The Oregon Trail Rally (OTR) in early May was another triumph for the Sparco Rally xD team. While taking on the treacherous course there were times when even finishing the event would have seemed like an accomplishment. Still the team managed to not only earn a 2nd place podium in the Two Wheel Drive class, but place 5th in the “Overall” ranking, thanks to driver Andrew Comrie-Pacard (ACP).

Team Sparco’s performance in Oregon also helped earn them enough points to put them in the lead for the 2WD National Championship, which is a thrilling first for them.

Keep on the lookout for a full video recap from the event.

Scion Racing’s award-winning web series Driven to Drift burns back down the track for Season 4.  The first of these dynamic episodes covers the Streets of Long Beach event this past April and will keep clocking in throughout the year.

In the first episode, Team Need For Speed’s manager Stephan Papadakis, introduces the changes that were made to the 2011 NFS tC, including a new turbocharger and intake manifold. Meanwhile, Kenji Sumino of  the GReddy Racing team details how their new Scion Racing drift FR-S is nothing like that’s ever come out of their shop before.

All in all, Formula Drift Round 1 was a thrilling event, as you can tell when Ken Gushi, Fredric Aasbo, and Scion Racing newcomer Tony Angelo recap their performances in Long Beach.

Watch the full first episode below.

Stay tuned for Episode 2 of Driven to Drift from Road Atlanta, coming soon!

North America’s premiere professional drift series, Formula Drift, has returned for 2012, and we at Scion Racing couldn’t be more excited. Tony Angelo, who is driving Ken Gushi’s old 2010 tC, joins  Ken Gushi in his 2013 GReddy Racing/Scion Racing FR-S and Fredric Aasbo, who is running a new intake system and larger turbo in his 2011 tC. Tony’s addition makes this the first season Scion Racing has fielded 3 teams.  Last week, Scion held a private practice session at Irwindale, giving the teams the opportunity to test out their new vehicle builds and perform any necessary fine tuning and adjustments for Round 1. We spoke with each driver during the practice sessions, with cameras rolling, to hear a little more about their thoughts on the upcoming season. The footage can be viewed in our Formula Drift 2012 season preview summary. The Formula Drift debut competition took place Friday and Saturday (April 6-7) at the Streets of Long Beach road course.

Friday was dedicated to practice and qualifying rounds, which determine the final 32 teams to compete. All three of our Scion Racing drivers qualified, with Fredric Aasbo in 11th, Ken Gushi in 14th, and Tony Angelo in 21st position.

Saturday was the main event, and it was a perfect day for it. The sunny, 80 degree oceanside weather was the perfect environment for the sold out crowd to enjoy a day of drifting. The Scion Racing U.U.V. (Urban Utility Vehicle) was on hand to give out some free Scion Racing swag, and for those who wanted to put down the coin, the latest Scion Racing clothing from DTA Posse was available for purchase. In addition, fans were able to race the 2013 FR-S in Gran Turimso 5. The two fans with the fastest time of the day went home with their own copy of GT5!  Scion had a handful of vehicles on display, including Cartel’s Pit Boss iQ, and the brand new Cartel FR-S Speedster concept, which made its first public appearance at the event.

The event also marked the grand finale to the Scion First 86 Program, our promotion that offered a chance for FR-S enthusiasts to be among the first 86 to purchase the Scion FR-S. The lucky 86 program participants enjoyed the shady, elevated view of the competition from the Scion VIP Suite located inside turn 10.

And now for the race results!

Round of 32

In his first Formula Drift competition in 3 years, Tony Angelo went up against Chris Forsberg in his freshly built Nissan 370z. Angelo looked comfortable in his new ride, consistently coming within inches of the clipping points. It wasn’t enough to beat Forsberg’s performance, and he was eliminated from the competition.

Fredric Aasbo, Rookie of the Year in 2010, was matched with 2012 rookie Chelsea Denofa. Many drift fans have been curious to see if a rookie will come along one day and give Aasbo the same treatment he dealt in 2010 when he earned the nickname “Champkiller”. This was not that day, and he delivered two strong runs  to advance to the Round of 16.

Ken Gushi had a lot of anticipation built up around him, given this was the global competition debut for the Scion FR-S. The crowd roared as he drifted by in the GReddy Racing/Scion Racing FR-S, and he gave fans reason to be excited as he beat Jeremy Lowe and his FC3S RX7 to advance to the Round of 16 in commanding fashion.

Round of 16

Aasbo faced 2011′s champion Dai Yoshihara in the Round of 16. Undaunted, Aasbo put up a fight that only a champion could’ve survived. Unfortunately for Scion Racing and the Need For Speed team, Yoshihara proved his champion-level abilities by fending off Aasbo’s onslaught and edging out a win, knocking Fredric out of the competition.

Ken went head to head with Odi Bakchis, ranked 30th, who was coming with some major momentum in his Nissan S14 after beating the highly favored Vaughn Gitten Jr., ranked 3, in the first round. Lightning did not strike twice for Bakchis, and Ken maintained a strong performance to push through to the next round.

Round of 8

Yoshihara and Gushi found themselves face-to-face for the first time since Ken defeated Dai in the final race of 2011 at Irwindale. Ken’s FR-S was the lighter fighter being powered by the turbocharged boxer 4 versus Dai’s big LS V8. Ken knew he would have to be aggressive and on the first run, he went wide and contacted the wall on the outside of turn 10, damaging the rear quarter, wing and trunk. The GReddy Racing FR-S went into the pit under the 5 minute rule and were able to get back to the starting line in time for the lead run. Ken put up a strong second run, but it was not enough to regain what he had lost in the first run, and Yoshihara went on to the next round, and eventually 2nd place overall.

***

 Aasbo’s Need for Speed team is still anxious to see what their more powerful tC is capable of. Round 2 in Atlanta, GA looks like the perfect opportunity since  Atlanta is home to one of Formula Drift’s fastest tracks. Tony Angelo is getting back into racing form and using his experience as a Formula Drift judge to drive smart and focused. We expect big things in future events. Ken Gushi’s 2013 FR-S suffered minor damage in the Long Beach impact. The GReddy Racing team is already busy making aerodynamic, steering, and power adjustments in preparation for Formula Drift Round 2 – Road  Atlanta, taking place May 11-12.

Keep your eye on us here, on Twitter and on Facebook for coverage of future Formula Drift events. And be sure to watch the fourth season of Scion Racing’s drift webisodes series, Driven to Drift, following Ken, Fredric, and Tony behind the scenes…episode 1 below!

NASA Pro Racing’s 25 hours of Thunderhill, the longest road race in North America, was also the culminating competition for the DG-Spec Scion Racing Team’s 2011 season. The anticipation was thick leading up to the race, and DG-Spec held a commanding lead of the E1 class for the majority of the race. At the 22nd hour, a catastrophic engine failure occurred in the team’s 2010 Scion tC. After the pit crew went to work swapping in the back-up motor, the DG-Spec tC returned to the track with just 30 minutes left. Thanks to the team’s quick work and strong lead prior to the failure, they were able to hold on to an impressive 3rd place finish. Congrats to the team on all their hard work in the 2011 season!

The 2012 Formula Drift Season is gearing up to be the most exciting in Scion’s 5 years active in the sport.

Scion Racing and GReddy begin a new chapter in their racing relationship with the 600hp turbocharged Scion FR-S. The vehicle, originally revealed at the North American International Auto Show in January, has since gone back to GReddy for additional tuning and development.

Ken Gushi, Scion’s veteran drifter and the man who’ll be behind the wheel of GReddy Racing’s Scion FR-S this season, was lucky enough to take a stock FR-S and a prototype of the Drift FR-S up to Monterey California for a few hot laps around Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca!

Ken Gushi Formula Drift Pre-Season Interview

* * *

Lending some familiarity to last year, Fredric Aasbo is returning to his Need For Speed 2011 tC built by Papadakis Racing. He’s pictured here trying out the new configuration at Irwindale.

Noticeably different is the car’s new wrap with the signature NFS Livery featuring a new bright matte orange, replacing the red on last year’s NFS tC. Word on the street is the car has quite a bit more power this year, as well…

Fredric Aasbo Formula Drift Pre-Season Interview

* * *

Finally, our new Scion Racing driver and former Formula Drift judge, Tony Angelo, was happy to scoop up Ken Gushi’s 2010 tC. He, too, put his tC to the test out at Irwindale with Ken and Fredric.

He has only driven in two events since he stopped actively competing in 2008, and we’re very excited to see him get back on his horse!

Tony Angelo Formula Drift Pre-Season Interview

 * * *

For more information on the GReddy Racing Scion FR-S, Need for Speed’s retuned 2011 Scion tC and our new racing team fronted by Tony Angelo, visit scionracing.com!

The Sparco Rally xD team, led by Andrew Comrie-Picard, represented Scion Racing for the event. ACP and the team had their work cut out for them after being dust-screened behind ailing dcompetitors for three of five legs of the rally. Precious minutes were lost trying to navigate the dust being thrown in front of them.

ACP commented on the issue, “but on three legs we had a car in front of us limping out of the stage – one that got back on the road after a crash, one with failed brakes, and one that rolled right in front of us. It was impossible to pass them, and incredibly frustrating to be flat out everywhere and then have such bad luck with the dust. But that’s rally…”

After falling into 4th place and losing 3rd gear, the Sparco Rally xD team made an impressive run in the end to finish the weekend in 2nd place (2WD class). The result keeps the team in a strong second position in the national 2WD Rally Championship. Congrats to ACP and the rest of the rally team!

For more photos and info, visit Rallyxd.com. Follow us here, on Twitter @ScionRacing and Facebook to keep informed on Sparco Rally xD news and news from all of our Scion Racing teams!

Watch the videos below to get a first hand peak into what went into each of the builds and see who walked away the winner in the full SEMA Recap.

 2011 Scion Tuner Challenge – Road to SEMA

Tag along as the 5 tuners prepare for the 2011 SEMA Show in Las Vegas. As always, the builds come down to the last minute but these builders manage to still turn out some absolutely incredible and totally unique Scions!

2011 Scion Tuner Challenge contestant Tatsunori Tsuchida takes us through his custom iQ build as he prepares for the 2011 SEMA Show.

 2011 Scion Tuner Challenge – EVS iQ RS

2011 Scion Tuner Challenge contestant Mike Chang of Evasive Motorsports takes us through his custom Scion iQ as he prepares for the 2011 SEMA Show.

 2011 Scion Tuner Challenge – iQ RX

2011 Scion Tuner Challenge contestant Jon Sibal takes us through his custom Scion iQ build as he prepares for the 2011 SEMA Show.

 2011 SEMA Show – Recap

The full recap on all that happened in the Scion Booth at the 2011 SEMA Show.

Follow Scion Racing through 2012 to see next year’s tuner challenge, featuring the all-new 2013 Scion FR-S!

The Rally America Championship series kicked off in Atlanta, Michigan, frigid home of the Sno*Drift rally event, the first round of six championship events. it offers a messy combination of snow, slush and ice. The Sparco Rally xD fell as far as 5th in class after day one of racing. The team implemented some strategic changes overnight allowing driver Andrew Comrie-Picard to fight his way back up and finish on the podium taking 2nd in class.

“Honestly, on Friday night, I was questioning whether we could turn the race around” said Comrie-Picard, “but between some smart setup changes on the team’s part and a bit of a reset in my driving style, we managed to turn the tables on our competition on Saturday and go from over a minute out of second place to a solid result and a kickoff to our championship. I’m as proud of this result as of any in more than ten years of rally driving.”

The next event of the championship series takes ACP and the Sparco Rally xD team to Salem, Missouri, for the Rally in the 100 Acre Wood, February 24-25.

For more information on the team and its developments visit the team site at www.rallyxd.com & www.scionracing.com

Rally xD Team is supported by:
Scion Racing / Toyota Racing Development / Sparco USA / GReddy Performance / Rays Engineering / Tein USA / BFGoodrich / Performance Friction Brakes / Motul / KAAZ / PIAA / Seibon Carbon / Mechanix Wear / Exedy / Lincoln Electric / WPC / Five:AD / Dirtfish Rally School / 686

For additional videos of the Sparco Rally xD:
http://www.rallyxd.com/rallyxd/videos-2/

For images of the Sparco Rally xD in action:
http://www.rallyxd.com/rallyxd/photos/

*VIDEO* Tag along with Ken Gushi as he explores the NAIAS in the time leading up to the Scion FR-S reveal event.

New Drift Car, Racing Team for 2012

The 600-horsepower FR-S race car is the result of a collaboration between Scion Racing and GReddy, a performance-products company that has been involved with Toyota and racing for over twenty years.

The race car is inspired by the 2013 Scion FR-S, a compact rear-wheel-drive sports car that will go on sale in the spring of 2012. The high-performance coupe is the fifth model to join the Scion family.

Vice President of Scion Jack Hollis introduced the GReddy Racing FR-S to the lively Detroit crowd:

“Scion has been involved in racing from its beginning …from drag racing to road racing and even rally. But we probably have the most fun in the sport of drifting.

Some of you might have seen spy shots of that test car last week when Scion Racing’s own Ken Gushi was practicing at Laguna Seca. It’s come a long way since then.

Today we are extremely proud to introduce you to the latest member of the Scion family…the Scion Racing/GReddy Performance FR-S built to compete in the 2012 Formula Drift season!

This car has a few more horsepower than stock…a total of 600 to be exact…and over 500 pound-feet of torque.

Now we don’t expect that too many owners will take their FR-S to this level of extreme, but we do know that like all Scion vehicles, it will be pretty hard to find one that is left stock.”

- Jack Hollis, VP of Scion

The Scion Racing / GReddy Racing FR-S was built in-house at the GReddy R&D facility in Irvine, CA under great secrecy.  A Cosworth built boxer motor, turbocharged and intercooled by GReddy, powers the drift machine.  The entire GReddy Team is excited to debut the drift FR-S at the season opener on the “Streets of Long Beach,” on April 6-7, 2012.

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You can see the full press release at ScionNewsRoom.com. The Scion News Room is our direct outlet for all major press releases, product launches and other announcements. Check back often to get the most up-to-date press information, direct from Scion! You can also follow Scion Racing on Twitter, Facebook, and be sure to visit the all-new www.scion.com!

Formula Drift – RS*R/NFS

It’s tough to see a beloved driver leave your organization, as Superstar Tanner Foust’s departure from Formula Drift illustrated to Scion Racing. Fortunately, we could not have asked for a better replacement than 2010 Rookie of the Year Fredric Aasbo. Aasbo drives a new 2011 Scion tC, sponsored by Need For Speed and powered by the new, extensively tuned 4 cyl. engine in place of the V8. Aasbo’s modest persona and relentless driving style are a perfect fit for Scion Racing. Aasbo’s first season in the tC was full of thrills and spills, the high point being a thrilling 3rd place finish at Monroe, WA’s Evergreen Speedway. He earned a respectable 12th overall finish in the Series.

Beloved Scion RS*R driver Ken Gushi returned in his 2010 tC this year. Ken is always a thrill to watch, and a season full of stiff competition did not take away from the energy Ken brings to the team. A 14th place finish overall on the season, up one spot from last year, was not without due congratulations, but his defeat of season champion Dai Yoshihara at the Irwindale final showed the true star quality we love to see from Ken year after year.

World Racing

The WORLD Racing team, a top competitor in the NASA Series and Global Time Attack, is one of the hardest-working development teams in the sport, and their results are proof. WORLD debuted the new AWD tC FWing 2.0, a custom tC package developed using the knowledge and experience they gained from the original FWing 1.0, which set multiple track records around the country.

Owner and Driver Chris Rado continues to provide a solid source of leadership on and off the track.

Crawford Performance

Crawford Performance developed a brand new Scion racing team for 2011, competing in the NASA Pro Racing Series. Drivers Ariel Crawford (daughter of founder Quirt Crawford) and Michele Abbate compete for the team in matching 2011 Scion tCs. The young female pair is already a major force in the series and show a lot of promise for the future. Michele finished the season as 2^nd in class and Ariel finished in 3^rd, proving their limited professional experience is no issue.

GReddy Racing

Long-time import tuner GReddy began competing in the Redline Time Attack Series this year in an all-new 2011 Scion tC. GReddy was one of the first tuners to outfit the 2^nd generation tC with a turbo set up and their tC with additional modifications puts out more than 400hp! The team, led by driver Takeshi Aizawa, proved their racing and tuning skills as they grabbed the 1^st place spot in the Redline Time Attack FWD Street Tire Class this year at the Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, CA.

Sparco Rally xD

The Sparco Rally xD team entered into its third year of competition in the Rally America Series, championed by team manager Gordon Ting. The team said goodbye to driver Chris Dupliess after only one race this season, but they were thrilled to replace him with experienced rally driver Andrew Comrie-Picard. ‘ACP’, as he’s known by fans, warmed up quickly to the new car (and recently added GReddy turbo kit) and took the top place on the podium in just his second event of the season – the 2011 Oregon Trail Rally!

Kelley Racing

Second-generation drag racer Scott Kelley represents Kelley Racing in the NHRA Super Stock/BOTI Pro Stock divisions his 2010 Scion xB. Scion Racing partnered with Kelley last year, and the “Bullet” Scion xB proves to be quite a machine, helping Scott to land 1^st place at two IDRC events in the All Motor Class this year. Scion Racing is thrilled to be working with one of the premier drivers on the NHRA circuit, and Scott returns the sentiment with his strong performance and active support of Scion Racing.

DG-Spec

DG-Spec  has done amazing things in the global road racing arena for Scion Racing. Making a return to endurance racing this year, DG-Spec and driver Dan Gardner continued to solidify their place as one of the absolute top road racing teams, grabbing three 1^st place finishes and two other podiums in the E1 class of the Western Endurance Racing Championship (WERC). The season wrapped with a bittersweet showing at the monumental 25 Hours of Thunderhill endurance race, where the team held a commanding lead for much of the race until a catastrophic engine failure set them back to a still-respectable 3^rd place finish.

See you in 2012

There are a lot of exciting changes in store for the 2012 Scion Racing season. Stay tuned as new teams, new drivers, and new cars take the North American race circuits by storm. ACP and the Sparco Rally xD team will be starting the season off strong at the Sno*Drift Rally in Atlanta, Michigan January 27 and 28. See you there!

2011 Scion Racing Achievements:

RS*R/NFS

o 3rd Place – Formula Drift Round 5 – Seattle, WA – Team Need For Speed, Fredric Aasbo

o 1st Place – Formula Drift, Qatar Global Challenge – Papadakis Racing, Tanner Foust

World Racing

o Track Record (FWD Unlimited Class) – Infineon Raceway – WORLD Racing, Chris Rado

o Track Record (FWD Unlimited Class) – Buttonwillow Raceway – WORLD Racing, Chris Rado

o Track Record (FWD) – New Jersey Motorsports Park – WORLD Racing, Chris Rado

o Track Record (FWD Unlimited) – Miller Motorsports Park – WORLD Racing, Chris Rado

Crawford Performance

o 1st Place – NASA Time Trials – Buttonwillow Raceway – Crawford Performance, Michele Abbate

o 2nd Place – NASA Time Trials – Buttonwillow Raceway – Crawford Performance, Ariel Crawford

o 2nd Place – NASA Time Trials – Buttonwillow Raceway – Crawford Performance, Michele Abbate

GReddy Racing

o 1st Place – Redline Time Attack (FWD Street Class) – Auto Club Speedway – GReddy Racing, Takeshi Aizawa

Rally xD

o 2nd Place (2WD Class) – Rally America, New England Forest Rally – Sparco Rally xD, Andrew Comrie-Picard

o 2nd Place (2WD Class) – Rally America, Sn*Drift 2011 – Sparco Rally xD, Chris Duplessis

o 1st Place (2WD Class) – Rally America, Oregon Trail Rally – Sparco Rally xD, Andrew Comrie-Picard

Kelley Racing

o 1st Place (All Motor Class) – IDRC Finals – Fontana, CA – Kelley Racing, Scott Kelley

o 1st Place (All Motor Class) – IDRC Nationals, Auto Club Speedway – Kelley Racing, Scott Kelley

DG-Spec

o 1st Place (E1 Class) – Western Endurance Racing Championship – Buttonwillow Raceway – DG-Spec, Dan Gardner

o 1st Place (E1 Class) – Western Endurance Racing Championship – Buttonwillow 3 Hr. Enduro – DG-Spec, Dan Gardner

o 2nd Place (E1 Class) – Western Endurance Racing Championship – Thunderhill Raceway – DG-Spec, Dan Gardner

o 1st Place (E1 Class) – Western Endurance Racing Championship – Buttonwillow Raceway – DG-Spec, Dan Gardner

o 3rd Place (E1 Class) – Western Endurance Racing Championship – 25 Hours of Thunderhill – DG-Spec, Dan Gardner

The final race of the NASA Time Trials season was held on the first weekend of November at Buttonwillow Raceway Park in Buttonwillow, CA. Michele Abbate and Ariel Crawford had only two full days of racing to secure or squander their 2nd and 3rd place standings overall (respectively) for the this year’s standings.

Michele Abbate led the team and the field consistently, claiming 1st place without question.  Her strong showing also provided a beacon for teammate Ariel Crawford, whose performance continues to improve at an impressive rate. Ariel knocked two seconds off of her previous best lap and landed a 2nd place finish for the weekend.

Michele shaved nearly 7 seconds off her best lap at Buttonwillow from the previous year, and even managed to post the fastest lap overall in the rain, which fell on the final two sessions of the weekend. The pair definitively held onto their season standings of 2nd and 3rd with impressive performance and class.

Continue to follow us here to see what the ladies of Crawford Performance are up to in 2012!

About Crawford Performance
Crawford Performance, founded by Quirt Crawford in 2002, specializes in designing and building high-performance vehicles, including the infamous Gymkhana 1 and Gymkhana 2 vehicles driven by Ken Block, that excel in rally, drift, road, gymkhana and time attack racing formats. Recognized around the world for its successful customization of the street and race prepped vehicles which consistently exceeds expectations on the world stage, Crawford Performance also manufactures proven street components for racing enthusiasts and racing professionals alike. 
(source: www.crawfordperformance.com)

The 2011 Formula Drift season culminated at Toyota Speedway in Irwindale, California, known affectionately as the “House of Drift.” This year’s final race was quite a thriller, as multiple teams were within striking distance of the season championship spot. Our final episode of Driven to Drift for 2011 is full of excellent race footage and insights from our two favorite drifters.

The Speedway was packed with plenty of excited drift fans. RS-R driver Ken Gushi said, “I don’t think I have ever seen that many fans in a Formula D venue, ever.” Our Scion drivers Gushi and Fredric Aasbo’s pre-race excitement was certainly an indicator of the energy at the event.

Before having a chance to drive in the qualifying round, Aasbo had valve train issues with his Need for Speed 2011 Scion tC, which caused some frustration and tension for Fredric and his team. They took the setback in stride, knowing that the new car and new driver would cause surprises, and they repaired the tC as best as possible.

Gushi went up against Taka Aono in the Round of 32, and raced well enough to secure a win without taking too many risks. Aasbo rushed to the track for the Round of 32 after last minute repairs were made to his tC. He faced closely-matched opponent Kyle Mohan. Aasbo’s trademark aggressive performance unfortunately led him to clipping the wall with his back end, sending the front of the car slamming into the wall. The team attempted to repair the car in the 5 minutes allowed between runs, but the suspension damage proved to be insurmountable and Fredric’s season came to an all to abrupt end.

Ken Gushi drew the toughest position in the stadium when he was matched up with season points leader Dai Yoshihara of Falkan Factory racing in his Nissan Silvia, aka 240sx S13. Ken bravely put it all on the line, throwing loads of smoke with his 2010 tC and drifting dangerously close to the wall in order to throw Dai off his game. Ken eventually took a bump from the shaken Dai, and he went on to defeat the season leader.

But there are no breaks in Formula Drift, and the Round of 8 placed Ken opposite the gutsy Tyler McQuarrie in his Nissan 350z. Although Ken never pulled back on the aggressive racing and massive smoke screens, McQuarrie pushed through it all to force Gushi to make the same mistakes Yoshihara had made in the round before. McQuarrie took the round and the rest of the event, placing 1st at Irwindale and 4th on the season.

Ken and Fredric had commendable attitudes and pride in their teamsand the lessons they learned throughout this tough season, which had many ups and downs for both drivers. They each also improved one position over last year, Aasbo 12th and Gushi 14th, providing a personal victory and proof of a hard-fought season.

Congratulations to our Scion drivers, Dai Yoshihara on his 2011 season win, and well done to all the Formula Drift drivers and teams, whose performance and dedication are making Formula Drift grow at a thrilling rate!

Watch Episode 7 of Driven to Drift for all the exciting details and footage! Check back with us to find out everything you need to know about Formula Drift 2012 and Scion Racing!

Second place was awarded to Michael Chang of Evasive Motorsports for his EVS iQ-RS, which comes with $7,000 and prizes from Snap-on, Alpinstars and Meguiar’s.

Collecting $5000 and a selection of products from Snap-on, Alpinstars and Meguiar’s is Tatsunori Tsuchida for his iQ-MR.

Receiving the nomination to be a builder for the Scion Tuner Challenge is a unique commendation in itself, and we are thrilled with all three builders and their teams for the exquisite design and hard work put into each of the tuner iQs.

With each passing year, the interest and excitement in our Tuner Challenge competition builds. Follow Scion Racing through 2012 to see which new vehicle will be featured next year!

Inspired by his love of motorsports, Lookofsky and his CARTEL team packed this highly specialized vehicle with some amazing features. Its functions are programmed though RED EYE Automation & the driver has full control over an Apple iPad, which is integrated into the dash. The car is a WIFI hot spot utilizing an AutoNet Mobile Device.

One can immediately see the great deal of work put into this iQ, from the CARTEL Chop Top to the one piece rocker and side panels and the SnapOn tool box drawers and tools molded into the rear bumper. And the House of Colors Electric Blue base paint with Black two tone top and pinstripes make these features pop.

Inside, you can find Black carbon fiber and Orion grey seats, door panels and trim. The tire rack and roll cage pit support occupy the rear seating area, while the iPad dock and SCOSCHE Interface dominate the instrument panels up front. Alpine Audio equipment fills every corner, insuring that no spot was left uncustomized.

‘Pit Boss’ will be on display November 1-4 at the 2011 SEMA Show in Las Vegas. See the complete list of features below.

EXTERIOR
- Cartel Traditional Signature Series Chop Top
- One Piece Welded Rocker & Side Panels
- Doors Chopped & Capped
- Custom Metal Fabrication Interior & Exterior Panels
- House of Colors Electric Blue Base Paint with Black Two Tone Top & hand laid pinstripes threw out.
- Custom Glass Front Window
- SnapOn Tool Box Drawers & Tools Molded Into Rear Bumper

INTERIOR
- Black Carbon Fiber & Orion Grey Seats, Door Panels, Audio & Misc. Trim
- Customs Audio Enclosures, Door Panels, & Modified Dash
- Tire Rack & Roll Cage Pit Support
- iPad Controlled (Fully Enabled Functions)
- Autonet Mobile WiFi
- 12V & 110V Power Charging Station
- SCOSCHE Wiring & Interface Modules

ENGINE
- Torco Oils
- ACT Clutch

SUSPENSION
- AccuAir Suspension / E Level Air Management Package
- Mini Tub & Shortened Straight Axel.
- Rear Factory Suspension Points Re Engineered & Located

WHEELS/TIRES
- Front 18 x 8 Lorenzo WL028
- Rear 19x 9.5 Lorenzo WL028
- Front 215/35/18 Toyo Proxes 4
- Rear 265/30/19 Toyo Proxes 4

BRAKES
- Wilwood Dynapro 6 piston calipers in custom white on 12” SRP drilled and slotted two piece rotors.
- Wilwood Dynapro 4 piston calipers in customer white on 12” SRP drilled and slotted two piece rotorsELECTRONICS
- Alpine Audio PDX-F4 (2 Units):  PDX 4-Channel Power Density Digital Amplifier
- Alpine Audio PDX-M12 (1): PDX Mono Power Density Digital Amplifier
- Alpine Audio SPR-50C (2 Sets): Type-R 5.25” Component 2-Way Speakers
- Alpine Audio SPR-60C (1): Type-R 6.5” Component 2-Way Speakers
- Alpine Audio SWR-T10 (2): Type-R 10” Thin Subwoofer

The exterior is bundled head-to-toe in custom features, from the New Balance tires to the Bern carbon fiber helmet roof. The xB is completely wrapped in 686 waterproof/breathable fabric, with waterproof YKK zipper pockets and Dragon APX mirrored frameless windows.

The interior has no shortage of fun and functional sporting gear. The Union binding swivel seats, Freewaters heated floor mats and Cadence steering wheel wrap are only a few of the many mountain-ready features. 686 did plenty of their own custom creation with the gear hangers, snowboard rack, boot rack and roll cage all stuffed comfortably inside. To top it all off, Marc Mckee from Blind provided custom artwork to add some cozy inside the cabin.

“Numeric” will be on display November 1-4 at the 2011 SEMA Show in Las Vegas. See the complete list of features below.

SPONSORS: 686® technical apparel, Scion Racing®, Spin Imaging®, MV Designs®, Rokform®, Roland Sands Designs®, Light Force®, Motegi®, Skullcandy®, New Balance®, Freewaters®, Go Pro®, Union® Bindings, Cadence® Apparel, Dragon® Alliance, BOA® Technologies, Bern® Helmets, Vestal® Watches, Blind® Skateboards, Recco® Rescue System, Sparco®

EXTERIOR
- 20,000mm/15,000mg2 waterproof/breathable 686® fabric wrap
- Laser welded and stitched seams
- Waterproof YKK® zipper pockets/vents with sonic welded taping
- Bern® carbon fiber protective helmet roof
- Dragon® APX mirrored frameless windows
- Four-way custom suicide doors
- Custom body kit 686® vader vent mesh grilles

INTERIOR
- Union® binding swivel seats
- Freewaters® heated floor mats
- Vestal® custom clock by Roland Sands®
- Cadence® steering wheel wrap
- BOA® AC/Heat controls
- Rokform® custom CNC Ipad® cradle
- Custom artwork by Marc Mckee from Blind®
- Custom gear hangers for jacket, pants, helmets, gloves
- Easy dry gear door compartments Snowboard tuning tool compartment
- Custom snowboard rack
- Custom boot rack
- Custom roll cage
- Custom Avalanche shovel and probe

ENGINE
- 2.4l DOHC 16-valve 4-Cylinder with VVT-i
- TRD® cold air intake
- 686® x Roland Sands® stainless steel exhaust system
- 5-speed manual

SUSPENSION
- D2 adjustable coil over system
- TRD® sway bars

WHEELS/TIRES
- New Balance® wet race tires 225/40R18
- Motegi® 18” rally wheels

BRAKES
- TRD® 4piston disc brakes front and rear
- Custom CNC drift brake

ELECTRONICS
- Skullcandy® Aviator inspired soundsystem
- Gopro® video rear view mirrors
- Detachable Gopro® reverse camera
- AiM® Sports Digital instrument cluster
- Ipad® cradle for music, video editing and navigation
- Recco® avalanche rescue system detector and reflectors

Tuner A
Name: EVS iQ-RS
Vehicle: 2012 Scion iQ
Built by: Michael Chang

Michael Chang and Evasive Motorsports, located east of LA in La Puenta, CA designed and built our first entry, which they have dubbed the “EVS IQ-RS”. The car has a clean, understated white and red color theme and politely aggressive racing look. Evasive custom built nearly every body panel to achieve this look, while not straying too far from the iQs natural proportions.

The exterior is enhanced with a Voltex rear wing and carbon canards, a custom front lip and center exit exhaust.

Under the hood, Chang focused on maximizing cooling and airflow to the engine, installing custom oil and transmission coolers, a Koyo full size radiator, center exit exhaust, and a carbon air induction box.

In the cockpit, you’ll find Sparco racing accessories surrounding the driver, custom carbon dash trim and center console, an 11” touchscreen display, Defi fuel and oil pressure gauges among other functional and stylistic modifications.

Tuner B
Name: iQ RX
Vehicle: 2012 Scion iQ
Built by: Jon Sibal

Our second entry was tuned by Jon Sibal, a professional automotive artist and consultant. Bringing his design from paper to pavement, Jon brings us the “iQ RX”.

Sibal went with a dark theme using silvers, matte greys and blacks. Large flares and wings are absent, giving the iQ a compact, solid-looking design you wouldn’t want to run into in a dark alley. The exterior is outfitted with modified Veilside iQR panels and bumpers. He added LED DRLs and smoked the headlights and taillights.

The engine is outfitted with a Nitrous Express system, with (2) 2.5lb bottles, a purge system with a D-4 manifold, dual vent kit, as well as an MVDesignz custom intake system. The suspension is highly modified with AIR RUNNER SYSTEM components, a VIAIR compressor and TANABE strut tower bar reinforcement.

Step inside and experience a techies paradise. MVDesignz installed a powerful Orion audio system, an XBOX 360 game console which can be enjoyed on the motorized 32” Samsung LED 3DTV, and not to be forgotten, an Apple iPad 2 with a custom enclosure. An AIR RUNNER SYSTEM control kit and pressure gauges are also included.

Tuner C
Name: iQ MR
Vehicle: 2012 Scion iQ
Built by: Tatsunori Tsuchida

Our third and final entry for the 2011 Scion Tuner Challenge was built by Tatsunori Tsuchida. Tsuchuda stripped the iQ down and heavily modified its mechanical setup to create this rear-wheel drive, mid-engine machine called the “iQ MR”.

White G1 Design Graphics adorn the silver, aviation-inspired sheet metal from Specialty Cars, giving the iQ a no-nonsense, purpose-built look. Ais Wheels supplied a set of 15” wheels to add a dash of flash, and the custom roof scoop provides air to cool the rear mounted engine while giving the iQ a unique silhouette.

Inside is hollowed out and adorned with Specialty Cars paneling and Sparco racing gear, including a window net and 5-point race harness.

Under the hood, all you’ll find is the fuel cell and battery. You’ll have to go around back to find the engine, rebuilt by Mavrik Motorsports. Metro Fluid supplied the connection and stainless hoses, JE Pistons provided 12:1 compression pistons and Micro Image brings in a new Clutch kit and lightened flywheel.

There’s no room for flashy electronics in this down to business iQ. AEM rounds out the tech presence with the engine management system.

Need for Speed crew member Shawn Hillier describes the challenges the team faced from the oppressive heat, leading them to a complete engine swap due to some issues detected during practice.

As for the main event, Need for Speed driver Fredric Aasbo arrived at the round of 16, where he faced his Need for Speed teammate Matt Powers once again. Putting it all on the line against this top competitor, Fredric nearly sent his 2011 tC into a half-spin, and he never recovered from the lost momentum.

Team RS*R driver Ken Gushi went up against Conrad Grunewald in the round of 16, and after some shuffling, the judges decided Grunewald had performed an illegal pass, sending Ken to the Round of 8. As fate would have it, he was matched up with Matt Powers as well. After Powers’ car stalled suddenly while on his lead lap, Ken’s frantic attempt to avoid collision led to a slight touch that resulted favorably for Powers, and Ken could not make up the difference in time.

The desert race made for a series of challenges for the teams, cars, and drivers, but as always it produced some really great footage!

Driven To Drift: Season 3 Episode 6 – Las Vegas Speedway

Scott Kelley was the undisputed winner in his group, where he competed in his Scion Bullet xB with Norman Aubry’s Honda Insight, Jarrett Lynch’s Mazda RX-2, and Jeremy Shay’s Civic. The first round saw Kelley and Aubry handily advance, making for a thrilling final.

Aubry got out of the hole first and made the race interesting from the start. Kelley made an impressive comeback down the track, winning the day with a 9.889-second elapsed time (et) at 134.81mph to Aubry’s 10.007 at 132.84, once again capturing a class victory as he did in April at the IDRC West Coast Nationals.

Drift veteren Ken Gushi reflects on the excitement he continues to experience with the rapid growth of Formula Drift motorsports. Scion newcomer Fredric Aasbo enjoyed the familiarity and nostalgia provided by Seattle’s Norwegian-like climate and scenery, which bolstered an impressive performance that secured Aasbo the 3rd place spot, his first podium finish of the season, in front of the sellout Seattle crowd.

Fredric flew a Norwegian flag on the rear of his tC in honor of those who tragically lost their lives in the Olso, Norway shootings earlier this summer.

Lead Fabricator Scott ‘Chip’ Stanwood introduces us to the new tC and the process of customizing a factory built streetcar into a world-class performance vehicle. “If it looks like I don’t need it, I take it out,” Scott says, as he explains logic and purpose behind chassis placement and construction, leaving as much of the factory components in as possible to maintain the authenticity of the factory build.

Chief Mechanic Gary Kubo and Technical Director Eric Plebani Tech Director describe the custom exhaust setup, its purpose and its motivation as we see it take form. Eric digs deep to come up with the best possible solutions in the extremely limited time available to finish the build, hitting a serious speed bump when his first design was scrapped. Eric explains, “Basically we fabricated ourselves into a corner, and they didn’t like it. Most people would’ve just called it a day and went home…(we) couldn’t do it. So me and Chip just put our heads together and figured it out.”

Team Manager Rob Cardona explains each team member’s role and their combined goals for the 2011 tC. Rob points out, “We know building this thing lightweight is going to be key to it being fast.” We get a glimpse of the WORLDRacing team’s combined efforts to maximize power and minimize weight in the car, learning from the design of the previous tC.

Time Attack Crew Chief Rob Mathis visits to aid in strategy and recommend the best possible components and methods for the car. “We are proud and happy to represent Scion in Time Attack Racing. There are are many, many virtues in the Scion tC. At the same time, it’s not a grocery-getter anymore, and we have to evolve with what we’re doing so we learned some very valuable lessons with the original front wheel car,” said Rob. After seeing the inner workings completed, Rob was delighted. “It looks like it doesn’t have enough parts in it it’s so tidy.”

After two weeks of fabrication to completely transform the factory-built Scion into a FWing performance beast, the tC had to be painted and finished in 48 hrs, and in 7 days be 100% track ready and on a truck to New Jersey. Enjoy the incredible speed and technical skill the World Racing team is able to apply in such a limited time frame in episodes 4-7 of our WORLD FWing 2.0 Web Series!

WORLD Racing 2011 Webisode #4: LIGHTER, FASTER, STRONGER

WORLD Racing 2011 Webisode #5: Brainstorming the FWING 2.0

WORLD Racing 2011 Webisode #6: Evolution of the FWING 2.0

WORLD Racing 2011 Webisode #7: Assembling the FWING 2.0

New Jersey’s Wall Speedway is a track that has made enemies of many of the drivers in the Formula Drift series. Ken Gushi is no exception. He has visited the track for a number of years, and he does little to hide his disdain for the Speedway in Episode 4. Fredric Aasbo, on the other hand, finds the long, aged track to be an exciting and fun challenge after his first visit to New Jersey.

The Scion tC drivers drew very tough competition coming out of the qualifying round. Fredric was pitted against #2 ranked Darren McNamera, who edged Fredric out in a close race. Ken found himself in a similar situation, as he was matched up with #1 ranked Justin Pawlak in the round of 16.

Round 5 sees the drivers back to the west coast for a trip to Evergreen Speedway near Seattle, Washington. Stay tuned!

Need for Speed driver Fredric Aasbo gives us a quick look at his modified 2011 Scion tC, remarking on the modifications inspired by his Toyota Supra in order to ease his transition into the new tC. Ken Gushi explains the uniqueness of the track and the various techniques required to perform well there.

Fredric went up against Need for Speed teammate Matt Powers, who delivered a solid run to knock Fredric out for the day. In humble sportsmanlike fashion, Fredric reflects on his tendency to overshoot turns while thanking his support team, addressing self-improvement as his number one goal to reach success.

Ken is also appreciative of his crew and is happy for an overall clean competition. He drove a respectable race, but unfortunately came up short early on.

Driven to Drift: Season 3 Episode 3 – Palm Beach International Raceway, FL

In our video recap, Andrew Comrie-Picard celebrates the diligence and endurance of his crew, whom he compiled from a variety of individuals he trusted and had personal relationships with. He highlights the importance of the necessary cohesion and cooperation a rally team must have in order to succeed in such a rough sport.

The crew was constantly under fire over the weekend maintaining the battered xD, including some serious pressure presented by a massive oil leak threatening the continuation of the race.

Enjoy the perspectives of many of Sparco’s team members as well as electrifying footage of their Scion xD in our final video of this 2011 Rally America season.

Thank you for following along with us this season and get excited with us as we gear up for 2012!

Sparco Rally xD – The New England Forest Rally

Andrew Comrie-Picard and Jeremy Wimpey, the driver/co-driver duo in Sparco’s rally Scion xD, give a behind-the-scenes look at what takes place on and off the course at a professional rally event. Follow along with them as they describe their process of preparation and in race excitement.

Watch their Scion xD shred through the lush Oregon terrain in what turned out to be a textbook planned-and-executed win in the 2WD class for Sparco Rally, a great way to enter into the final race of the season, which will take place in New England July 15-16.

Check out the video and visit us again right here to find out more about the final Rally America race in the forests of New England!Sparco Rally xD – Oregon Trail Rally Highlights

“I can’t say enough about our partners at Dezod, Garrett, Burns, Goodridge, and AEM. They all provided great pieces and tech support to give us the best chance of an issue-free setup right out of the gates.” said team owner and driver Dan Gardner.

Webb grabbed fast lap of the weekend with a 2:09.xx, building a gap over theE1 Acura, which had started one position behind the tC. The team powered through a radio kit failure, using light flashes to signal affirmative responses. Even with this and later a headlamp failure, Webb and Gardner persevered to maintain a commanding lead and eventually landed the win.

The fifth and sixth rounds of the WERC endurance series will take place at Thunderhill Raceway on August 13-14.

Photos, videos, and updates can be found on DG-Spec’s Facebook page athttp://www.facebook.com/pages/DG-Spec/202937143062874 as well as their YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/DanGardnerSpec.

Consistent performance and a talented race crew has pushed GReddy into first place for the FWD Street Tire Class in 2011.

Check out the photos and see more at www.ScionRacing.com

Check back with us to see if GReddy and Aizawa maintain their impressive performance in round 5 of the Redline Attack Series!

Follow along with us as we track Crawford Racing throughout the season!

To start off, we take an in-depth look at Fredric’s new 2011 Need For Speed tC. Led by crew chief Stephen Papadakis, we get to see some of the unique elements of the custom-built yet surprisingly stock tC.

As for the races, Ken’s momentum and excitement through the qualifying rounds was unfortunately halted by a blown rear differential.

Fredric also began the day strong, even throwing some near backwards entries into the first corner; however, his aggressive style led to overshooting a couple turns and eventually a loss in the early rounds.

The next round will be held at Palm Beach International Raceway, a Formula Drift first. Check back here for our coverage!

Driven to Drift: Season 3 Episode 2 – Road Atlanta, GA

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Kenji Sumino, President of GReddy Racing, starts off the race’s recap video describing the origins of drivers including custom modifications in their vehicles and how this interest led to the creation of GReddy USA. They are proud of that tradition and tout the fact they are a company of racing enthusiasts.

Plannning Manager Mike Chung explains their development relationship with Scion and the decision to compete in Redline Time Attack Street Tire Class in order develop cars that highlight the company’s strengths and abilities while also making the products accessible for customers.

Watch the video for the interviews and some thrilling race footage, and check back here to see the tC’s progress throughout the series!

GReddy Scion tC Turbo Wins Street FWD – 2011 Redline Time Attack Auto Club Speedway

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For more, visit: http://www.rallyxd.com

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Sparco Rally xD Blog
Rally-America.com

Webb would take the wheel for Saturday’s 90-minute race, while Gardner would take over driving duties for Sunday’s two-hour race. Each was to be a separate points-scoring affair, and with the short lengths of the races, a driver change wouldn’t be prudent.

As the third round of the WERC series came to a close, the DG-Spec Scion maintained their lead at the top with a total of 280 points, 40 points ahead of second.  The team now prepares for the fourth round at Buttonwillow on June 25.  The race is planned to be a three-hour affair.

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The new team begins with the return of team owner and veteran crew chief Stephan Papadakis of Papadakis Racing.  Papadakis will join forces with Team Need for Speed in the all-new 2011 Scion tC.  The Team Need for Speed Scion tC will be piloted by Formula DRIFT’s 2010 Rookie of the Year, Fredric Aasbo.

“I can’t begin to describe how excited the Scion Racing team is to welcome Fredric Aasbo and Team Need for Speed to the Scion family,” says Steve Hatanaka, Scion auto shows and events manager. “Together, the new team, new driver and the new tC will be an extremely competitive trio that will yield some excellent results this season.”

Aasbo joins Scion Racing as a two-time Nordic Drifting Series champion and 2010 Formula DRIFT Rookie of the Year.  Aasbo will step out of a 1998 Toyota Supra and into the cockpit of the all-new 2011 Team Need for Speed Scion tC. “I’m truly honored and excited to get behind the wheel of the Team Need for Speed Scion tC,” says Aasbo. “It’s not going to be easy to follow in the footsteps of my idol Tanner Foust, but I know that the combination of the new tC and my thirst for victory, will help get the team on top of the podium.”

Tanner Foust, former Scion Racing drifter, will not be competing in the 2011 Formula DRIFT series due to transitions in his career.   “No offense to Papadakis, the team, the fans or the competitors, but the thing that I will miss the most about not drifting this year is that crazy NASCAR TRD V8-powered Rockstar Scion tC,” says Foust. “It’s been an amazing two years behind the wheel of the Rockstar Scion tC. Best of luck to Aasbo and the new Need for Speed Scion tC.”

“There aren’t many people that can match the driving talent and personality of Tanner Foust,” says Hatanaka.  “Scion Racing thanks him for a phenomenal two years and wishes him the best of luck in all of his future endeavors.”

Aasbo and the Team Need for Speed Scion tC, will join the Scion Racing camp with returning veteran drifter Ken Gushi and the Scion Racing/RSR/Hankook Tire Scion tC.  “Gushi and Aasbo are young and gifted drifters that have the determination to get the job done,” says Hatanaka.  “Scion Racing looks forward to introducing the new team to the enthusiastic Formula DRIFT fans at Round 1.”

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Third place was awarded to James Lin and his gold wide-body tC.  Second place was John Pangilinan’s race spec tC whose design will be the basis for the 2011 Need For Speed drift tC.  Shawn Baker and his Cement Grey tC took home first place, a giant trophy and a check for $10,000!

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The winning team, Salty Dogs, was flown out for the 2010 SEMA show in Las Vegas to showcase their modified xB.  On November 3, the team will be awarded the grand prize check for $15,000.

For more information, visit: http://battleofthebuilds.com/?page_id=94

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