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Ken Nomura took first place at Round 5 of the 2007 D1 Grand Prix Japan drifting the Blitz sponsored Nissan ER34 Skyline. Next D1 Grand Prix drifting event will take place September 22 and 23 at Autopolis in Oita, Japan.

2007 D1 Grand Prix Japan Round 5 Results

1. Ken Nomura - Nissan ER34 Skyline
2. Akinori Utsumi - Nissan PS13 Silvia
3. Tsuyoshi Tezuka - Nissan BNR32 Skyline
4. Kensaku Komoro - Toyota AE86
5. Masato Kawabata - Nissan S15 Silvia
6. Daigo Saito - Toyota JZX100 Chaser
7. Tetsuya Hibino - Toyota AE86
8. Shigenobu Kumakubo - Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution CT9A
9. Toshiki Yoshioka - Toyota AE86
10. Toru Inose - Nissan S15 Silvia
11. Masao Suenaga - Mazda RX-7 FD3S
12. Atsushi Kuroi - Nissan PS13 Silvia
13. Tomokazu Hirota - Toyota JZX110 Chaser
14. Koji Fukuda - Nissan RPS13 Silvia
15. Ken Maeda - Toyota AE86
16. Hideo Hiraoka - Nissan S15 Silvia

Overall D1 Grand Prix Japan Points Standings after Round 5

1. Masato Kawabata - Nissan S15 Silvia
2. Shigenobu Kumakubo - Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution CT9A
3. Masao Suenaga - Mazda RX-7 FD3S
4. Ken Nomura - Nissan ER34 Skyline
5. Tsuyoshi Tezuka - Nissan BNR32 Skyline
6. Tetsuya Hibino - Toyota AE86
7. Akinori Utsumi - Nissan PS13 Silvia
8. Atsushi Kuroi - Nissan PS13 Silvia
9. Youichi Imamura - Nissan Z33 (350Z)

• (Tied for 10) Hideo Hiraoka - Nissan S15 Silvia
• (Tied for 10) Daigo Saito - Toyota JZX100 Chaser

The Mazda RX-7 is an excellent drift car because of its rear wheel drive limited slip differential configuration, near perfect 50-50 weight distribution, light weight, powerful twin turbo 13B-REW rotary engine, low center of gravity, and sport tune suspension.

Youichi Imamura drove the A’PEXi sponsored Mazda RX-7 FD3S to a championship win during the 2003 D1 Grand Prix Season. Although all three generations of the Mazda RX-7 can drift, the FD or third generation is the most popular RX-7 for drifting. Within the FD generation, there are three series of RX-7s:

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The Nissan 350Z is a frequent competitor in drifting events like Formula D, Nopi Drift, and D1 Grand Prix. The Nissan 350Z is the fifth generation of Nissan’s Z-car line, the first being Datsun’s 240Z introduced in 1970.

History of Nissan Z-cars

• First Generation (S30): 240Z, 260Z, 280Z (1969–1978)
• Second Generation (S130): 280ZX (1978–1983)
• Third Generation (Z31): 300ZX (1984–1989)
• Fourth Generation (Z32): 300ZX (1990–1999)
• Nissan 240Z Concept (1999): (Not produced)
• Fifth Generation (Z33): 350Z (2003–present)

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Chris Forsberg won Round 5 of the 2007 Formula Drift Season “Fastest in the Circuit” Event held at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, California. Next Formula D drifting Event is September 08, 2007 at Wall Speedway in New Jersey.

Formula Drift Round 5 Results

1. Chris Forsberg - Nissan 350Z
2. Vaughn Gitten Jr. - Ford Mustang
3. Ken Gushi - Ford Mustang
4. Conrad Grunewald - C5 Chevrolet Corvette
5. Tanner Foust - Nissan 350Z
6. Sam Hubinette - Dodge Charger SRT-8
7. Rhys Millen - Pontiac Solstice GXP
8. Tony Angelo - Mazda RX-7
9. Bill Sherman - Pontiac Firebird Trans Am
10. Ryuji Miki - Mazda RX-7

Formula Drift Championship Standings After Round 5

1. Tanner Foust - Nissan 350Z
2. Chris Forsberg - Nissan 350Z
3. Daijiro Yoshihara - Nissan S13 Silvia
4. Rhys Millen - Pontiac Solstice GXP
5. Vaughn Gittin, Jr. - Ford Mustang
6. Kenji Yamanaka - Nissan S14, S15 Silvia
7. Samuel Hubinette - Dodge Charger SRT-8
8. Darren McNamara - Toyota AE86 (Nissan SR20DET engine swap)
9. Bill Sherman - Pontiac Firebird Trans Am
10. Ken Gushi - Ford Mustang

A turbocharger, short for turbine driven supercharger, is an exhaust gas driven forced induction device used to improve engine performance by forcing compressed air into the engine. This compressed air allows more fuel to be burned resulting in more horsepower. Using a compressor to increase pressure at the point of cylinder air intake is referred to as forced induction vs. a non-turbo engine that is known as naturally aspirated.

A turbocharger consists of a turbine and a compressor linked by a shared axle. The turbine inlet receives exhaust gases from the engine’s exhaust manifold causing the turbine wheel to spin. This rotation drives the compressor, compressing air and delivering it to the air intake of the engine.

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The R33 Nissan Skyline GT-R was released in 1995 as successor to the R32 Skyline GT-R model. The first thing to notice about the new R33 GT-R body is its modern muscle car stance with bigger 17” wheels and larger overall dimensions. Compared to the R32’s sharp angles, the new R33 body has more rounded styling.

The aggressive front end and beefy fenders still remain but an adjustable rear wing was added to improve down-force. The interior is larger like the body and extra gauges were added to monitor oil-temperature and torque distribution. Driver and passenger side air bags were also added as new safety features.

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