Mazada RX-8 - Anatomy of A Falken Driver

But power alone won't make much of a drift car; all those ponies need to reach the turf. That's why the Cosmo motor was mated to a cryo-treated RX-7 transmission with the pricy OS Giken gear set. It may be rough at times, but the FD tranny is nearly bulletproof and capable of handling the 600+ hp. The gear seat isn't the only thing from OS Giken either; the twin-plate clutch and two-way locking differential are both OS, too. Nearly every stock suspension part was also removed with aftermarket parts like Tein MonoFlex coilovers, Speed Machine fully-adjustable rear arms, a modified and spaced steering rack and a fully-custom modified Mazdaspeed Power Plant Frame. Dave won't even let us see the latter; it's just that good.

After hearing Dave talk about the 8 for only a few minutes, it's immediately apparent he's proud of the work done. He just knows how much he and his team killed themselves to finish the car. If Dr. Felix were still alive, he would adjust his glasses and marvel at how much Speed Machine squeezed out of the rotary. And he'd probably say something like, "Dieses ist die Scheisse!"

Anatomy of a Falken Driver

Seigo Yamamoto
DOB: April 16, 1971
City: Takarazuka, Hyogo prefecture, Japan
Affiliations: Garage-S, Falken, OS Giken, Your Mom

Born in the Hyogo prefecture in the spring of '71, Seigo Yamamoto started his driving career even before he could drink; well, at least legally, anyway. Although Yamamoto is known for drifting his Chaser in both D1 and Formula D, he also focuses a great deal of energy on Garage-S back in Japan.

Seigo was being supported by Falken Japan before his switch to the West. Nick Fousekis was at the helm of the original Falken drift program. "When we started getting into it in 2003, it was simple to work with him and Koguchi. Those were the first two pro-drivers from Japan, going as far back as the first Drift Showoff with him in '03. Since then, he's been a staple in the drifting program. He has proven to be a great driver, a great person with a great personality, and we're proud to have him as part of the Falken Family. Extending NTB. "

This practically makes Seigo the Grandfather of American Drifting. And why not? Fans can see how genuine the dude is. He goes out of his way to let American fans know he's part of our scene and not a Japanese transplant who crosses the pond just to compete and forget about us.