If you’re a drifter, cast your mind back to November 2014. How much drifting have you actually done since then? How many drift cars have you owned in that time? Do you think that your skills have improved in a little over two years?
For a lot of people (myself included), the truth is that you’ve probably spent more time building, buying or selling drift cars over this period than you have on track. That’s not to say that Adam Maciejewski’s FC3S Mazda Rx-7 that you see here hasn’t spent a huge amount of time undergoing work; far from it in fact. He has, however, been working flat out ever since the drifting bug took hold to ensure he can get to whichever circuit he can as much as possible.
Make no mistakes about it; it shows in his driving.
Taking to Buxton Raceway for the first time during the aforementioned November in 2014, Adam quickly got to grips with the fundamentals. It’s often said that the most unforgiving circuits are the ones that teach you the most and, with Buxton having been the training ground for a whole host of current and former BDC winners and champions, it’s well known for curating some of the bravest yet accurate drifters around.
Of course, there are always consequences at circuits that can boast this kind of reputation. This is something that Adam discovered the hard way, after a mistake while driving with his StyleCase teammate Chris Godfrey saw both cars involved in a heavy collision that spelt the end to both of their days.
While others would waste weeks contemplating whether or not to bother repairing their car, reshell it or even attempt to leave the sport completely, Adam simply knuckled down and, within the space of a week or so, had straightened out the necessary structural components, taught himself how to fabricate a tubular front end, given the engine bay a lick of paint, re-fitted the naturally aspirated 13B lump and driven the car again.
Did I mention that all of this work was undertaken on his driveway? It’s this determination to learn and get the job done that has seen his FC go through numerous changes over the two short years that he has owned it, despite being out on track more times than you can count.
The first thing you’ll probably notice in these photos that I took at Anglesey Circuit during the most recent Drift Matsuri event is that the rotary setup is long gone. In its place sits a 1.6 B6ZE lifted from an Mx-5, with a T28 turbo bolted on for good measure alongside a nicely executed V-mount radiator and intercooler setup. Considering he paints some of the coolest rocker covers around, you’d have thought he’d have been able to spare a minute to spray one for his own car!
While many decide to chase huge horsepower figures after only mastering their basic drifting skills, Adam’s new setup only pushes out a comparably mild 266bhp at 10psi of boost. While this might not sound like a lot, it’s a huge improvement on the puny output that the naturally aspirated 13B could provide and now allows him to do more high speed drifting without inducing any lazy drifting techniques that lots of horsepower can often bring with it.
Having only just completed the engine swap in time for the Street Track Life event at Driftland at the end of September the setup was still undergoing fine tuning, with a persistent fan belt issue putting paid to Adam’s drifting efforts at the aforementioned Drift Matsuri.
The exterior has also seen many changes over the past two years, going from a stock-bodied look with small 15″ wheels to the 17″ Advans and fibreglass aero style that you see in these photos. In a way, this makes perfect sense; the last thing you want to be worrying about as a beginner is smashing fibreglass bumpers or burning through expensive larger tyres.
On a side note, the side skirts pictured are D-Max items and used to belong on my PS13. Creativity is what makes all the difference between a build and a build with personal flair and style.
The interior has also seen upgrades as Adam’s drifting skills improve, with the substantial addition of a roll cage from Charge Garage being one of only two modifications having not been completed on his driveway (the other being the mapping of the Megasquirt MS2 ECU).
I put together this short video of the FC in action at Anglesey in which you can see the easily accessible power band and snappy handling in action. Due to the previously mentioned fan belt issue, I believe this was only Adam’s first or second complete lap of the event; I’m hoping to film some more on-board footage of this very unique car soon.
In a time when posting photos of your over-the-top and somewhat unnecessary build online for attention are all the rage, it’s people like Adam and his trusty Rx-7 that remind you that honest, home-built builds are still alive and well. After all, who wants to spend all of their money building a car only to barely use it on either the road or at the track (or both, in Adam’s case)?
I’d like to think that that final line was a hypothetical question but, in reality, it has an answer: a lot of people.
Spec List
Engine:
B6ZE 1.6 engine swap
T28 turbo
Retroshine tubular manifold
3″ turbo-back exhaust
Rx-8 injectors
Toyota coilpacks
V-mount Mishimoto radiator and intercooler setup
Megasquirt MS2 ECU
Mocal oil cooler
Transmission:
Mx-5 gearbox
Competition Clutch Stage 4 clutch
Suspension:
HSD Monopros with custom spring rates (rear suspension turrets raised)
Retroshine knuckles, front lower arms and extended tie rods
Energy Suspension polybushes
Advan SA3R wheels (17×9)