· Technique

Often in drifting, the term Countersteering or Opposite Lock Steering - is used to describe the steering technique drivers utilize to maintain control of an oversteering or drifting vehicle. Countersteering is fundamental to drifting because without accurate countersteering, the car will spin to a stop.

Countersteering begins when the car starts to oversteer or drift. That is, the REAR wheels do not track behind the front wheels but instead slide toward the outside of the turn in a more straight-line trajectory due to the vehicle’s momentum.

Once the car starts drifting you must countersteer. For example: Say you are about to drift a right hand turn like in the example above. When entering the corner you turn the steering wheel to the RIGHT to get the car going in that direction. If you have enough speed, the car is going to oversteer and the rear end of the car will be sliding outward because of momentum. To keep the car on the road or from spinning out, you must countersteer by turning the steering wheel to the LEFT. Countersteering is the only way to keep the car from spinning to a stop.

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Brakes are an important part of any drift car. In most cars, the parking brake, hand brake, side brake, emergency brake or e-brake as it may be known, only affects the rear wheels. Since you will be using the e-brake to initiate the drift and to correct drift angle once the car is sliding sideways, you need to make sure the rear brake pads are in good condition. Otherwise, you will have a hard time getting the rear wheels to lock up when you pull the e-brake.

Here is an outline of a basic drifting technique that makes use of the e-brake and why it works. This drift technique has many names like Side Brake Drifting, Hand Brake Drifting, Emergency Brake Drifting or just E-brake Drifting but they all do the same thing to get the car sideways and drifting:

1. Brake for upcoming corner – This transfers the vehicle weight to the front wheels for traction while lightening the rear end and enabling the rear wheels to lock up more freely once the e-brake is pulled.
2. Turn the steering wheel to enter corner – You got to tell the car what direction it’s going.
3. Depress the clutch – This disengages the transmission from the engine and enables the rear wheels to lock up when the e-brake is pulled.
4. Pull e-brake momentarily (like 1 second) – This will suddenly lock the rear wheels causing the rear end to slide. Now you are drifting! If you do this correctly, it will be hard for spectators to even know you pulled the e-brake.
5. Release the e-brake
6. Countersteer - Countersteering is turning the steering wheel in the opposite direction that you first turned the steering wheel in - to initiate the turn. For example: Say you are about to drift a right hand turn. When entering the corner you turn the steering wheel to the RIGHT to get the car going in that direction. Once the car starts sliding, you would then turn the steering wheel to the LEFT to counter the skid.
7. Now wait until the car is facing the corner exit and gently give the car gas – how hard you step on the gas depends how much you are countersteering and sliding.

A common mistake is to floor the car as soon as you see the corner exit but this can make you spinout. Drifting is NOT about horsepower. Drifting is about weight transfer and maintaining the car’s momentum through a corner. However, there is a drifting technique called the Power Over Drift where you DO floor the car while exiting the corner but that is another subject.

Click Here to learn about the Power Over Drifting technique and 6 other basic drifting techniques Keiichi “Drift King” Tsuchiya covers in the Best Motoring video, Drift Bible.

Best Motoring: Drift Bible is an in-depth instructional drifting video that looks into six different drift techniques that Keiichi “Drift King” Tsuchiya uses while racing. Throughout the Drift Bible, Tsuchiya uses the Kei Office Nissan S14 Silvia on Ebisu Circuit’s East Course 2nd Hairpin (21R) corner to demonstrate the six basic drifting techniques: Side or E-brake drifting, Shift Lock drifting, Power Over drifting, Braking drift, Feint drift, and Lift-off drifting a form of Dynamic drifting.

Here is a brief overview of the six basic drifting techniques that Keiichi Tsuchiya demonstrates during the Drift Bible.

Side or E-brake Drifting – (Does not require weight transition) Use the car’s e-brake to lock the rear tires.

Drift Sequence:

1. Brake
2. Turn wheel
3. Step on clutch
4. Pull E-brake
5. Release E-brake
6. Countersteer
7. Then wait until car is facing corner exit, then gently give the car gas – how hard you step on the gas depends how much you are countersteering and sliding.

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Drift angle is the angle a car maintains during a drift. Drift angle is important in competition and is often judged as part of a driver’s style - the more extreme the drift angle the better.

The most common way to increase drift angle is to upgrade pre-existing tie rods and tie rod ends with high quality aftermarket tie rod parts specifically designed for drifting. Kazama Auto and Tein are popular manufacturers of these aftermarket tie rod parts. Stronger tie rods with longer threaded portions allow for a greater range of adjustment. While special tie rod ends have adjustable spacers to correct tie rod placement for extremely lowered vehicles that have issues with tie rod ends binding and snapping.

Increasing the length of the tie rods will add much needed play in the steering wheel and give you that much more control over your car’s drift angle. This increased steering angle will also make recovering from drifts or slides a little easier since you will have more room for correction.

Increased steering angle often requires other modifications as well because at some point, the tire or wheel will come in contact with other suspension pieces, the fenders, or wheel wells.

Other options to increase drift angle include custom built steering racks or machining of the spindles.