VIDEO> RMR/Hyundai Dawn of the PM580
The dawn of the PM580. Set a drift on torquey bliss… HOLY shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinsplints! Just take a look at Rhys Millen‘s new RedBull/RMR/Hyundai PM580 race car testing at El Toro Airfield in Irvine CA! This thing sounds and looks nuts!!! Built by Rhys Millen Racing and powered by a turbocharged Hyundai Lambda engine, the PM580 puts out 775 HORSEPOWER and 750 ft/lbs of torque… and only weighs 1900 lbs, giving it the ability to do 20-120mph in 5.9 seconds!
Don’t expect to see RMR’s new PM580 at the next Formula Drift event, however… this thing was built for the toughest hill climb of them all. Can anyone take a guess as to what that is?
Thanks to Stanley Tran for showing me the video!
:: Antonio Alvendia
VIDEO> The Spirit of Irwindale Formula D
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There’s just something about Irwindale Speedway at the end of the season. After all the teams in the Formula Drift Championship have faced countless trials and tribulations, dealing with mechanical problems and financial stress of how to get their cars and teams from event to event as the series travels all over the country; the Formula D homecoming at Irwindale Speedway for the last event of the year has a different feeling to it than the other events in the series.
The drivers and teams in the points race are anxious, knowing that they must be on point and professional every step of the way, as even the smallest mechanical hiccup or driver error could take them out of the running and give the advantage to an opposing team.
At the same time, the fans are excited to see the cars and drivers return to the birthplace of American drifting after they have spent the whole year on tour, cutting their teeth and taking their epic fender-to-fender dogfights to race tracks across the nation in an attempt to attract more sponsors, build more publicity, and most importantly… attract new drifting fans.
I’ve been traveling with the Formula Drift series since the very first event; since the series started in 2004… and every year, as the season ends at Irwindale Speedway, there’s a shared feeling of excitement and pride of accomplishment running through the pits.
This video, by Motor Mavens shooter Travis Hodges, is our attempt to capture that feeling. And it was captured entirely with two cameras, the new Canon 7D digital HD SLR and the Twenty20 ContourHD.
We hope you enjoy the video, and CONGRATULATIONS to all the teams, drivers, umbrella girls, and FANS that make the Formula D series what it is. RESPECT!!!
:: Antonio Alvendia
GALLERY> The Irwindale Experience
When I arrived at LAX on Thursday, I got my rental car and drove straight into L.A. traffic to get to Irwindale Speedway, working my way though all that traffic while trying to find a good radio station to listen to. I finally arrived at the Speedway about 45 minutes later.
Walking though the pits, watching all the vendors getting set up for the event, I noticed the pit area is so much bigger than the one we have at Evergreen Speedway where Round 5 was held . This was a subtle hint that more vendors and drivers would be attending this event than the one at Evergreen.
Another thing that I noticed was the weather. Seattle summer includes two months of decent heat and sun after which it's back to the infamous rain season that happens to have started a couple of weeks ago. So, even though I caught myself wiping sweat off my forehead every few minutes, I was enjoying every minute of the sun. I wish it was like this in the Northwest.
Fast forward to the opening day of the Final round of Formula Drift. I got there bright and early to start taking photos and meet lots of new people. Since I'm pretty new to MotorMavens, a lot of people didn't know my name or my face. I took that as the perfect opportunity to introduce myself to the locals. The attitude that California people have is really great! Everyone was friendly and awesome to hang out with! Read more...
VIDEO> Millen's Hyundai HillClimb
Just got a text message from Will Roegge about his new video, which is undoubtedly being posted RIGHT NOW to every blog site on the planet, and being posted to everyone’s Facebook and Twitter feeds…
Great job Will and Josh. And CONGRATULATIONS for taking the new record, RHYS!!!
:: Antonio Alvendia
