Ex-Driver

[Lightning]

I just got done watching the Ex-Driver anime OAV, and i was wondering: has anybody else even seen it or heard of it at all?

[Yohsho]

Heard of it yes, watched it no. Probaly what ircks me about the series it 1. She switches from the Subaru to an ugly I can't remember the name of the car, but I think its french. 2. Some little kid is a really good driver in it.

[areaseven]

I have the eX-Driver Danger Zone OAV, which was directed by Shinichi Watanabe (Excel Saga, Tenchi Muyo! GXP). Haven't had a chance to review it, though.

[Lightning]

yea, the other car was a Lancia Stratos (sorry, i'm a car nut).

[Keith]

Not super original, but fun. I've seen the OVA & movie.

[Cyclone]

It's okay, if rather paint by numbers IMO.

Cyc (who wants an easily out of control drive by itself car personally)

[Sebastian]

The Lancia is a beauty.

Ex-Driver... I didnt like it at all.

Well I also did not liked Initial D...

Little supper kids driving, Toufu, impossible maneuvers... I rather watch Gao Gai Gar.

[Solscud007]

Yeah Ive seen it about a year and a half ago. maybe even two cant remember. It was right around when I started to watch Initial D. I liked EX Driver.

Two girls drive Lancia Stratos and Lotus Elan ( I think its an Elan but its definately a Lotus)

Male boy drives Lotus Caterham Super 7. In my opinion a great car. HAd the great chance of test driving one. There is a group here in Socal that sells rather well done kits. It generally weighs around 1000-1200 lbs (depending on carbion fiber option) and can have a motor from 90 hp to 280 hp. I drove one with a 200 hp motor. It was a tuned Ford Zetec motor froma ford focus. They are extremely fast. The 1000 lbs one with a280 hp motor can run 0-60 mph in 3 seconds!!!!! Base price is around $19k I will prolly get one for my midlife crisis.

here is a pic of what it looks like

[Solscud007]

Little supper kids driving, Toufu, impossible maneuvers... I rather watch Gao Gai Gar.

Hey Sebastian if you see my friend Christian he'll tell you Initial D is not impossible its a reality. Im close to that level while there is a Kid who is 16 years old drifting in the D1 drifiting competitions.

[maxjenius81]

I saw a caterham 7 when i went to the US Grand Prix in Indy last year. I drive a Eunos Roadster. People joke about my car being small, my god this car is half again as small and has twice the HP. Can you say deathtrap? Of course, that doesnt mean I woudln't drive it :-). I think it may come @ 19k unassembled. I was under the impression it was some sort of kit car.

As for Initial D bieng real, yeah it is. I got a video of couple of kids, one in an RX-7FD, and one in a GT-R32 (i tihnk its a 32) drifting around Akina i think. If its not Akina, its something similar and while it may not look as cool as in Initial D, its still damn cool.

And for the Stratos being ugly, shame on you.

[Sebastian]

Little supper kids driving, Toufu, impossible maneuvers... I rather watch Gao Gai Gar.

Hey Sebastian if you see my friend Christian he'll tell you Initial D is not impossible its a reality. Im close to that level while there is a Kid who is 16 years old drifting in the D1 drifiting competitions.

By the way... WERE are your friends???

I am still waiting for their call!

And Initial D is NOT possible whatever Christian say. come on!

[yellowlightman]

Little supper kids driving, Toufu, impossible maneuvers... I rather watch Gao Gai Gar.

Hey Sebastian if you see my friend Christian he'll tell you Initial D is not impossible its a reality. Im close to that level while there is a Kid who is 16 years old drifting in the D1 drifiting competitions.

I don't think the lack of realism comes from the idea of a kid driving like that, but things like an AE86 beating two RX-7s, and MR2, a Miata, etc. THAT's pretty unrealistic. Not to say it isn't a good car, but it's not at that level.

[Commander McBride]

The video defenitely doesn't show Akina. Why? Because, while everywhere else is real, Akina is actually not real. It's really called Haruna. What's really cool about haruna is that everything is there. The Gas Station where Takumi works, the Family's Restaurant, where the racers meet, and, yes, even the Fujiwara Tofu Shop, with its distinctive awning, albeit all with different names.

[Solscud007]

Little supper kids driving, Toufu, impossible maneuvers... I rather watch Gao Gai Gar.

Hey Sebastian if you see my friend Christian he'll tell you Initial D is not impossible its a reality. Im close to that level while there is a Kid who is 16 years old drifting in the D1 drifiting competitions.

I don't think the lack of realism comes from the idea of a kid driving like that, but things like an AE86 beating two RX-7s, and MR2, a Miata, etc. THAT's pretty unrealistic. Not to say it isn't a good car, but it's not at that level.

HAve you seen D1 Grand prix? A Trueno kicked everyone's ass even Jerry and his Silivia S13

[yellowlightman]

Little supper kids driving, Toufu, impossible maneuvers... I rather watch Gao Gai Gar.

Hey Sebastian if you see my friend Christian he'll tell you Initial D is not impossible its a reality. Im close to that level while there is a Kid who is 16 years old drifting in the D1 drifiting competitions.

I don't think the lack of realism comes from the idea of a kid driving like that, but things like an AE86 beating two RX-7s, and MR2, a Miata, etc. THAT's pretty unrealistic. Not to say it isn't a good car, but it's not at that level.

HAve you seen D1 Grand prix? A Trueno kicked everyone's ass even Jerry and his Silivia S13

D1 isn't real racing, it's just a performance. Which brings up another problem with Initial D, in that it presents drift as an efficient way to race, which it isn't. With the exception of WRC, drifting will provide no benefits in real racing. It looks cool, but it is not faster than "grip" driving. D1 and drifitng in general is the rythmic gymnastics of motorsports. The idea that you'll be faster by drifitng is unfounded, if nothing else look at professional and amateur racing. F1 doesn't drift, GT1 doesn't drift, NASCAR doesn't drift, Autocross (which is very similar to the tight corners of Initial D) doesn't drift... The only motorsport where drifiting is actual beneficial and used is WRC.

[Lightning]

be hilarous to see a Stock Car drift...and to tell the truth, that anime (the subject) actually piqued my interest in the Seven, so basically you can just get a different motor and tranny for them right? could a Ford 302 V8 fit in it? (at least i happen to have a 302/327 on hand...)

[reddsun1]

Drifting is pretty cool. I respect the skill it takes to move those cars around like that on the ragged edge. Like yellowlightman said, I think it's a performance, a display of control and skill, if you will. But in regards to racing, i.e. covering the greatest distance in the shortest time--that AIN'T THE WAY TO DO IT. Under racing conditions in "real" race cars (for sake of argument, any cars on slick racing tires, with safety cages, etc.) the guy who comes out of every corner tail out, tires screaming may look like the hero to the crowd--but the fact of the matter is that all he's doing is looking the part. He's really only wasting precious time, and buggering some perfectly good racing tires. In a timed/distance race on a road course, the "hero" will eventually (usually sooner than later) succeed in:

A. Blistering the tires from overheating

B. Have a blow out or shred the tire and subsequently plant the car in the wall (usually follows A in short order)

[reddsun1]

be hilarous to see a Stock Car drift...and to tell the truth, that anime (the subject) actually piqued my interest in the Seven, so basically you can just get a different motor and tranny for them right? could a Ford 302 V8 fit in it? (at least i happen to have a 302/327 on hand...)

That V8 would make a Seven a real hoot in the straights--but all that extra weight up front would probably make it a real pig in the handling department.

[Lightning]

yea, i was thinking about the same thing engine-weight wise.

anybody know what the movie for the ex-Driver series is called?

EDIT: Reddy, is your avatar a scene from Laguna Seca?

Edited December 30, 2003 by Lightning 06

[Commander McBride]

The only situation in which Drift is faster is on extremely sharp DOWNHILL corners. I stress downhill, because it's gravity that allows the cars to maintain speed through a drift. Autocross is a flat sport, hence the lack of drifting.

There's one exception, though. Keiichi Tsuchiya has proven to be able to drift faster than he can grip. And just to put his grip speed in perspective, he's won Le Mans. He's beaten top-rung pro drivers using drift, while the other drivers gripped. This is the true reason Tsuchiya has earned the title "Drift King".

Oh, by the way, a Stock Car HAS drifted! Tsuchiya became famous for drifting in a Japanese stock car race. And even more insane, he drove as a guest driver in a NASCAR race held in japan, and, of course, he drifted.

Edited December 30, 2003 by Commander McBride

[yellowlightman]

The only situation in which Drift is faster is on extremely sharp DOWNHILL corners. I stress downhill, because it's gravity that allows the cars to maintain speed through a drift. Autocross is a flat sport, hence the lack of drifting.

There's one exception, though. Keiichi Tsuchiya has proven to be able to drift faster than he can grip. And just to put his grip speed in perspective, he's won Le Mans. He's beaten top-rung pro drivers using drift, while the other drivers gripped. This is the true reason Tsuchiya has earned the title "Drift King".

No, it isn't. Youu coudl be drifting downhill in the pouring rain and with the lack of friction it'd still be slower than grip driving. Pull your head out of Initial D, drifting is not faster. No amount of gravity will make up for the amount of extra friction and lack of control drifiting creates. Read this thread: http://www.rx7club.com/showthread.php?s=&t...threadid=229208. Get a few pages into it, there's a lot of GOOD information about people who actually know what they're talking about. The downhill drifiting idea comes up as well, and gets shot down.

There's one exception, though. Keiichi Tsuchiya has proven to be able to drift faster than he can grip. And just to put his grip speed in perspective, he's won Le Mans. He's beaten top-rung pro drivers using drift, while the other drivers gripped. This is the true reason Tsuchiya has earned the title "Drift King".

No, he hasn't proven that he can drift faster. Watch any of his videos; when he races seriously he does grip driving. Why? Because grip is faster.

[reddsun1]

yea, i was thinking about the same thing engine-weight wise.

anybody know what the movie for the ex-Driver series is called?

EDIT: Reddy, is your avatar a scene from Laguna Seca?

I think the Super 7's intended design strength was it's super light weight--hence, the need for nothing bigger than a four-banger. That pic of the Caterham is from a low angle, so it's hard to see just how small and low those cars really are. I know the original Lotus models used hand-beat aluminum in their construction; the body/frame by itself is so light, two guys could pick one up and move it around without a lot of trouble.

The avatar is actually of some Australian Touring Cars from the 70's--can't remember what track though. I'm just a big fan of Aussie muscle cars, especially Falcons.

[reddsun1]

The only situation in which Drift is faster is on extremely sharp DOWNHILL corners. I stress downhill, because it's gravity that allows the cars to maintain speed through a drift. Autocross is a flat sport, hence the lack of drifting.

There's one exception, though. Keiichi Tsuchiya has proven to be able to drift faster than he can grip. And just to put his grip speed in perspective, he's won Le Mans. He's beaten top-rung pro drivers using drift, while the other drivers gripped. This is the true reason Tsuchiya has earned the title "Drift King".

Oh, by the way, a Stock Car HAS drifted! Tsuchiya became famous for drifting in a Japanese stock car race. And even more insane, he drove as a guest driver in a NASCAR race held in japan, and, of course, he drifted.

I think it depends on your definition of "drift." When you get into all that engineering mumbo-jumbo (I was an English major--too much of that stuff makes my head hurt...) and what the "experts" say, a racing tire actually performs best at a slip angle of about 5-6 degrees. Slip angle defined is: "the angular displacement between the tire's plane of rotation and its actual path over the ground" i.e. it's the difference--measured in degrees--between the direction the tire is pointed in and the actual path it travels along over the road. So technically, a race car has to "drift" through a corner at a slip angle of about 5 deg. to be getting the maximum performance out of the tires. Friction between the tire and road, the elastic deformation of the tread, and all sorts of other confusing physical phenomenon is what generates cornering force, and keeps the car on the road and traveling along the general path the driver is "telling" the car through the steering wheel inputs. So technically, "drifting" is the fastest way around the track--and yes, you can actually feel this happening in the car; you can also tell when a car on the track is doing this, when you get the knack of what to look for in how a car's handling (especially with vintage race cars on bias plys).

But that's not what we're seeing in these "drifting" contests/movies--that could more accurately be called SLIDING, and that's what I say is a general waste of tires and time. It's the wheel-spinning, tire-smoking, tail-out, bad cop-show-chase-scene kind of driving that I was referring to before.

[Lightning]

well, with the way the world looks at it, a 8 degree or less angle is sliding and more than 10 degrees is drifting.