thinking about getting into drifting but worried.

[eruyi]

Hi,

Had a S13 for about an year which is the first RWD of my life. I want to start drifting. But this is one concern that I have whenever I think of drifting.

Leaks from radiator or AC, Alternator failing, brakes making noises, overheating...

All those things that 15 years old car can get worry me. How fast likely will drifting stress and induce damages like those on an old car like my s13 which doesn't have any of those problems so far? Unlike most of you, I never have fixed a car so trips to a nearest garage and getting ripped off by professionals seem like mandatory course of my fate. Any advice is welcome even if you feel like to call me a coward.

[SeVa-S13]

1.) Be a man and learn to work on your own car.

2.) "Drifting" shouldn't have any ill effects on your radiator/AC/alternator, unless of course you crash. Depending on how much you use your brakes during the drifting, they may wear faster than normal but they are a consumable item anyhow and wear out either way. Overheating shouldn't be an issue aslong as you watch your temp gauge.If anything, drifting is going to be hard on your 15 year old suspension, so look into replacing old, worn bushings and things of that nature.

[andrave]

lots. if you are the kind of girly man that shys away from changing his own oil, or the one whose belts squeal for 3 months because you don't want to tighten them, motorsports in general are not for you. Over heating, brake wear, tire wear, broken suspension components, damaged sheet metal, fried clutches, etc... they all come with the territory of taking an automobile beyond its limits. You are taking a car designed to provide transportation beyond its limits. I'm not saying don't do it... but if you are someone who doesn't like to wrench on your car, then jumping/humping onto the drifting bandwagon isn't for you, because its not easy and it takes a lot of work to keep your car in shape, especially an older one, where things wear out and need replaced just from normal use. Even things that you don't normally think about being wear items. My hard AC lines broke because of the engine movement that I was getting on rough downshifts. I see that your a newb so I'm not trying to scare you away, but you have to have someone give you an honest answer to your question. If what I said doesn't scare you, and you are the kind of guy that figures a blown tie rod is a chance to upgrade to teins, or a broken AC line means you can get rid of some extra weight, then thats fine. But don't go into it thinking that you aren't going to have to spin any wrenches, bloody any knuckles, or spend any money. You will spend double or triple what you plan to. Things will break. You will, inevitably, end up repairing them yourself at inconvenient and impractacle times. Your car will break, more and more, and you will upgrade it, more and more, until its on the edge of what you want to drive every day. Been there, done that, have the battle scars to prove it.

Other people might disagree, but as someone who has been down that road I think I'm talking from a pretty comfortable place. This isn't a brand new Z33 with Pfieffer at the wheel. Its a decade and a half old time bomb thats rusted and worn with an inexperienced driver taking it on its first drifting run.

(all that said, I did it. And I'd do it again.)

[BuudWeizErr]

you don't fit the bill of someone who drifts.please leave it to the professionals.

[gabossie]

you don't fit the bill of someone who drifts.please leave it to the professionals.

Meh, don't let him scare you away, he's no more than an amature himself (not that I even qualify for that title). But what Andrave said is every bit of truth. Things will break, almost inevitably you will hit something, especially if you choose to drift in parking lots and such rather than sanctioned events. Learn to work on your car and learn how it works before you involve yourself in motorsports, it'll save you alot of money.

[BuudWeizErr]

Afraid of:-brakes making noise-parts wearing out-leaks of any kind-turning a mint car into less than mint condition.

those are not the characteristics of someone who generally succeeds at drifting, nor someone who progresses past the level of ebraking around a curb at their local wal mart.

stuff is going to break, and faster if you're going to drift. parts wear faster, it's not good on the car. if you can't just go balls to the wall, you won't progress. and honestly, it's the same with all freestyle sports.

[nsrZ32]

Hmmm....not sure drifting is for you. But get your car up to where it should be and don't be scared then you will be ok.

[RBpoweredSileighty]

first off welcome to the boards...

if youve never worked on a car then drifting is the furthest thing you would want to do.

first get proper order.second learn the car.third get as much information that you can, and i mean quite possibly years of learning.fourth talk to experianced pros. who know the sport.fifth after you done these steps then i would say your able to START learning this thing they called drifting.

trust me on this....

for any full work ive ever done is i first started off with a bone stock daily chevy s10 and now its on air suspension, body dropped, full custom interior, fully shaved, and guess what? i did it my self, because i learned on my own.

you need to get in there and rip that car apart and learn it.

my .02 worth...

[Altiman94]

I agree with Chunki here. I wouldn't even think about drifting if you are worried about parts braking. Things break even when you don't drive your car past its limits. Just wait until you do.

[574-240sx]

I crashed my first car drifting. It will cost a lot of $$$. You will have to work on your car alot. You will end up dumping a lot into suspension first thing. If you don't have tools get some and plan on spending money. Then learn how to work on your car and get a FSM, that will help a noob out. I need to upgrade bushing, tie rods, ball joints and a few other things this winter. Plan on stuff breaking and you fixing it. Changing your oil is a walk in the park compared to pulling a trans. I guess there is always a place to start. It would be a good idea to look into a second car too if you plan on drifting.

[eruyi]

Thank you very much for the advices. Most of you speak like pros and machos but I am sure that when you first got into this through your friends or other ways, you were p****** and pure amateurs too. That's what I am right now. Let's not forget that.

Yes, I want to learn how to tool my car. But don't have any friends who can teach me. So other options I can think of is to go to school. Professional school is out of my choice due to the time and money. Municipal vocational school is a good option but my area doesn't have a course for auto machanic wanna be. I will keep attending events in the spring and hopefully will get to know someone kind enough to help me.

[SeVa-S13]

I didn't have anyone teach me either, necessity is the best teacher. I've been on my since about 16 and when my car crapped out, I had to fix it. It's daunting and frustrating at first, but you'll quickly get the hang of it and understand why guys get excited about certain tools.
Modified by SeVa-S13 at 6:37 AM 12/12/2004

[Mr1der]

come to think of it, I wouldn't own a 240 if you're worried about parts breaking...

[MinisterofDOOM]

First off, if you are unfamiliar with working on your car, head down to an autoparts store like Autozone or Checker and pick up a Chilton manual for it. It's got step by step instructions for everything. I grew up working on cars, my dad made me do a lot of work on the cars since I was quite young, and that helped. But I still pull out the old Chilton manual and flip through just to make sure I don't **** things up. Also, ask lots of questions. You can't be afraid to ask questions, and you can't be afraid of people's responses. Just ignore them if they aren't helpful and keep asking questions. Watch people all you can, and watch your car whenever its worked on. Most shops won't let you on the floor, but most have nice big windows. Watch them work.

Secondly, the reason you got the welcome "this isn't for you" is because when most of us hear someone who doesn't know much about cars and who is a new driver and a young kid (not that most of us aren't young ourselves, but you're younger, still) we automatically assume you are just another crowd-following lemming, trying to keep up with the latest automotive fad. While this may not be true for you, it's true for almost everyone else any of us have seen with an attitude like you. So if you really are serious, don't let anyone scare you off. But if you're just in it to be "cool" all I can say is that you might want to put a bit more thought into things before you rush off after the crowd.

[madbouncy]

You really don't need to have somebody teach you. Just start out learning how the car works. http://www.howstuffworks.com will break it down really easy so you get an idea of what parts do. Then just start working on your car. Start with basic stuff and move up as you build a better toolbox. I don't know jack about cars but I'm learning as I go. Obviously I really doubt I could take apart an engine and put it back together in a weekend, but I know I could do it if I wasn't in a hurry. For stuff like suspension you should be ok, it's mostly just bolt on stuff, the hardest part of it would be trying to tune it, but at first you're probably better off taking it to a race shop for alignments and just talk with them and if they'll let you, have them walk through what it takes to get your suspension working well. All you really need is a friend or two that can lend a hand. It's not so much whether you two are car experts, it's just helpful to have somebody else to hold stuff while you bolt it and so on.

[andrave]

yeah just start taking stuff apart. then you learn to put it back together, and you can usually figure out how it works in the process.I didn't go to school or have anyone "teach" me, although my older brother knew a lot about cars and he has helped me some over the years. But its defintely something you can learn yourself. I say skip the chiltons bull**** and get yourself an FSM, instead of spending 30 bucks on something and then wishing you had bought the FSM later whe the chilton's sucks ***. I have a chiltons for the sohc 240 somewhere at the house if you want it (you said 15 years ago so I assume sohc?).