiaro), and rare too. This one spends its time going sideways.
Volvo 240
The roll cage looks as though it has seriously compromised the 240’s Ikea sofa-carrying abilities.
