Nissan Drift Cars

Nissan Drift Cars

Silvia RPS13 (89-98)

When you think of drifting this car definitely comes to mind. This is probably best choice of Nissan drift cars to learn drifting. The Silvia RPS13 is called the 180SX in Japan, the 200SX in Europe and the 240SX in the USA.

Lots of drift modifications available and a lot of drift potential. Although this model is getting a little older, these days they are still available everywhere. And since they are getting older, you’ll find them for a good price too!

Earlier Japanese models and all European models were fitted with a CA18DET (175hp). The Japanese 180SX received a update in ’91 when it got a 2.0 liter SR20DET engine (205hp) and some more minor modification.

In 1993 the Silvia moved forward with the release of the S14 model. But while Europe and the US were happy to replace the current S13 model by the new S14 model, in Japan the 180SX continued its life as a sports coupé.

The 180SX received the last model update in 1996 and production stopped in 1998. US models are all fitted with the KA24DE engine (150hp) and were non-turbo. They have a displacement of 2.4 liter to make up for the power difference.

Nissan Drift Cars

Silvia PS13 (89-93)

This car is the predecessor of the RPS13 and never saw the light outside of Japan. It’s basically the same car apart from the bodywork, and most obvious; its headlights.

Since the Nissan Silvia has such a drifting cult status, just as with the RPS13, you won’t run into problems finding parts to modify it. However finding a clean PS13 that is still unmodified will become hard!

The PS13 is, just as the RPS13, a great car to start with.

Nissan Drift Cars

Sileighty

The Silvia S13 and 180SX were popular drifting cars and a lot of them crashed in drifting accidents. Since the S13 fronts were cheaper than the 180SX front with pop-up lights a lot of drivers often favored the S13 front over the original one. These front and rear-ends were combined and the result of this was called the Sileighty.

Of course the conversion was also done the other way around, thus with a S13 rear and a 180SX front. These are called Onevia's and are even harder to find.

Eventually the Sileighty became so popular that Nissan caught on, and even surprised the press when for a short period of time they started to produce their own set of (official) Sileighties. Only about 400 Sileighties have officially been build by Nissan.

Nissan Drift Cars

Silvia S14 (93-98)

The replacement model for the S13, the S14, came in 1993. The car retains its drift-happy character and has improved handling. The engine featured Nissan's new variable cam timing system to make it a little stronger. The S14 was available in two versions: K’s or Q’s. K's (Kings) has the SR20DET and the Q's (Queens) version had the turbo removed. The SR20DE only makes about 140hp.

The K's has more than enough power to drift. On a car like this you don’t need a lot of modifications to start drifting. The SR engine is very tuneable; with simple breather mods you can easily make over 250hp! Bolt on modifications can get this engine block up to 400hp.

Later the S14 got face-lifted and was called the S14a. You can recognize the later model by the re-modelled headlights. All of these Nissan Silvias are a little bit different from each other, but they all make great drift cars!

Nissan Drift Cars

Silvia S15 (98-02)

The latest model, the S15 was the 7th and last generation of the Silvia. The newest and thus the most expensive one, truly is a brilliant car for drifting. Two versions were available, Spec-S or Spec-R. Spec-S was fitted with the SR20DE, the non-turbo version, putting out 165hp. The SR20DET on the other hand makes 250hp. Most amazingly of all that this latest Silvia model now has a power-to-weight ratio of less than 5Kg/PS!

The S15s are incredible drifting machines! Too bad that we had to say goodbye to the Silvia S15 in August of 2002 and production unfortunately ended due to stricter emission laws. Here's hoping Nissan is secretly working on a successor!

Nissan Drift Cars

Skyline R32 GTS-t (89-93)

The Nissan Skyline has only been released in Japan, so all the Skyline models have the driver seat on the right. Although the Skyline GT-R is a 4WD, the GTS-t is fortunately a RWD.

Engine wise there are many variations available but the 2.0 liter is the one to go for. This one is turbocharged and produces 212hp.

The 2.5 (180hp) is non-turbo, and the 2.6 (280hp) engine is placed in the GT-R. Some people even swap the RB for a SR engine, since it's lighter. The RB is a great engine though, with lots of tuning potential and good power.

But they are starting to become more difficult to get. At least a good one is.

Not only was the Skyline never exported outside of Japan, most of them suffered a lot of abuse from the drifters. And as it's getting older (the newest being around 15 years old) a good R32 GTS-t that didn't got totally rocked by the Japanese at their local circuit is getting harder to find these days.

Nissan Drift Cars

Skyline R33 GTS25T (93-98)

The R33 GTS25T shares the same platform as the older R32 Skyline so there is not that much of a difference. It's a little heavier but still handles just as predictable. The engine to go for is the 2.5 liter RB25DET (250hp), which makes more than enough power to go drifting.

There are a lot of tuning products available for the R33 and this model is much easier to get than the older R32. And the price is not too bad either!

Nissan Drift Cars

Skyline R34 GT-T (99-02)

Knowing the origin of the Skyline's development you wouldn't think that the R34 is a car for drifting. The developers’ obsession with details to set the benchmark of being the fastest really paid off in the end. It is much more a racing machine than that it suits drifting style. The GT-R is a 4WD monster that is designed go fast, not to go sideways.

But if you want to go sideways the Nissan Skyline RWD versions won’t let you down! The one to go after for the R34 is the GT-T, delivering 280hp from the RB25DET. You could get a lower spec model but because of the weight of the R34 you definitely need some power.

Nissan Drift Cars

350Z (99-»)

Nissan returns the Z-series with the 350Z, or the Fairlady Z as it is called in Japan. The sports-coupe, also available as a soft-top roadster, is a stunning looking car and has a 3.5 liter V6 under the bonnet. The 350Z serves a solid foundation for tuning and drifting and has great aftermarket supports. This car drifts like a dream.

It’s probably not as easy as they let you believe in the Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, but it is known to be quite an easy drifter. Not cheap, but definitely a rock-solid car!