First Things First

[5Z S13]

what would you recommend be the primary upgrades for drifting, besides the car of course. Didn't know where to put this thread general or tech so any opinions would be greatly appreciated.

[dorimilk]

I think that the primary upgrades are:
Suspension
Tires
Remove that sound deadening crap

That's all I would need to drift good.

[Feint]

Imo,these are what I would consider the primary upgrades.

Suspension (coilovers,tie-rods,bushings,a-arms(if needed)control arms,etc).
Bucket seat,or a seat that will keep you in place.
At least a 3 point harness(mount it right so you don't become paralyzed if you crash).
New steering wheel(stock sucks for the most part,unless you got a special package one,ie the Nismo wheel that came with some Silvias).
Exhaust system(I know it sounds weird,but it gets the thumbs up from the dorikin as well)
Clutch...stocks not going to hold up for long(lightend flywheel is also nice to throw in)
New pedals(sounds weird...but stock sucks)
A more better gripping shift knob
Racing radiator
Stainless steel brake lines
A better cooling fan
Possibly upgraded brake pads.

I might have forgot a few,but that's pretty primary.Is this car NA or turbo?

[drft916]

you forgot a lsd........................mMmM

[s0nny80y]

lucy in the sky with diamonds? lol j/k

i always thought my 1st upgrade would be a 2 way lsd. Strip the car of all its weight (make it feel/look like those drift cars where the inside is ghetto but they spend alotta there money on the exterior), coilovers and the likes, and used tires.

[5Z S13]

why are limited slips so important though? I always thought you could drift decently without them.

[Drift For Food]

I'm still using stock, so I can't comment much. However, the way I see it, it's up to you.

Build the car strong enough to handle the forces and hardships of drifting. A better radiator for high rpm cooling, better brake pads and lines for repeated hard braking, things like this. Beef up the weak points, so you're less prone to have failures. Depending on the car or what you plan on doing, you may need almost nothing or quite a few upgrades to get it strong and trustworthy.

Then you have tuning. Stock isn't the best suited for drifting. You'll probably lower and stiffen the springs. You'll add swaybars. You'll change tires and wheels. Camber, caster, and toe will be adjusted to better suit drifting. You'll set it up to have the driving characteristics you're looking for. What's available and how much you can actually adjust may vary by car.

Comfort and safty is another part. This is where the roll cage and seat come in. You want to be safe, so you limit your danger. You also want to be secure and comfortable. Like above, steering wheel and shifter are upgrade options as well. It's all what you want really, some for safety, some for comfort, and some just because it looks cool(skull shifter with red light up eyes comes to mind, lol).

As for me, mine's a daily driver and a mild back road drifter('02 Subaru Forester). My upgrades will be minimal for this car. For its future, I plan on minor suspension stuff, springs and swaybars basically, shocks too if I can find dampening rates anywhere. It would be so much easier if everyone listed their rates for their springs, shocks, swaybars, etc... I'd get better tires also. Stock is quite...um...crappy, lol. Then I'd go for some better brake pads too later on when I wear mine down. Other than that, there's not much else I'd want. This is just me though. Later on when I get a dedicated drifter(some years from now), I'd really work through it and set it up good, major suspension, weight reduciton, engine tuning, etc...purpose built, but old and as cheap as possible. A basher for under $5000 would be awesome. In time...

[Raziel]

yah know.. you guys are getting really technical. All you need is a good driver. Go driver your car the way it is and drive the *Censored**Censored**Censored**Censored* out of it. You'll appreciate little modifications on the way much more. Your car doesnt drift you. You get your car to drift.

[Feint]

Originally posted by 5Z S13
why are limited slips so important though? I always thought you could drift decently without them.

Without LSD you get the wild one wheel spin,it looks stupid,and gives you less traction/control.There's a certain degree of traction needed in drifting.I gurantee that someone who drifted before getting an LSD and after would drift much better after getting the LSD.Only downfall to them,parking lot driving can be a little bit harder.

[blargonator]

i asked that question before about lsd and i got a huge answer i did not want to bother to read. so if the car loses traction (normally) it sends power to one wheel. with lsd it keeps the power at an equal rate?

[Feint]

Basiclly that's the concept behind it.WIthout the LSD the power goes to the inside wheel(I believe),and with it, it's evened out,so it goes to both wheels.

[blargonator]

thank you for the simple answer. but i guess the other person did have a good point sending me to a site that explains the small details. it is always good to learn something new about drifting.

[5Z S13]

aren't there a few different types? which would be the best value, im not made of money you know.

[marshun]

lsd makes the car more predictable to drift.

this is the way im currently going.

coilovers
tein tie rods
lsd
sway bars
the rest of the suspension stuff from tein and battle version

then i'll try and hold off for a while.

i've already got the first two and my lsd is supposed to be in the mail.

[Feint]

Originally posted by 5Z S13
aren't there a few different types? which would be the best value, im not made of money you know.

Yes.clutch,viscous,locking,and torsen.For drifting you'd only be looking at the clutch and the viscous.Viscous is like a slushbox LSD,it uses a fluid inside the housing,they have problems with torque transfer.If you check out what the pros are using,good chance it's a clutch LSD(can anyone name a pro that isn't).Even if a wheel were to lift,with a clutch LSD,the torque is still distributed evenly,which can and does happen sometimes while drifting.Also,since your getting even torque distribution,it makes it more predictable,very important.You don't want to have an unpredictable car for drifting,this could mean kissing the wall.