KEN GUSHI + RS*R Scion tC (Press Release)

[INFO]

April 8, 2008



Toyo Tire’s Ken Gushi to Pilot New RS*R Scion tC in Formula Drift® Beginning in 2008



CYPRESS, CALIFORNIA – Ken Gushi, a Toyo Tires™ sponsored drift driver since the beginning of 2005, will enter the 2008 Formula Drift® championship season piloting the all-new RS*R Scion tC. Gushi will be competing on Toyo’s Proxes® R1R™ extreme performance tire, the tire that won the 2007 Formula Drift championship.



Gushi’s new Scion tC is a state-of-the-art machine, and the first of its kind, converted from front to rear-wheel-drive by exhaust and suspension tuner, RS*R. This was no easy task, as the transverse-mounted engine was changed to a longitudinal layout for the re-engineered drivetrain. With the assistance of an HKS turbo and intercooler, engine horsepower has also increased dramatically from 161 to more than 400-horsepower. A sequential five-speed transmission will relay the power to the ultimate contact patch, Toyo’s Proxes R1R. The tC shares its platform with Toyota’s Avensis four-wheel drive and Caldina all-wheel drive, both available in Japan, enabling it to undergo the conversion.



“We are thrilled to unite the Toyo Tires brand and the winning Proxes R1R with Ken Gushi, one of the most popular drivers in the sport of drifting, and Scion, one of the most popular youth-oriented brands today,” said Stan Chen, manager of events and motorsports, Toyo Tire U.S.A. Corp. “Everyone is looking forward to a very exciting and very competitive 2008 Formula Drift season with the new RS*R tC.”



The twenty-one year old driver, with the nickname “The Future”, has been a young prodigy since entering the sport of drifting at an age too young to have a driver’s license for the street. In June of 2005, Gushi scored the first-ever Formula Drift victory for both Toyo® and Ford piloting a supercharged Mustang at Houston, Texas. Competing on Toyo’s Proxes® T1R™ premium ultra-high performance tires, Gushi finished third in the 2005 Formula Drift championship.



Gushi will debut the RS*R tC at Formula Drift’s Round 1, Streets of Long Beach in Calif. on April 12. To learn more about the Formula Drift series, log on to formulad.com. To learn more about Toyo, its drivers and the Proxes® line of tires, log on to toyo.com. Toyo manufactures and distributes a complete line of replacement tires for high performance cars, luxury vehicles, light trucks and SUVs as well as tires for commercial trucks, buses and off-road and construction applications.

[Soldat]

Loving it. It's got the race car look without being over the top.

What body kit is that?

[Drifting Pwns]

It's so beautiful. I especially like the big grill area and the nice air area in front of both tires. Don't know what it's called but it's pimp. I didn't even know tC's were used as drifting cars.

[Slapshotnerd]

Looks alot like the 5axis front bumper, but AIT widebody. I think the rendering photos are better than the actual shots... but how it LOOKS doesn't mean squat. It's all about how it performs!!

Hopefully, Gushi can drive it to another podium

[Piner]

I didn't even know tC's were used as drifting cars.

Thats because they aren't


This is pretty dumb , car looks good but its still dumb

[swampslide615]

How is that dumb, its great to see something new like a RWD tc, i love it
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SWAMPLAND

[DP-AE86]

How is that dumb, its great to see something new like a RWD tc, i love it
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SWAMPLAND

i agree

[Soldat]

Looks alot like the 5axis front bumper, but AIT widebody. I think the rendering photos are better than the actual shots... but how it LOOKS doesn't mean squat. It's all about how it performs!!

Hopefully, Gushi can drive it to another podium

I agree, looking good doesn't mean much if you don't make it through qualifying.

I'm sure the car will perform really well. They're small light cars and I'm sure that it's making a lot of power at the wheels. My only concern is that it will suffer from what Millen had problems with in the Solstice. Being such a small, short wheelbase car it doesn't make the same impression when sideways as a big car like Hubinette's Charger. That yacht looks like a billboard when it's at full lock.

I'm sure Gushi will do a great job.

[berzo12]

looks great the feature in Import Tuner was really good. i wondered how they got this one by FD but apprently the Tc is based on and AWD in Japan. i didnt know that lol

[brainfood]

I agree, looking good doesn't mean much if you don't make it through qualifying.

I'm sure the car will perform really well. They're small light cars and I'm sure that it's making a lot of power at the wheels. My only concern is that it will suffer from what Millen had problems with in the Solstice. Being such a small, short wheelbase car it doesn't make the same impression when sideways as a big car like Hubinette's Charger. That yacht looks like a billboard when it's at full lock.

I'm sure Gushi will do a great job.

Why does everyone act like the fact that its short wheelbase makes it boring? That is not why its boring. Its boring for other reasons..... could be any number of reasons. Has everyone forgotten how much fun 86's are to watch? Also short wheel base and not boring. Just the solstice has never been driven by an 86 driver. Put Pattycakes in one you should see him in the mx-5's looks great more exciting than him in a longer wheelbase car imo. But Pat is an 86 driver at heart.

[rtype16]

I hate it when people just make a blunt claim like oh it has a short wheelbase. What exactly is a short wheelbase according to you. Now if you are talking about the overall dimensions of a vehicle than maybe youhave a foot to stand on. So in your words everything under the TC below sucks cause it has a short wheel base.

MX5 – 91.7
S2000 – 94.5
Solstice – 95.09
AE86 – 95.6
RX7 – 95.85
Viper – 98.8
S13 – 97.4
S14 – 99.4
Supra – 100.4
350Z – 104.3
Vette – 105.7
TC – 106.3
RX8 – 106.4
Mustang - 107.1
IS350 – 107.5
GTO – 109.8
G35 – 112.2
Charger – 120

[Soldat]

Why does everyone act like the fact that its short wheelbase makes it boring? That is not why its boring. Its boring for other reasons..... could be any number of reasons. Has everyone forgotten how much fun 86's are to watch? Also short wheel base and not boring. Just the solstice has never been driven by an 86 driver. Put Pattycakes in one you should see him in the mx-5's looks great more exciting than him in a longer wheelbase car imo. But Pat is an 86 driver at heart.

I never said that it would be boring to watch and I certainly never said that short wheelbase cars suck, in fact I'm quite excited about seeing this car in action at Long Beach. I just said that a longer car like Millen's (now Dai's) GTO and Hubinette's Charger make more of an impression simply because there's more surface area to look at when you're on the outside of a turn and it's coming at you.

[Slapshotnerd]

just wait til you see Tuerck in his Solstice, and D.Mac in his Sky!! I think that will change some people's minds....

I think that Millen's problems with the solstice weren't because of the short wheelbase. I've heard that Tuerck's car is shredding it up, and it's a very very basic setup, not fully modified and custom like Millen's...

[olddrifter]

Gushi’s new Scion tC is a state-of-the-art machine, and the first of its kind, converted from front to rear-wheel-drive by exhaust and suspension tuner, RS*R. This was no easy task, as the transverse-mounted engine was changed to a longitudinal layout for the re-engineered drivetrain. With the assistance of an HKS turbo and intercooler, engine horsepower has also increased dramatically from 161 to more than 400-horsepower. A sequential five-speed transmission will relay the power to the ultimate contact patch, Toyo’s Proxes R1R. The tC shares its platform with Toyota’s Avensis four-wheel drive and Caldina all-wheel drive, both available in Japan, enabling it to undergo the conversion.
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If we can now switch motor position that opens up alot of other cars to drifting. as the Nissan 200sx is AWD in Europe so we could put in the S15 motor and trans into it ; the Sentra also. Honda's also........What do you all think???????????????????????

[Drifting Pwns]

Gushi’s new Scion tC is a state-of-the-art machine, and the first of its kind, converted from front to rear-wheel-drive by exhaust and suspension tuner, RS*R. This was no easy task, as the transverse-mounted engine was changed to a longitudinal layout for the re-engineered drivetrain. With the assistance of an HKS turbo and intercooler, engine horsepower has also increased dramatically from 161 to more than 400-horsepower. A sequential five-speed transmission will relay the power to the ultimate contact patch, Toyo’s Proxes R1R. The tC shares its platform with Toyota’s Avensis four-wheel drive and Caldina all-wheel drive, both available in Japan, enabling it to undergo the conversion.
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If we can now switch motor position that opens up alot of other cars to drifting. as the Nissan 200sx is AWD in Europe so we could put in the S15 motor and trans into it ; the Sentra also. Honda's also........What do you all think???????????????????????

I think it'd be pretty rad but even if other cars like the Sentra could become professional drift cars it would probably be pretty expensive for a privateer to do it themselves. So it would probably be just limited to drifting. I don't think I'm ever going to see an FR Nissan 200sx passing us on the highway.