Going Slideways with Earl Smith’s Seven-Up

As Rob stated below, drifting is all about style, and that’s more than evident in Earl Smith’s crazy 1990 Mazda RX-7. He’s been drifting for about three years now, and his main goal has always been simple: to have fun. So when it came time to start building up the Seven, he wanted the style to reflect that. It’s definitely a bit over-the-top, and you have to have a sense of humor to appreciate it, but I think he’s got the fun factor nailed.

On the track, Earl’s driving style is very smooth and each transition is well-planned. During my ride along I was surprised how calm and relaxed he was. I expected sheer aggression, but even as we entered the switchbacks with massive amounts of speed, he slid through with alarming ease. You can definitely tell he’s done this before.

Follow the jump for some more details, pics and a video of the Seven-Up (I think I just made that up).

The first thing you’ll notice is the hatch has been chopped andconverted into a pick-up bed, which makes hauling tools, wheels, andtires to different events less of a hassle. In the spirit of fun, Earl’s alsoadapted sort of a mild Yankee/bosozokustyling. Check out the crazy diamond plate rear wing and theprotruding canister exhausts! The red metal-flake and diamond platevinyl exterior really grabs attention, and a closer inspection revealsthis car has seen some quite a bit of track time. Nothing says "driftcar" like zip ties and hinges holding panels and bumpers together! The suspension was modified using  StanceGR+ Pro coilovers and Super Now tie rods and spacers, and the trannysports a Tomei Trax Advance 2-way LSD. What’s really crazy is therotary motor is pretty much stock, including the turbo! GReddyinjectors, an HKS blow-off valve, and an R-TEC 1.7 ECU are the only bigmotor upgrades.

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