BFGoodrich has been involved with drifting over the past few years mostly with Sam Hubinette and his Dodge partnership. The two time champion will be losing access to the BFG KDW tire since BFGoodrich will no longer be an approved tire for the series starting in 2012. In other news they have rolled out the g-Force Sport COMP2 and we got invited to test it out.

Sadly with their exit in Formula Drift you cannot see them in action for all seven rounds but you can make them a purchase at your local tire shop starting in Q2 of this year. The tire is a huge improvement over the old COMP tire hands down. BFG really reworked the wet characteristics of the COMP2 and made some serious improvements within the tire’s compound and inner structure.

The tire really seems to be one of the best daily driven/occasional track weekend tires on the market today. The new silica infused compound allows drivers to push the tire to the limits, and keep it there, before it gradually fails. This differs from past and from competing tires, that when pushed beyond the limits, the tires just sort of give up. While testing the BFGoodrich G-Force Comp 2′s, we tested the tire utilizing VW GTis on a wet autocross course (pictured above), and Dodge Challengers on a dry autocross course where we took the liberty of sliding the Challengers through some of the turns to find that even with the weight of such a vehicle, the Comp2′s maintained their composure and provided a sense of security when pushing the tire to the limit.

While we may not get the opportunity to breathe in BFGoodrich smoke at Formula Drift Long Beach, rest assured that BFGoodrich will be making strides to push forward in an ever-competitive market. They are releasing 50 applications between 195/50R/15 and 275/40ZR/20.

Kevin Wells has been a man with a plan since coming into technical officer at Formula Drift. I think the verdict might be still out on some drivers if they like the changes in the 2012 rule book but none the less he has made another announcement this month.

“This memorandum is to announce that Formula Drift Pro Championship has
assembled a technical committee to openly discuss and debate their
various perspectives on Series Rules and Regulations. The intention of
this committee is to open candid and proactive conversations as well as
develop new rules and regulations for future seasons. This committee
does not serve any voting of decision making roles, simply an open forum
for discussion. I will chair and coordinate the committee.”

Below is a listing of everyone involved in the committee according to the mass e-mail sent out from Kevin Wells:
Brad Manka
Conrad Grunewald
Costa Gialamas
Gary Gardella
Ian Stewart
Kyle Mohan
Ron Bergenholtz
Scott Dodgion
Stephan Papadakis
Taka Aono
Tony Angelo

Sadly the Evasive FC Rx-7 powered by a LS6 engine won’t be present for the 2012 Formula Drift program. Sadly for you Formula Drift fans who cannot get enough of Charles Ng he is now living in Germany and putting serious focus to the World Touring Car Championship in 2012. I know some of his fans were the most vocal on this website and we will miss his legion of supporters along with his V8 powered Mazda on the grid in 2012. We wish him the best of luck in the series and hope he can turn that ride into something great. He did say that he will certainly come back when time allows! The WTCC and Formula Drift schedule are riddled with conflicts in 2012. Best of luck Charles Ng!

Another Toyota 86 is heading to the 2012 D1 Grand Prix season according to the Speedhunters Facebook page. This one will be driven by Manabu Orido but no Subaru engine inside this one! The Toyota 86 chassis is taking a Lexus IS-F V8 engine and should officially be the first V8 swap in a Toyota 86/Scion FR-S platform. It is a shame that D1 will have three of these in competition while we only will see one in Formula Drift for 2012.

The Florida drifter Zoltan Hajdu is no stranger to anyone in the know focused around the southeast drift scene. Way back when he drove a black beat up BMW and now he has this Stage 6 Nissan 240sx. Zoltan will be a rookie this year in Formula Drift with this all out turbo LS2 machine. He shouldn’t lack power at the big tracks like Las Vegas and Seattle but interesting to see how this setup fares at some other events. What do you think of the car? Full build sheet if you click read more below.

Source: http://drift5150.com/?p=249

Engine:
LS2 6.0 liter V8
Costume Stage 6 Motorsports Twin Turbo Kit Custom Dual 3” SS Exhaust System – by Stage 6 Motorsports Complete ARP Engine Hardware
ISIS Intercooler
ISIS 3876 turbos
Tial Bov
Ferrea Valve Springs
Ferrea Retainers
Ferrea Seat locators and locks
Griffin Radiator
Wiseco Pistons
Eagle Rods
Cometic Head gaskets
Aluminum Fuel Cell
Two Walbro Fuel Pumps
80lb Siemens Injectors

Electronics:
Stack gauge cluster
Costume wiring harness Auto meter Boost Gauge
Drivetrain:
G Force GSR 4 Speed Dogbox Transmission One Piece Drive Shaft Shop Aluminum Drive shaft
Quarter Master triple plate clutch
Quarter Master 7.25 flywheel Kaaz 2 Way LSD

Suspension:
Tein Superdrift Coilovers Tein Traction Rods Tein Tie Rods
SPL Tie Rod ends
SPL Solid Subframe Bushings Megan Racing RUCA Megan Racing Toe Arms Megan Racing Traction Arms Cusco Strut Tower Bar

Brakes:
Brembo Drilled/Slotted Rotors300zx 30mm 4 Piston Calipers Hawk Blue Racing Brake Pads Wilwood pedal assembly
Wilwood manual master cylinders

Safety:
S&W Enjuku Racing 10 point roll cage Sparco Pro2000 seats Sparco 5 Point 3” Harness Sparco Steering Wheel
10lb Firecharger Fire Safety System

It looks like the new 2012 rule book has a shift in tire/weights once again. The last update we reported on is in January 2011 where the smallest tire class was 2000-2099lbs allowing you to run up to a 215mm and 2100-2399 was several weight classes ranging from 225mm to 245mm. The heavier cars ranging in the 3000+ range have the biggest change in tire sizes. Here is the last weight/tire link to compare old sizes to the new ones. It seems like this is going to be a struggle of regulation focus over the next few years with the series before they can find an ideal weight class ruling. What does everyone think of the new changes to this section of the rules?

9.1.TIRE SIZE REGULATION
9.1.1. Cars are limited to the size of the rear tire that can be used, 
depending on the weight of the vehicle.

9.1.2. A car must be track-ready and running when it is weighed and
 registered to a weight class. A car will be weighed WITH the driver
9.1.3. Once the car is registered to a weight class, it will be
recorded, and issued a class specific sticker that must be displayed
prominently on the windshield. A car's weight may fluctuate within the
limits of its weight class, but it can never weigh less than the minimum
weight for its registered class.
9.1.4. Tire sizes are AS MEASURED in mm, across the span of the contact
patch. Tires will be measured on the rim, while on the car, while the
 car is on the ground.
9.1.5. Tire size must not exceed the maximum size dictated by
class at any time on track.

9.1.6. Tire size will be measured and verified on track before
the start of every tandem round. A FORMULA DRIFT official may
also check tire size at any time during the event.

Weight and Tire Classes-
2100-2399lbs up to 235mm
2400-2699lbs up to 245mm
2700-2799lbs up to 255mm
2800-2899lbs up to 265mm
2900-2999lbs up to 275mm
3000-3099lbs up to 285mm
3100-3199lbs up to 295mm
3200-3299lbs up to 305mm

Today a magazine has been reporting that Tyler McQuarrie has a deal signed for 2012 and we have confirmed that is not the case at this current time. To catch you up back in the beginning of October he was left go from Falken Tire at the end of the 2011 season. Then we found out he was in New Jersey visiting Gardella Racing which he has continued to be linked with during this off-season. I have confirmed the two teams are still in talks so the deal is not dead but Tyler McQuarrie’s manager confirmed that nothing has been signed either. That about sums up the report but just wanted to confirm that other media outlets are reporting incorrect information this morning. Good luck to Tyler landing a deal for this new season!

Jeff Jones has spent his fair share of history in Formula Drift moving from one chassis to another in the sport. In fact, we even own one of his old chassis from the 2010 season in the form of a FD Mazda Rx-7. He is pictured above giving tribute to his old car back at the 2011 SEMA Show. Now he reported today that he will be putting together a new chassis for 2012. The new chassis will be a S14 Nissan 240sx platform with some sort of turbo motor setup. The guys at Garrett have announced they will be coming on board for his new build. We cannot wait to see what Jeff Jones has cooked up for the new season.

“TAngelo Racing is happy to announce a return to drifting in 2012 with factory support from Scion Racing. After three years as a Formula Drift judge and technical manager, Tony’s long awaited return to competition is met with personal excitement and lots of hype from his fans.

Tony will be driving the #33 Scion Tc from 2011, with a whole new look and feel. The crew will consist of drifting favorites, “DA Aces” Lindsay Ross as spotter, and Mike “Carluch” Edwards wrenching on the car. While Tony has been keeping active in overseas competition and driving with “Bloodmasters,” a drifting gang producing explosive missile car videos out of Englishtown, NJ, he’s psyched to return to FD competition.

“I couldn’t be more excited to get back into the drivers seat for 2012,” Tony said. “Scion is a brand that is very active in drifting, and is doing really fun things for 2012. I’ve always been impressed by their presence in FD, and I am totally pumped to be part of the Scion Racing Family.”

Odi just posted some awesome photos of his 240sx with a brand new look for 2012 thanks to the guys at 702 Graphics. His new title sponsor is M7 is represented along with his other partners Feal Suspension, DSTROYR, and Nexen Tire. He did mention in his e-mail to us he is working on  bringing along some other partners before the Streets of Long Beach rolls around. Hands down this might become one of my favorite cars in Formula Drift for 2012!

Photo Credit: Oliver Petalver