To help ensure the company’s new supercar doesn’t show up as tomorrow’s news after being wrapped around a pole, Lexus has created the Lexus LFA Driver Development school to get educated on how to control their amazing new machine.

In this video that spotlights the Lexus LFA Driver Development School, several LFAs are seen trekking along at Infineon Raceway at Sonoma, California. Scott Pruett, Lexus’ official LFA promotion driver, can be seen speaking about the LFA. But what really caught our attention is Tony Brakohiapa, a Formula Drift driver and instructor at Infineon Raceway, who takes the LFA drifting. Even though we’ve been fortunate enough to get behind the wheel of the LFA and take it well past 160-mph, the thought of going sideways never really occurred to us. Then again, we’re not paid to destroy tires for a living.

Check out the video after the break.

[Source: Wrecked Magazine]

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A quick history lesson before we actually get into talking about this awesome creation from the Czech Republic. Tatra is a vehicle manufacturer based out of the Czech Republic and was originally founded back in 1850. The Tatra brand however didn’t become a reality until 1919 and is the third oldest automaker in the world behind Daimler Mercedes-Benz and Peugeot. An obscure automaker on the global scene, Tatra is recognized for its rear-mounted, air-cooled V8 engine; which when developed back in the 1930s was very sophisticated for its time.

The Trabant, for those who don’t know, is an infamous East German car with a two-stroke engine and plastic body panels. In so many ways it epitomizes what’s wrong with implementing Communism.

So what happens when you combine an air-cooled V8 powerplant with a Trabant, with plans to go sideways? This one-of-a-kind, wickedly awesome drift car.

Originally built for Rodeocross, a form of motorsports that takes place on a dirt road course, organizers claimed that it was too dangerous to run, so off it went sideways onto the drift scene. We think its an excellent example of just how much fun you can have in a sport where there are very few rules.

We’re hoping a video surfaces of this bad boy in full sideways action, since we’ll probably never get to witness it in person. Although the owner of the car is reportedly willing to part with his prized possession – and for just $1,500 dollars.

GALLERY: Tatra V8-Powered Trabant Drift Car

[Source: SouthRnFresh and Jalopnik]

Product placement has always been a key part of any successful marketing and advertising campaigns. It all started with movies and television shows and now has even entered the realm of video games. Some campaigns are just pure tacky while others are cleverly placed to really inspire the consumer to go out and get the product. With the advent of YouTube and online videos, companies have taken their campaigns online where they can easily reach millions of viewers in a matter of minutes, literally. Viral marketing is now king and online media is the throne that it sits on.

Ever since NOS Energy Drink was acquired by the Coca-Cola company, good ‘ol corporate America has done a real strong push in bringing the product into the face of the masses. By teaming up with all facets of motorsports, NOS Energy Drink has done a great job tying their product to the right consumers. Chris Forsberg is one of the main NOS Energy Drink drivers, competing in Formula Drift and being a two-time champion. So it’s no surprise that NOS would be more than willing to spend some advertising dollars with some clever marketing.

The Bro Show consists of Jeff and Curtis, two brothers willing to do “anything” to get their own online series on Break.com. So episodes mainly consist of wild and crazy stunts and this one is no exception. The brothers headed out to Irwindale Speedway with Chris Forsberg and his NOS Energy Drink Nissan 350Z convertible to get a taste of drifting…and naturally, NOS Energy Drink.

After Forsberg did a demo lap, Jeff climbed into the passenger seat believing Curtis, his brother, was just hanging out on the track dressed in bright orange. Easy for the driver to spot and avoid…right? Well what Jeff didn’t know was that Curtis was swapped out for a dummy and Forsberg was told to crash straight into the dummy. Check out the video after the jump to see how it all unfolds.

[Source: Formula DRIFT]

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It didn’t take long for this Formula Drift season to stir up some controversy. As we mentioned in our Formula DRIFT Long Beach Recap, the Hankook Nissan GT-R was noticeably missing from competition. We knew for a fact there was no way they would let that slide for another event, considering sitting out one event already puts the championship far out-of-reach.

Adams Motorsports Park currently holds Night Drift events every Thursday night and recently the Hankook / Dynamic Autosport team had Robbie Nishida in from Japan to test the GT-R at one of these events out in Riverside, CA. The car looks complete and fully functioning, but how well it performed we’re not sure. We’ll know after this weekend though, once the GT-R makes its drifting debut.

Interestingly, rather than the stock GT-R powerplant, the Hankook/Dynamic Autosport car is VQ35 powered, which may or may not be surprising to some. To us it’s not surprising given the huge success the VQ35 has had on many different vehicles in Formula Drift. In fact, when Rhys Millen didn’t have the Lambda Genesis motor ready, he slugged himself a VQ35 into the Genesis early on last season. One thing’s for sure, this GT-R has one of the finest drivers in the entire series in Robbie Nishida. If anyone can drive the wheels off this car, it will be him. We’ll keep our eyes out on how well he’ll do this weekend!

[Source: Adamsdrift.tk]

GALLERY: Hankook Drift Nissan GT-R

2009 was an up-and-down year for Samuel Hübinette who has been a two-time Formula DRIFT champion and Hollywood stunt driver. Notorious for ripping it up in a Mopar-backed Viper SRT10 for many years and nicknamed The Crazy Swede by fellow competitors, Hübinette had a difficult start with his Mopar-backed Charger in 2009; and then mid-season Mopar was forced to back out of their sponsorship altogether due to difficult economic times.

As if the 2009 season couldn’t get any more tumultuous, Hübinette’s NuFormz team owner, Shaun Carlson, tragically passed away in October. Question marks were raised everywhere as one of the most talented drivers in the Formula DRIFT series seemed to be without a full ride. But talent always prevails, and Hübinette has finally announced his big plans for 2010.

Now factory-backed by Dodge, Hübinette will be campaigning his all new Dodge Challenger while teammate Andrew “ACP” Comrie-Picard (new to Formula DRIFT) will be swinging sideways in the familiar and championship-winning Viper SRT-10. Samuel Hübinette Racing also welcomes back the partnership of BFGoodrich tires. Hübinette looks forward to a strong and successful 2010 drifting season and we wouldn’t be surprised if he’ll be back in championship form with all his expertise and experience over the years.

We’ll be sure to keep an eye on both drivers, when the season kicks off in Long Beach, CA on April 9-10.

The official release is available after the jump.

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