Losing grip – Jaw dropping drift releases

Check out what’s happening in the drift scene! In the past couple of weeks Team Associated and Traxxas both have released drift cars. How cool that one big player and The Big Player are getting into this niche of the hobby! And for additional spice among new releases, Yokomo has released their MD 1.0 LTS, moving the cutting edge of drifting another step forwards (sideways?).

Most exciting of the three is of course Team Associated’s offering, DC10 RWD Competition Drift Car Kit. Why? Because it’s a dedicated drift machine, because a big company has decided to get in the waters where Yokomo, MST and a couple of small companies rule supreme. It’s a lot to take on, but from the looks of it they are getting pretty full on.

Traxxas on the other hand has taken the existing 4-tec chassis, removed the center drive shaft and redesigned the front end. Check out the pictures below for a top end comparison, original 4-tec on top, drift version below, and for sake of comparison Team AE at the bottom – a rather different cup of tea.

Note that Traxxas has added turnbuckles at the rear for camber adjustment, as opposed to the fixed links of the 4-tec.

Traxxas is clearly not at all as committed as Team AE, but it’s still cool that they are offering a drift car for the masses, one that can easily be drifted outside. I imagine that this one might be the entry ticket into drifting for a lot of existing Traxxas fans – who’ll then get a true drift chassis once the bug has gotten them good and proper.

That’s where Yokomo’s latest magic enters the game. “Load Transfer Special”. Very, very cool! A quick look at the front setup is enough to let you know that they are on the top of their game. The 4-tec drift RTR looks downright clumsy in comparison. But then again, they are not to be compared, clearly aiming for different market segments.

‘Tis a good time to get into drifting. Go get sideways!

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PS. Long time no see, my apologies. Life…