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As the Formula 1 Grand Prix crosses the mid-season mark things have gotten even more interesting. Lewis Hamilton of McLaren has won the German Grand Prix at the Nurburgring F1 circuit ahead of Ferrari's Fernando Alonso and Red Bull's Mark Webber in third. Championship leader Sebastian Vettel came in fourth, his lowest finish of this season. Does this win by Hamilton and the second place by Alonso show progress by both McLaren and Ferrari as well as a slowdown in development by leader Red Bull? I have no idea. But it is interesting. Both Ferrari's and McLaren's resurgence seemed to have two races prior to this as the very dull European Grand Prix at Valencia. Both teams came in second and fourth respectively and what this shows is that every time the racing returns to Europe, major (or minor) changes occur. Teams would usually wait to deploy their latest mechanical and aerodynamic changes to the cars during this period. Teams who somehow seem to crawl suddenly gain a lot more speed. It also sometimes shows that in Formula 1, you cannot slow down development even though these days FIA comes out with tons of new rules and regulation to keep racing in check. Those that have been following Formula 1 would notice that the tire changes actually crucial. It was so crucial in this last race where Felipe Massa and Sebastian Vettel waited till lap 59, the penultimate lap before pitting for new tires. Things were down to the wire and during this last pit-stop, Vettel managed to exit earlier than Massa who was in front before the pit-stop and claimed a strongly fought fourth place. A few years ago this would never have happened in Formula 1. Racing is good these days. Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso both drove maturely and deserved their podium finished. And for us fans it is even better as Red Bull isn't winning all the time. Results 0. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes 1h37:30.334 02. Alonso Ferrari + 3.980 03. Webber Red Bull-Renault + 9.788 04. Vettel Red Bull-Renault + 47.921 05. Massa Ferrari + 52.252 06. Sutil Force India-Mercedes + 1:26.208 07. Rosberg Mercedes + 1 lap 08. Schumacher Mercedes + 1 lap 09. Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari + 1 lap 10. Petrov Renault + 1 lap 11. Perez Sauber-Ferrari + 1 lap 12. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1 lap 13. Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 1 lap 14. Maldonado Williams-Cosworth + 1 lap 15. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1 lap 16. Kovalainen Lotus-Renault + 2 laps 17. Glock Virgin-Cosworth + 3 laps 18. D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth + 3 laps 19. Ricciardo HRT-Cosworth + 3 laps 20. Chandhok Lotus-Renault + 4 laps Retirements Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth 44 Button McLaren-Mercedes 42 Barrichello Williams-Cosworth 23 Heidfeld Renault -Massa Leads Vettel- photo credit: planetf1

[extract] Leena and Teena Gade, sisters based in Britian, have two of the most important jobs in world motorsport. Leena Gade is the No. 1 engineer responsible for this year

[extract] It rained during the British Formula 1 Grand Prix at Silverstone on the 10th of July. This basically meant that racing was at its finest (subjectively speaking that is). Ferrari managed to break its dry spell in this wet race with Fernando Alonso taking the win with the usual suspects, Sebastian Vettel coming in second and his Red Bull counterpart, Mark Webber taking third. It is Ferrari

For those of you who follow Formula One, have you ever wondered what it was like to drive one of these things around a circuit? I must admit, that thought has occasionally crossed my mind. Well, SingTel recently gave us a chance to find out, when they held an event to launch their latest Formula One simulator ahead of the 2011 Singapore Grand Prix. Media invitees were given two chances at trying out the simulator, one on a test track, and one on the Marina Bay Street Circuit. During the briefing, I kept thinking, this should be easy, considering the hours I spend on the XBox playing games like Forza Motorsport. So things like braking late and hitting the apex should be a problem. How wrong I was. From the moment you are sat very in the cockpit, you just know that this is a totally different experience. Your legs are inclinded upwards towards the pedals, and you form a sort of a slight V-shape, a bit like doing leg lift-ups. The pedals too, require quite a bit of force to depress and operate, so trying to find the right pressure can be tricky initially. On the go, it just feels completely different from every day driving. For example, when you're cornering, you have to brake hard, downshift using the paddle shifters, and then turn the wheel, in that order. You can never do two actions at the same time, because you will either stall or lock the wheels and spin off. It is a lot to think about at more than 200km/h, even if it is just simulation. Practice makes perfect though, and I believe that once you get a few laps in, you start to get the hang of it. If you want to have a go, SingTel is organising a 24-Hour Simulator Challenge at Plaza Singapura on the 23 and 24 July, where members of the public get a chance to challenge themselves and set the best time on the Marina Bay Street Circuit. For more details, go to www.singtel.com/f1 to find out more.

Once upon a time, Group B rally cars ruled the earth. Or rallying, that is. This was in the 1980s and these cars were so fast and dangerous that eventually these Group B monsters (like the Lancia Delta S4 and the Audi Quattro S1) were banned. This was quite logical at that point of time as there were horrid accidents that claimed the lives of the drivers and navigators. The cars were built without compromise for speed and this actually made things dangerous for its occupants. Unlike this story which I am about to tell where a Honda Insight Hybrid rally car gets banned for winning rallies over in the UK. This hybrid Honda competed in the Formula 1000 Tarmac Rally Series and was officially requested to withdraw due to complains by rival teams stating that the hybrid rally car has an unfair advantage. It was deemed to have dominated the championship with a 19 point lead by coming in first twice and second once in the first three rounds that had taken place. The Oaktec team running the Honda Insight Hybrid have been requested to withdraw from the Formula 1000 rally series and compete in a higher class to make all these spoil-sports happy. The Honda Insight Hybrid rally car uses a tuned petrol engine as well as an electric motor to give it power and fuel efficiency. The Lancaster based Oaktec team had been developing the car for almost 6 years and the car can achieve 100mpg when driven conservatively. It is also the only rally car that runs on a specially developed CVT gearbox. Never have I heard anyone running an automatic type transmission in rallying. It is usually manual or sequential gearboxes. Anyway, Oaktec had stated that they will comply with the request to participate in a high rally category. Whatever the case, even though I do not actually fancy hybrids, I also do not actually fancy spoil-sports and rally teams that whine about unfair advantage. Now what is the actual advantage given is actually hard to say as the car still came in second, meaning some other normal petrol or diesel powered car came first. As if the other teams in the Formula 1 GP are kicking Red Bull out because Sebastian Vettel for winning nearly every F1 GP race this season. Eventually the world of motorsport will be filled with hybrids and electric cars as the powers that be will request motorsport promote the use of eco-friendly race cars that take into account carbon emissions and other environmental issues. Oh, and one more thing. Aren't the other teams ashamed a wimpy looking hybrid like the Honda Insight with skinny tires and rear wheelarch covers can beat the crap out of normal 1400cc petrol powered rally cars? source:green-car-guide/photo:oaktechybrid

[extract] The European Formula 1 Grand Prix was held at Valencia recently and to tell you the truth, I fell asleep after a few laps. I suppose it was late in this part of the world but it wasn

[extract] BMW Motorsport Director Jens Marquardt has announced that the M3 DTM (Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters) Concept Car will make its debut in Munich in July 11. The unveiling will take place during the DTM event on 16th and 17th July at Munich

The teams and manufacturers have agreed to drop the controversial 'green' engine formula which was set to be introduced in 2013. The compromise will see the cars powered by 1.6 liter V6 turbocharged engines in 2014, rather than the four-cylinders proposed earlier. The plan was outlined at an F1 commission meeting held in Heathrow. It's thought the sports stakeholders have come to a unanimous agreement, therefore securing the future of all current suppliers, including Renault, despite their interest in the four-cylinder formula. A fax vote will now take place amongst members of the FIA and World Motor Sport Council with a definite decision expected to be announced in early July. The compromise is expected to appease the opposing teams, as it offers a compromise between the two layouts. In the earlier proposal, the regulations called for the replacement of today

When you think motorsports, most Singaporeans, depending on their age group and how cool they are, will almost everytime mention Formula 1. Then you get go-karting. Unlike most of Europe and even Asia, the local motorsports scene is still in it's infancy, but has been growing with the acceptance and popularity of the annual drift events, go-karting championships and the impromptu races on the expressway with a young punk Civic driver. All aside though, we're pretty much well behind most of the world in that area. Even on the quality of motorsports on tv. Sure sure Formula One is the epitome of motorsports blah blah but seriously guys, the races have become more boring since I started following it religiously about 4 years ago. I now find myself dozing off during races and I'm not talking about the recent Canadian GP. This year's Le Man's was stacking up to be another nail-biter and I was casually short-listing my options on how I could watch the race live. Couldn't find a streamer online that was reliable enough and Starhub's cable lost rights to F1, so generally assumed it lost the license to televising most other races of importance as well - until I stumbled upon channel Euro Sports. I taped the post-race telecast and watched it one sunny afternoon. It was great! I thought I was one of the few people who were lucky enough to venture into the unknown world of channels ranging from 100 to 300. And then I caught BTCC. I

I remember how i use to have like a million "Hot Wheels" cars with huge tracks, i use to always wonder, "What if i was in this little car, going up and down the tracks, how would it feel?". Well, in this video you are about to see, this guy definitely knows how it feels. Every kid who's ever launched a Hot Wheels car across the floor or off a table will have a special appreciation for Tanner Foust's record jump in a life-size Hot Wheels car. Foust, who was recently revealed as the driver of the Team Hot Wheels Yellow Car, broke the record for a jump by a four-wheeled vehicle with a mark of 332 feet (101 Meters) prior to this past weekend's Indy 500. He bested the previous record of 301 feet set by Johnny Greaves in 2009. If it wasn't already clear, "Top Gear" co-host Foust has some major cajones. He not only jumped a football field in a car, but he did it in a life-size toy car made for kids. Can you imagine fighting a life-size Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robot? The beginning of Foust's attempt dropped him 90 feet--or 10 stories--down an orange track before he went airborne. Someone ought to check Tanner's pants for pee. Maybe that's why it's the Yellow Car. To the video:

We love a little friendly interteam rivalry--especially when it involves rally drivers Travis Pastrana and his boss at DC Shoes, Ken Block. Gymkhana ace Block released a video in February featuring his new livery for the DC Shoes WRC Ford Fiesta and his 2011 schedule of events. The hard-rock-and -techno-scored video shows Block in race gear, with his car and a few femme fatales in black vinyl and other DC gear. Block recently teased Pastrana during his Gymkhana Grid event for not knowing how to turn right. It was obviously a shot at Pastrana's NASCAR aspirations. Pastrana got his revenge on Tuesday with a video of his 2011 Subaru WRX STI, sporting the orange-and-black livery of Boost Mobile. Pastrana spoofs Block, using the classic formula of girls plus cars equals massive views. But Pastrana forgoes the young models of Block's video for some of the more mature variety. At one point, the video notes: "The combined age of models, 199 years." The video also shows Pastrana's schedule then claims, "busier than Block." The grannies gyrate as the music plays while Pastrana jumps in and out of frame with various comical looks. It's all in good fun with some cool cars thrown in, so it's all good to us. Check out the video.

[extract] If you

So, after putting the Bahrain Grand Prix back on the 2011 calendar last week, the FIA, at the vehement protests of the teams, decided to turn its back once again at the Middle Eastern nation. To be fair, it was the organisers of the race itself that requested to withdraw after the backlash, but this shows how shambolic the FIA is once again. The Formula One teams expressed their disapproval at the reinstatement of the Bahrain race, mainly due to the logistical reasons I outlined previously. They also cited safety reasons due to the uncertain political climate still lingering in the country. As such, the FIA has now, at the request of the owners of the Bahrain circuit, cancelled the Bahrain Grand Prix for 2011 for good. Latest word is that the Indian Grand Prix, which was moved to the end of the season to accomodate Bahrain's new date, will be moved back to its original slot on October 30. In years to come, this incident will be seen as a massive embarrassment for the sport. But then again, it's the FIA, who have more than their fair share of controversy and ridiculous decisions over the years. So this is just another one to go onto the pile. It's such a shame that the pinnacle of motorsport is being run by people who can't even get their house in order.

The FIA has announced that it will reinstate the 2011 Bahrain Grand Prix, originally scheduled for March, on October 30, following its initial cancellation due to unrest in the Middle Eastern country. There has been lots of debate and controversy about the move, with many decrying that the country does not deserve to have the race due to its human rights violations. Personally, I feel that it's a bad move on the FIA's part. But not for the reasons most people are arguing against. Rather, I feel that it's more of a logistical nightmare for the FIA to suddenly swap races around as they please, with the season already underway. The re-arranged Bahrain Grand Prix replaces the Indian Grand Prix, which will now be moved to December as the season-ending race. Now, at this stage of the season, most people would have already made plans to attend the inaugural Indian race, considering how difficult it can be to get tickets to Formula One races. For the FIA to disrupt people's plans willy-nilly simply shows little to no consideration to the people that matters most to the sport, and the people who have made F1 so successful: the fans. Imagine if, say, the Singapore Grand Prix was suddenly moved towards the end of the season. I'm sure that those who have already bought tickets would be upset at the sudden change of dates. I would have preferred for the FIA to insert the Bahrain race at the end of the season, to minimise disruption as much as possible. But then again, I have no influence over Bernie Ecclestone or the FIA, so what do I know. It's just a shame that the top-tier level of motorsport is increasingly becoming a laughable farce to the rest of the world.

As expected the company that builds Lotus cars for the road has won the High Court battle over the use of the Lotus name in Formula 1. The legal tussle began sometime ago when both Group Lotus and 1 Malaysia Racing Team a.k.a. Team Lotus, run by AirAsia head honcho Tony Fernandes basically parted ways when Group Lotus claimed that Team Lotus had breached the Lotus name (as 'Team Lotus' confusingly) licensing agreement. However, Justice Peter Smith, the presiding jugde over this matter had also ruled that Team Lotus also retained the right to race in Formula One under its existing name. That basically means that Group Lotus can continue racing through its sponsorship of the Renault team (or in full the Lotus-Renault GP team) and Team Lotus continues as Team Lotus Anyway, other judgments awarded was the right for Group Lotus to use the black and gold livery. This basically means that Team Lotus must stick to their current British Racing Green and yellow livery. Team Lotus was instructed to pay Group Lotus for damages on the breach of the licensing agreement. How much has not been stated. So Team Lotus cannot use anything related to Group Lotus or in that whether it has any relation to the road-going cars that Lotus builds as Group Lotus was also adjudged in the same matter that they have the right to continue to use the Lotus name on road cars. Group Lotus may have won this battle but this basically means that there will still be two Lotus named teams racing in Formula 1. So they are mounting an appeal on the matter

I'm sure some of you are excited about this year's Formula Drift Singapore 2011, which will take place this weekend at the F1 Pit Building. Well, some of us at sgCarMart are too. Hence the extensive coverage you see on our site. Before the event kicks off proper, the organisers held a pre-event press conference, with a small surprise for the media. Aside from the usual interviews and buffet spread, the media were given a chance to ride shotgun with the drifters along the track course that will be used during the event. (The buffet didn't seem to be such a great idea after all...) The driver I was allocated to ride with was Charles Ng, who was part of the four-strong Spark Motorsports team that also included big-name drifters Daigo Saito and Robbie Nishida from Japan, and Ken Gushi from America. Charles hails from Hong Kong, and has had 20 years of experience in racing. Which is impressive considering that his home country isn't exactly well-known for motorsports. I decided not to distract him with my paltry Cantonese, and let his driving do the talking. Charles did try to take it easy, but even still, the acceleration of these cars are brutal. You can feel your head moving back and forth, and sideways, against your will. The G-forces that your body is subjected to are immense. It's something you have to mentally prepare yourself for, otherwise you'll just be caught off guard, and find yourself screaming in panic and fear. It most definitely is not for the faint-hearted. After a while, it does get addictive though, and you just want to keep going again and again. Unfortunately, there were only limited runs allowed for us, so the fun was over before we knew it. I thanked Charles at the end of the run, and I hope he does well this weekend. I was a bit of a sceptic about drifiting before this event, but after having experienced it first hand, I can appreciate the art and skill that goes into it. It's not an easy thing to do, and some of the drivers are truly the masters of this craft. Hopefully they give us a good show this weekend.

Ahead of Formula Drift Singapore 2011 this weekend, organisers are continuing the build-up with driver and event insights. The organisers conducted a quick Q&A with one of the drivers taking part this weekend, Formula Drift Thailand 2010 champion Saranon. Saranon is considered one of the pioneers of the drift scene in Thailand and has been taking part in competitions for the past five years. His gentle demeanour off the track is in line with smooth driving style on track. One of Thailand

Finally they announced the winning bidder for the upcoming Changi Motorsports Hub. S$330 million investment!? Purely privately-funded, fwah that's a LOT of money man. How quickly can they make it profitable? The permanent race track will be able to host any race except F1 - so F1 will remain on our street circuit? Anyway, it's said to be ready by end next year - for 41-ha, possible? Anyone here excited about this? You think this will help our local motorsports scene improve more? PRESS RELEASE SG Changi wins bid for Changi Motorsports Hub Singapore, Friday, March 26, 2010

Due to the overspending on YOG and financial difficulties faced by the Changi motorsports hub, they have decided, in true spirit to promoting motorsports in Singapore, to go ahead and build it; albeit smaller in scale and with the mission of nurturing our young Catch the action LIVE! at changi village!! Next to the hawker centre

The Spanish Formula 1 Grand Prix in a nutshell - Deja Vu. This is what Formula 1 is all about these days. Or worse than that Formula 1 is Groundhog Day. You know that Bill Murray movie where the hero re-lives one day of his life over and over again? Well, in this 2011 Formula 1 version we get the same person winning over and over again regardless of what transpires throughout the race weekend. Yes, Sebastian Vettel wins again. This is even with Mark Webber taking pole position during qualifying (with Vettel starting from second place), with Vettel not having KERS during the later part of the race and a very on-form Lewis Hamilton breathing down his rear diffuser right till the very end of the race. Lewis Hamilton must have been pretty pleased with the setup of his McLaren as the car was basically the better one but I suppose starting in third behind Vettel (and Webber) in their very optimized Red Bull-Renaults is still an uphill climb. I suppose getting a close look at the rear of Vettel's car is all that one can do these days. I suppose Mark Webber is one of the losers in the Spanish Grand Prix. He started out first but ended up fourth. This I believe was down to bad luck, or if one believes in Groundhog Day nothing he does will make him come in ahead of his team mate. Coming out from the pits behind the slower Ferrari of Fernando Alonso is bad luck. Speaking about Ferrari, at least they're finishing in the top 5 for the last two races. They still have got to improve if they want a whiff of some trophies. And speaking of an ex-Ferrari driver, one 42 year old male adult who goes by the name of Michael Schumacher, he's doing pretty well by coming in sixth after starting in tenth. He basically came in ahead of his younger team mate Nico Rosberg who was slightly unlucky this time around with a failing rear wing (F1 cars these days seem to have failures in funny places) and a faulty radio. I suppose if you just ignore the fact that in nearly every race Sebastian Vettel wins Formula 1 is actually fun as a lot of things are indeed happening from the second position downwards. Results 01. Vettel Red Bull-Renault 1h39:03.301 02. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes + 0.630 03. Button McLaren-Mercedes + 35.697 04. Webber Red Bull-Renault + 47.966 05. Alonso Ferrari + 1 lap 06. Schumacher Mercedes + 1 lap 07. Rosberg Mercedes + 1 lap 08. Heidfeld Renault + 1 lap 09. Perez Sauber-Ferrari + 1 lap 10. Kobayashi Sauber-Ferrari + 1 lap 11. Petrov Renault + 1 lap 12. Di Resta Force India-Mercedes + 1 lap 13. Sutil Force India-Mercedes + 1 lap 14. Buemi Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 1 lap 15. Maldonado Williams-Cosworth + 1 lap 16. Alguersuari Toro Rosso-Ferrari + 2 laps 17. Barrichello Williams-Cosworth + 2 laps 18. Trulli Lotus-Renault + 2 laps 19. Glock Virgin-Cosworth + 3 laps 20. D'Ambrosio Virgin-Cosworth + 3 laps DNF: Massa Ferrari 60 Kovalainen Lotus-Renault 49 Liuzzi HRT-Cosworth 29 photo credit: planetf1

Monaco. Vettel wins again. His first ever win at Monaco. And it IS Groundhog day but at least the 2011 Monaco Formula 1 Grand Prix wasn't a procession of cars like it usually is year after year. Sebastian Vettel's win for Red Bull Racing wasn't a walk in a park. It was a race filled with the very good looking SLS Safety Car, red flags, stoppages and a lot of accidents. It is Monaco, but with a slightly different tinge to it. Vettel's win was quite unexpected. Ferrari's Fernando Alonso's second place was unexpected too. McLaren's Lewis Hamilton was penalised for dangerous passing even though he finished sixth (and then post-race he started blaming the stewards for wrongly penalising him because of his color

I'm sure some of you would know by now that Formula Drift is coming back to Singapore, on the 11 and 12 of June. If not, then you might want to keep yourself up to date by clicking here for the full, detailed lowdown. Before we get all excited by all the rubber-burning action, let us acknowledge that there might be some people who are new to the art of drifiting, and might want to pick up some knowledge and information about this drifting business. Luckily, the organisers of Formula Drift Singapore 2011 has sent us a very handy basic guide to this automotive art form. Take it away guys. WHAT IS DRIFTING? Drifting started in Japan more than a decade and a half ago. Drifting is a high-skilled, high-powered motorsport that calls for drivers to control a 200bhp to 600hp (or more) car while it slides sideways at high speeds through a marked course. The drifter's goal is to put the car into controlled slides, maintaining speed and angle of attack through the curves. While drifting is similar to rally racing, it is done on a closed course and judged on execution and style rather than who finishes the course fastest. Drifting takes all the thrilling moments of traditional motorsports and packs it together into non-stop competition. Formula Drift takes the excitement one step further by being the premier drifting competition that features aggressive side-by-side action as drivers burn up the course two-at-a-time, often only inches apart. Drifting pros finesse their cars into spectacular power slides around a series of corners of a set course as powerful engines roar and tyres bellow smoke. The driver controls engine power, shifts gears and feathers the brake pedal, while at the same time spinning the steering wheel in a precise fashion from left to right, linking corners with pinpoint accuracy. The driver is controlling and manoeuvring the car beyond the limits of the tyres' traction. DRIFTING GLOSSARY Drift - Intentionally causing a vehicle to exceed its tyres' limits of adhesion, exhibiting a lateral slip, resulting in an oversteered condition. Counter Steer - Corrective steering used to balance and maintain an oversteered condition. (Turning the steering wheel in the opposite direction of the turn once the vehicle starts to oversteer.) Donut - Allowing the rear wheels of a vehicle to burn rubber, causing the car to rotate around the front tyre. Exhibition Drift - The purpose of drifting at the Drift Session is to cause maximum oversteer in a vehicle while maintaining speed. Vehicles are not judged based on time trials or speed, but rather on the completion of clean and exaggerated drifts, that maintain a reasonable rate of speed. Exhibition Drifting also includes techniques such as one-hand driftin, or trying to open the door while drifting. We often see exhibition techniques being used during demo sessions. Oversteer - Over rotating a car while cornering. This may cause a vehicle to be on the verge of spinning out. Understeer - Loss of traction in a vehicle's front tyres, caused by excessive speed in relation to a cornering angle, making a vehicle slide outwards during a turn. BASIC DRIFT CAR SET-UP Benjamin Khoo, Technical Director for Formula Drift Asia who will be sitting on the judging panel this season as well, tells you the basics of a drift car and what you need to get started. "It is always exciting to welcome new fans to the sport. Drifting, ultimately, like all motorsports is great fun and the basics can be mastered by most with the right equipment at a safe venue (keep it off the streets guys!). So, here is my breakdown of what is required: A rear wheel drive car is essential to the sport of drifting. A rear wheel drive means that all the power in the vehicle is funnelled to the rear wheels, allowing the tail of your vehicle to 'hang out' and eventually go sideways. It is best to enter the sport using a rear wheel drive machine that is affordable and has tons of spare parts available in the open-market. Drifting like all motorsports involves seat time and track time. Also, as you progress through the sport, crashes and accidents will naturally occur as you push yourself and your vehicle to the limit. The essential performance modifications for drifting focus on the differential. Of course, weight reduction, suspension set-up and increasing the power output would be helpful at some point, but at this early stage, all the focus should be on car control. From the outside, drifting seems very chaotic and intense, but inside the cockpit of the drift car, the driver is fully aware of his or her vehicle's attributes and the surroundings. Next, let us examine in more detail what the Limited Slip Differential (LSD) is and what it does for your car. The LSD essentially forces both your rear wheels to spin at the same rate. Imagine your vehicle axle with two wheels attached to it. While your vehicle is travelling in a straight line, both the wheels turn at the same revolution. However, while you are turning, the wheel on the inner curve rotates less than the wheel on the outer curve. The wheel on the outer curve has to cover a great distance. The LSD regulates the revolutions of both wheels, so that both rotate proportionally at the same rate. This equal rotation allows the driver to 'hang' the tail of his car out, hence initiating the drift and the giant cloud of tyre smoke synonymous with Formula Drift. The other important area of focus is vehicle and driver safety. Regardless of the level of drifting involved, all drivers should suit up with a fireproof race helmet and fireproof race suit. The addition of a roll cage in the event of collisions with barricades or other vehicles is mandatory as well. Before we forget, I also wanted to get to the topic of tyres for drift. Unlike other motorsports, the tyres used in drifting are all commercially available in your retail store round the corner. These high performance tyres have been produced by leading manufacturers to cater to the increasing segment of performance-oriented drivers. Imagine what your tyres can do for you under normal circumstances when it can withstand the extreme conditions during drift. It is common for drifters to go through a few sets of tyres a day during both practice and actual competition. So, make sure you become buddies with your local tyre retailer!" So there you have it. The basic whys and hows of drifting. So when you see these guys in action on the 11 and 12 of June at the F1 Pit Building, you have a better understanding to this sublime skill of car control. Text and pictures courtesy of Driftpac Pte Ltd. Thanks guys! One last thing. If you're a member of MyCarForum, we're having a meetup with free tickets to the event. All you need to do is pay $10 for an exclusive MCF polo-tee on the day and you'll get the free tickets as well. Full details here. Hurry, only 30 slots available!

The organisers of the Singapore Grand Prix are looking for the World's Biggest F1 Fan, with prizes such as a hotel stay at The Ritz-Carlton, Millenia Singapore as well as Hospitality Suite tickets to this year's race up for grabs. This is the second year that the contest has been running now, and the organisers have now opened it up to the rest of the world, instead of just Asia, so competition will be stiffer than ever. There are two contests that participants can enter in, with both offering a tough challenge as well as fantastic prizes. The first, and main, contest is called "Are You The World

[extract] Starting in 1995, the Best Motoring moniker has seen itself branding one of the most watched automotive DVD series, acclaimed for its professional and knowledgable drivers and the often insane line-up of cars battling each other for top honours. This is no Top Gear folks. This is the real deal. While most of us have the Youtube to thank for our Best Motoring fix, the long running program has announced that the finish line has finally approached and they

In any race with similar vehicles that are hard to differentiate, the next best way to identify the drivers are by their helmets. Hence, drivers put a lot of pride into designing their helmets. Formula 1 World Champion Sebastian Vettel for example, has a different helmet for each race with a different design. If you noticed helmets belonging to local karters Ben Goh, Yuey Tan, Gabriella Teo, Javier Chng, Peng Malakul or Mok Weng Sun, and happen to like any one of them, then you should take some time to visit the boys at Aire Pro Designs. Local custom painters cum airbrush artists Aire Pro Designs specialise in airbrushing, one of the techniques used for custom painting. Unlike a spray gun, airbrushes are a lot smaller and used to perform detailed graphics on cars, motorcycles, helmets and even wall murals. The artwork is then able to feature a lot of fine details, creating real-like images. The three of them