Rear-Drive Scion tC To Compete in 2009 Formula Drift Series

Ken Gushi will return with his refreshed Toyota-four-cylinder-powered rear-drive RS*R Scion tC. The big news, however, is the Rockstar Energy Drink/Scion Drift Team tC driven by 2007 and 2008 series champion Tanner Foust.

Fitted between the tC's front shock towers is a 358-cubic-inch V8 from a former Busch Series NASCAR entry built by TRD and Ed Pink Racing Engines. The engine, rated at 650 horsepower and 450 pound-feet of torque, routes power through a four-speed G-force dog-engagement gearbox and Toyota Supra rear differential and rear suspension.

Former Formula D competitor and import drag racer Stephan Papadakis is responsible for shoehorning the mega motor under the tC's windshield from his Advanced Engine Management-based shop in Hawthorne, California. He also bolstered its structure with enough steel tubes to completely negate the need for any Scion floor pan.

Foust uses the word "unorthodox" to describe his controversial new ride. Others in the paddock use less kind language. Still, with the exception of its transmission, nearly all of the tC's parts can be traced back to the heritage of its manufacturer — Toyota. Foust says that's a claim few heavily modified drift cars can make.

Inside Line says: We love Tanner. And we love going sideways. But this new tC drift car is about as much Scion tC as Robby Gordon's Sprint Cup car is Camry. — Josh Jacquot, Senior Road Test Editor