BMW Performance Driving School instructor Johan Schwartz has set a new world record for drifting 51.278 miles in a new M5.

Of course the term “drifting” should be used loosely here, since competitive drifters would argue that this isn’t exactly drifting. Conducted at the BMW Performance Center, Schwartz kept the M5 sideways for 322.5 laps, which is no easy feat regardless. As far as the Guinness Book of World Records is concerned though, drifting can also describe doing a donut, which is essentially what previous records were.

Even more, the German automaker watered down the track in South Carolina, which undoubtedly helped keep the tires in check in order to sustain such a long “drift.” Considering the previous record was seven miles done by a Chevrolet Camaro in Abu Dhabi that was set in February, the 51.3-mile mark by BMW should hold up for a bit longer.

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GALLERY: BMW M5 Guiness World Record for Longest Drift

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With 47 corners across almost 6.5 miles, the Crown Range in New Zealand is the country’s highest paved roadway at an elevation of 3,530 feet.

So why wouldn’t it be the perfect place for Red Bull Motorsports to take its driver, Mike Whiddett, and his Mazda RX-7 drifting? Known as “Mad Mike” within the drifting community, Whiddett is a New Zealand-based international drifter that got the opportunity of a lifetime when the road was closed across three sections – all for a unique filming opportunity.

With 750 hp on tap, Mad Mike was able to hit 144 mph in his RX-7 on the second section of the roadway while sliding sideways throughout the Crown Range.

“I think drifters have an innate ability to slip from reality when driving up a road like the Crown Range in normal circumstances,” said Whiddett. “We imagine drifting through the turns, the gear changes, the footwork, the hand brake and of course stomping on the gas. So for me, having the opportunity to get behind the wheel of my machine, push it to the limit and conquer the Crown is a dream turned into a reality.”

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GALLERY: Mad Mike Drifts Crown Range

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After an unfortunate accident where Bartek Ostalowski lost both his arms, the driver from Poland didn’t give up his racing dreams.

The 26-year-old Polish driver found a way to overcome his tragic accident to pursue his dreams of competing in the Polish Championship Rally Raceway Cross, the Polish Cup, and being a professional drifter. In fact, it’s one of those things that you have to watch to believe with Ostalowski drifting a Nissan Skyline R34 like a pro with just his legs and feet.

Ostalowski uses his right foot to control the pedals, while his left leg and foot controls the steering wheel. A custom fabricated piece was made to allow him to shift gears with his shoulder on an automatic tiptronic transmission.

Watch a couple of videos of Bartek Ostalowski in action below.

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[Source: Carscoop]

Anyone familiar with Ken Block and his Gymkhana videos knows just how well he can smoke a set of tires and AutoGuide had the chance during this year’s SEMA Show to go along for a ride.

Somewhere between the clouds of tire smoke and chunks of rubber flying through the cabin, Block manages to see out of his car as he takes it through a devlish set of smokey drifts.

Cool and unfazed, he tossed the car around cones and corners nonchalantly enough that you could almost imagine this is how he normally drives. Of course, that’s not the case, but it was hard to tell left from right, let alone much of his driving technique in the brief minutes spent sitting shotgun in his loco Ford Fiesta rally car.

Despite taking turns with a rear-wheel drive Mustang, Block consistently laid thick strips of rubber down making more of a fantastic mess than the muscle car could ever hope to.

For anyone who’s ever wondered what it’s like to be there in the car — it’s incredible.

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Drifting is exciting enough, but when Ken Block jumps into the mix there’s sure to be some real fun on tap.

Apart from his considerable racing prowess, Block made a name for himself through his wildly popular Gymkhana video series, the most recent of which had him hooning through the hills of downtown San Francisco. This time, Block is smoking all four tires on his Fiesta race car while driving sideways around the infamous House of Drift course.

True to form, he flings the car around corners with what looks like a couple of inches to spare from the wall.

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What happens when you give professional drifter and former Formula Drift champion Vaughn Gittin Jr. free reign at Ford’s Flat Rock Assembly Plant? A three and a half minute video of pure automotive porn.

Since 2004, every Mustang built has come from the Flat Rock Assembly Plant at around 500 vehicles per shift. And even though the automaker runs each vehicle through its quality check list, 5 percent are picked at random for a full-track evaluation. Vaughn Gittin Jr.’s Monster Energy Falken Tire Ford Mustang RTR however was not one of those randomly chosen.

Gittin Jr., most well-known for his professional drifting career, shows just how much precision and control is actually involved with drifting. Watch the video below as Gittin Jr. flexes some American muscle right where Mustangs call home.

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Ford Mustangs have enjoyed great success in the sport of drifting, with Vaughn Gittin Jr. claiming the 2010 Formula Drift Championship, and sitting atop the points standings leading into the final round this season.

The American automaker is expanding its support for the action motorsport by announcing its official partnership with Formula Drift for the 2013 season. Since 2005, Ford has supported various drivers in the American-based drifting series with the most notable being Gittin Jr.

“Our involvement with Formula DRIFT is not new, but we are taking it to the next level with this announcement,” said Jamie Allison, director, Ford Racing.

Since joining Team Falken, Justin Pawlak has paved his own way to success in Gittin’s former Mustang. He was the runner up to last season and is currently fourth for the 2012 season after winning the first two rounds.

For years, drifting has been associated with Japanese imports. But Ford’s success in the sport after working with both Gittin Jr. and Pawlak put the Mustang in a new spotlight. Since 2005, a Mustang has earned one Formula Drift championship, won 10 Formula Drift events, and has had a total of 22 podium finishes.

“Enthusiasts can now see our great Mustangs on the track with great drivers like Vaughn Gittin Jr. and Justin Pawlak, and they’ll get a better chance to interact with our stars as well as our exciting production vehicles off track through consumer outreach at all the events. Formula DRIFT is a major part of our action motorsports program targeting new audiences for Ford,” Allison said.

Despite all the success that Hyundai has achieved in various forms of motorsports in North America, the Korean automaker has decided to reassess its involvement in racing after the 2012 season.

Rhys Millen Racing earlier announced that its relationship with Hyundai would come to an end as the automaker looks for new marketing strategies, despite setting a world record in this year’s Pikes Peak Hill Climb. Currently Hyundai participates in the Formula Drift and Global Rallycross championships in America, along with its Pikes Peak International Hill Climb endeavours.

It seems unlikely that Hyundai will make a return to drifting and rally, at least in America for next year. It is considering continual involvement at Pikes Peak however, undoubtedly influenced by its record-setting performance this year. But without Millen behind the wheel and his team building the cars, it’s hard to believe Hyundai will find someone to take RMR’s place, especially given their experience at Pikes Peak.

Hyundai will continue to participate in the World Rally Championship however, a series that the automaker took a break from in 2003.

[Source: Autoblog]

During the Formula Drift Pro Am event in Las Vegas, drifter Jim Guthrie and his Ford Mustang had a scary run in with the wall.

Luckily, Guthrie was able to walk away from the accident unharmed, undoubtedly thanks to a nicely-designed rollcage and the addition of the tire barrier in front of the wall. The accident occurred on turn-one of the course, and the 2013 Ford Mustang flipped over, landing on its roof.

This may be the last we’ll seen of Guthrie in professional drifting. Last year he ended up in the hospital after a wreck in his Mazda RX-7 at Irwindale. That crash also resulted in a revocation of his Formula Drift license, which he was trying to earn back in Pro Am.

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When Lexus has a party it puts cars on the dance floor to show off. These three LFA supercars at a Toyota Gala do not dissapoint in the video.

In November of 2011, Lexus had a formal gala night in Tokyo to celebrate the new face of the company: the spindle grille. Part of the Spindle Night was this performance performed by three Lexus LFA supercars. These LFA supercars drift and move in a choreographed routine to classical music. The test drivers who did the routine clearly know these cars well.

Like any dance routine, it needs to end in a grand finale. This one does not disappoint. The video is below.

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Toyota is embracing its GT 86 model in many different ways worldwide, one of which is launching its own drifting team in the United Arab Emirates.

Ahmed Al Ameri was recently crowned the drift champion in UAE, the second of his championships at just 27 years old. On his way to those championships, Al Ameri piloted a Lexus SC which undoubtedly captured the Japanese automaker’s attention. As a way of saying thanks for staying loyal to the Toyota brand, the automaker has handed over a GT 86 to the drift champion, who will use it during the remaining 2012 and 2013 championship seasons.

This isn’t the only GT 86 model that will be going sideways around the world. Scion has its own FR-S drift car with Ken Gushi behind the wheel.

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Discuss this and other Scion FR-S / GT86 related stories at FR-SForum.com.

NASCAR driver, Joey Logano is used to his Toyota Camry he drives in the Sprint and Nationwide series, but he was recently offered some lessons in drifting in the FR-S with Forumla Drift champ, Ken Gushi.

“Ken has done a great job showing me what to do. It’s just so different than what we do learning how to get the slide initiated and then get it going, and then trying to transfer from left to right the smoothest way you can and not spinning out. That was my biggest problem–when I was going from left to right and I couldn’t get the thing to not spin out every lap,” said Logano.

Five wins this season thus far in the Nationwide Series have been recorded by Logano. While he has a great deal of experience turning left, and a good sense of car control he still needs a bit of instruction in a stock FR-S before moving up to the Cosworth-tuned, turbocharged drift-car that Gushi competes with.

Gushi did try to downplay the amount of teaching he gave to Logano, “there really wasn’t much instructing that I had to do–just tell him where to go and he got it dialed in pretty good I would have to say. I was really impressed with his driving. If I call in sick, he’s getting a phone call.” Gushi is currently 14th overall out of 42 cars in the Formula Drift series. He holds the record for youngest driver in the series, having completed the inaugural season, in 2004, at just 18 years of age.

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[Source: Autoweek]