Welcome to 618 Motorsport

618 Motorsport is an Adelaide based Motorsport team competing in their Nissan 180SX driven by Mettina ‘Lil Dori’ Barrington. Mettina will be competing in the G1 Extreme Drift Championship, Tarmac Rallys, Hill Climbs and Motorkhanas.

News

Friday October 31, 2008

After a busy couple of weeks repairing the car, Leon and Nick managed to get Mettina back on the track for the October practice day. The Nissan was all together and resprayed although it wasn't sporting its vinyl graphics. The car drove well with no signs of the previous incident. Mettina went out in the first session with the opportunity of following closely behind well known drift judge and part time drifter, Sam Conway. Sam led off numerous times with Mettina in pursuit, trying to emulate his moves and to keep him in close proximity. This helped Mettina to improve her entry into corners and her lines through them. Sam’s help had Mettina settle back into the rythm quite quickly.

The opportunity to follow Sam and other competitors during the day’s sessions was very beneficial as it not only helped Mettina with her speed, lines and proximity but also introduced competition conditions. Lil Dori also did some single runs, where she drove with a little more caution going into the fast right hander at turn one, however her confidence was building throughout the day. Going into turn two – the double apex corner, Mettina achieved a couple of good runs where she managed to hold the car right on the edge with good angle, line and even some smoke from the rear tyres!

After this practice session we made another small change to the car. Mettina fitted a larger rear sway bar to the Nissan 180SX to help induce oversteer and keep the car more stable through hard cornering.

We next hit the track on 618 Motorsport’s private drift practice day held on Monday the 27th October. Team manager Leon had organised the day to be run similar to a drift school. He invited several fairly inexperienced drivers along with some of South Australia’s top G1 and Drift Australia drivers to help with driver training. The morning contained drills like hand brake turns, ringies and figure 8's. The skills needed to complete these drills are very important in drift as they are used to set up the car for entry into corners, transitions between corners and with general car control. The less experienced drivers were then given opportunity to follow a few of SA's best drifters around the track, trying as much as possible to emulate their lines. The instructors were extremely helpful and patient, slowing down so that the less powerful cars could keep up and give the drivers a better understanding on how to apply the skills learnt from the previous session. The third session had the instructors riding passenger with the newbies to give direct feedback and advice on specific driving techniques. Mettina also asked a couple of instructors if they would drive the fluoro car with her as passenger so she could see what the car was capable of and what was needed to get it there in terms of driving inputs. After driving the car the instructors were also able to give some advice on specific areas of car setup that would help Mettina to get the most out of the car at her current level of experience. The remainder of the day was open for everyone to go out and drift the track, with the emphasis for the newbies to put into practice the skills taught that morning.

618 Motorsport would like to say thank you to the instructors for their time, enthusiasm, help and advice. We also want to say thanks to the other drivers on the day for their outstanding conduct. The day was a success!

618 Motorsport would like to say a special thanks to Nick 'No Jocks' for all his help repairing and painting the car! Paul and the boys at Pedders Modbury for wheel aligning the car at short notice, also to Wayne from D&T Performance Centre for replacing the damaged rear section of the exhaust. We would also like to thank Kyle and Dave from Vivid Vinlys for making the car look great again and for redoing all the sponsors logos and our new sign board.

Monday September 22, 2008

Once again, we drove our 180SX at the drift practice held at Mallala on the night of September 6th. Mettina was feeling more settled and confident and was looking forward to hitting the track. She was registered for the advanced group, which meant she was on the track at the same time as the leading state and some of the national drift drivers. This would give her more track time as the group was smaller than the novice group but also give her an opportunity to follow the more experienced drivers around the track. Before the first session Simon, a very competent competitor in drift, came over to our stand and had a technical chat with Mettina. He gave her some tips and advice and also complimented the team on well presented the car was. Now it was up to Mettina to try and remember all the things that Simon had told her.

She went out in the first session, putting some of the advice into practice. Mettina drove the car into the corners a lot harder increasing her corner speed. This meant the car was easier to slide through the apex of the corner and able to hold the lines longer. The next session started off well also, with Mettina gaining more confidence and starting to enter turn 1 a lot earlier than she had previously.

On the last run of the second session she decided to do a scandinavian flick (scando) into the fast right hander at turn 1. As she approached the turn, she unsettled the car to help initiate the slide but then made a slight mistake, causing the car to regain grip and change direction. The car headed straight for the tyre barriers along the edge of the track, Mettina tried to slow the car down and change its direction but to no avail. The car hit the first tyre stack with the rear which brought the front end around and hitting another tyre stack. The car continued its spin and collided backwards onto the tyre wall along pit entrance before bouncing back to the edge of the track. Mettina was unhurt in the incident and waited in the car for the safety marshal’s to arrive and render her some assistance.

The car was towed back to the pits where we could assess the damage. We are extremely lucky that the damage was very minor. Repairs are already underway! Huge thanks out to Nick who is undertaking most the work in our shed! We will have the car back out on the track for the October practice day, the only dents remaining are to Lil Dori's pride and confidence!

Saturday August 16, 2008

The second round of G1 the South Australian Drift championship was run on Sunday 3rd August. We entered the competition knowing we still had a lot to learn. Mettina hasn’t spent the time she needs yet in the car to be completely confident. However 618 Motorsport saw G1 as a great way to build on Lil Dori’s confidence and skills and were excited about the competition. She drove the car in the morning practice sessions, putting the car through its paces. The car is responding beautifully and running well. The next part of the day was dedicated to sponsors rides, we took this opportunity to ask Drift Australia judge, Sam Conway (who was also competing this day in his sil80) if he would jump into the passenger’s seat and give a few words of advice over a couple of laps. We have to say a huge thanks to Sam, who agreed and gave Mettina some helpful information. Another practice session followed in which Sam got Mettina to “tandem” with him, she followed him closely noting lines and speed. A lot was learnt and even though Mettina didn’t qualify to compete in the next session we believe that the opportunity to get back out on the track during G1 was extremely beneficial. For those that would like to know the details… Lil Dori, in effort to remember all the advice and feeling the heat of the spotlight, ran off the edge of the track on the first lap and spun the car on the exit of turn 1 on the second lap! However we have a lot of track time coming up before the final G1 round in November, we’re excited and confident we will do much better.

618 Motorsport also entered the Nissan 180SX in Adelaide’s round of the national Autosalon Show Car Series. This Show encompasses the best Show and Street cars from around Australia. Our manager Leon spent a lot of time cleaning, polishing and preparing the car and the lighting display for the event. 618 Motorsport were determined to make the car stand out as one of the nicest drift and also tarmac rally cars around in doing this we used both UV and halogen lights to make the car glow. The car was well accepted and photographed and the 618 team were there both days to answer questions and promote our generous and supportive sponsors!

Our manager Leon is currently organizing a private practice day at Mallala to be held in October. He has invited 9 other novice drivers/cars to the event and asked two Drift Australia drivers to come out and help with some instruction and driver training. The event will be run similar to a drift school. It will work on driver skills in the morning, for example, lines to take corners, use of hand brake, figure 8’s etc. The afternoon will then run as an open session. The instructors will be able to ride in the cars with the drivers to help show how to refine the drivers’ skills.

Friday May 30, 2008

"All Jap Day" went ahead even with the bad weather we experienced leading up to the event. 618 Motorsport had on display its Nissan 180SX for the first time. The car was freshly fitted with vinyl graphics and sponsors logos thanks to the boys at Vivid Vinyls and it definitely attracted a lot of attention. The show had on display some of Australia's toughest classic and imported Japanese cars from the rare 2 door Datsun P510 to the Nissan Skyline R34. We were happy to be one of the few chosen competition cars to be on display.

After fitting a new hydraulic hand-brake which rectified one of the problems that had plagued us previously, Mettina hit the track at Mallala again. The new hand-brake meant that Mettina could now lock the rear wheels to help to initiate a slide into a corner. She continually improved over the night with some of her best runs happening later in the evening, once her confidence grew and she got use to the new hand brake and newly gained power. This helped with the speed in which she could throw the car into the corners and also meant that the car would hold line much better.

Mettina is now looking forward to driving the car again in the upcoming June practice day. She hopes to be doing a few tandem runs with another driver who has approached us. This will give her valuable experience leading up to the remaining G1 Series. Leon is also looking at possibly jumping into the driver’s seat again at this practice day to have some fun and also the feel how the changes have affected the car.

Sunday April 20, 2008

Mettina has once again stepped into the Nissan driving at the April drift practice day held at Mallala Motorsport Park. This was the first time the car had hit the track in its new colour scheme and it received good reviews. Unfortunately the problems with the handbrake haven’t been resolved, and not due to lack of effort on Leon’s behalf as he has tried numerous approaches. This meant Lil Dori had to drift with out being able to use the hand brake to help position the car where required. She drove the car to the best of her ability using various other drifting techniques. We were also able to use some new tyres, which improved the handling and steering of the car and gave Mettina more grip and speed into the corners.

We have since made a few more changes to the car, with a new 3 inch exhaust being fitted thanks to D&T Performance Centre in Adelaide. This has improved the gas flow out of the motor and given the car some more power along with a great sound. We have also had the boost controller calibrated by Tilbrook Auto & Dyno. Tilbrooks identified a fault with the fuel delivery system and were able to rectify this by replacing the fuel pump with a high performance item and new fuel lines. These changes have given the 180SX more power whilst still being safe within the factory limits. This should allow Mettina to hold drift longer in the corners and help increase her overall track speed.

Lil Dori drove the Nissan 180SX in another round of Motorkhana also held at Monarto last Sunday. These events are a great way for Mettina to get the feel of the car and get use to throwing the car around a set course. We then delivered to car to the guys at Vivid Vinyls who are now decking the car out with it’s graphics and sponsors decals. This should help make the car stand out even more and we look forward to seeing the result. The car will be seen for the first time with all its decals fitted this Sunday at the All Jap Day held at Glenelg.

Monday March 14, 2008

After a busy few weeks trying to finish the Nissan 180SX, 618 Motorsport team just fell short of its 1st round G1 deadline. The car was still being reassembled with only days to go and an electrical problem that had Leon working on the car till midnight the night before.

Instead we were able to give the car its first run, at a come and try motorkhana held at Monarto on the Sunday. This gave Mettina a good chance to get the feel of the car and also gain some confidence in putting the car through its paces. Mettina drove the car over numerous courses during the day which had her testing her skills in the newly prepared car. The car ran fine, but once again we suffered a braking problem. The handbrake still would not lock the rear wheels, restricting Mettina on the tight technical sections of the course. Lil Dori had good fun doing this event and found it beneficial with learning the cars capabilities.

Monday February 25, 2008

The first round of G1 extreme drift is fast approaching and the team at 618 motorsport has been busy getting the car ready. The motor has been out of the Nissan 180SX while the engine bay was stripped and the strut towers welded. Custom A pillar braces were also welded in before the whole area was resprayed in fluro orange!

The aerial, rear wiper and the washer jet holes in the rear hatch have all been welded. The cabin was then spray painted brilliant white while the fluro orange paint has been applied to the engine bay as above and the door jams, the insides of the doors, hatch and bonnet.

The motor was then refitted and we are rapidly reattaching all the accessories.

The exterior of the Nissan 180SX has had all minor imperfections repaired, thanks to Nick, and is now ready for spraying. The final coat is due to be finished this weekend which will give us time for the final reassembly of the car before the first round in March.

Thursday January 10, 2008

Mettina recently drove her 180SX at the December practice day held at Mallala Motorsport Park. The practice day was open to anyone who had the ability to attend. The participants were split into 3 groups and each group rotated through 20 minute sessions. Lil Dori attempted to practice some of the skills which she had been taught from the Drift School that she attended last month. Thanks to the good setup of the car, Mettina was able to get the car into a couple of nice controlled drifts; however she tried to concentrate more on her lines and speed around the track. Mettina is continually improving and getting more confidence with every session she spends in the car.

Leon stepped into the car also, trying his hand at drift. He managed to get the car drifting, but found it a lot harder than expected. He spun off the track several times as did numerous other people all hitting the track for the first time. The car felt really good and well balanced and was a real pleasure to drive. After speaking with several other drivers, 618 Motorsport have decided to run with different size tyres on the rear to those previously used. This will help with getting the car into a controlled drift, and make it easier to hold the lines around the corners.

The Nissan 180SX has now had its roll cage fitted thanks to Craig at Mad Performance. Craig did an awesome job and the cage is a real piece of art. This will help stiffen the car up and also make the car a lot safer.

Currently the engine is out and the car shell is being prepared for painting in the team’s colours. This will take place over the next month, and will hopefully be finished in time for Mettina to make it to the February & March Practice days before competing in the first round of the G1 Extreme Drift Championship later in March.

Sunday December 2, 2007

618 Motorsport’s Nissan 180SX has finally hit the track after a few busy weeks. Lil Dori drove the car for the first time last Sunday at Mallala in which she participated in the drift school being run by some of Australia’s top drifters. There were fifty entrants who were split into three groups; beginner, intermediate and advanced. These groups learnt and practiced some of the skills required to have good car control. The groups did things like 90, 180 and 360 degree hand brake turns, ringies and drift.

Overall the day went fairly well for our team, however we had one minor problem with the handbrake not locking the rear wheels consistantly, making hand brake turns impossible. Leon is currently working on making the hand brake system hydraulic which will rectify the problem and make things a lot easier for Mettina.

Mettina learnt a lot especially from having instructors ride in the car with her giving her a few tips and pointers on what to do and when. The last part of the day was open practice, where the she could put into practice some of the skills that she had learnt. She had a couple of spins as did numerous other students all trying to push the boundaries on what they had been shown. Lil Dori will be running the car again at the next practice day before taking the car off the road to have the roll cage fitted.

Wednesday October 31, 2007

Finally the car arrived… After a few dramas picking it up, the car was brought to its new home in Adelaide. On arrival to its new home, Mettina was pleasantly surprised with a few extra bonuses in the car than she didn’t know about, like the vehicle having HID (high intensity discharge) headlights, turbo timer, radar detector (although Leon has taken claim to this) and an electronic boost guage. The overall condition of the car is better than expected!

However the make over is underway, with the interior being stripped by Mettina whilst Leon has removed the factory intercooler and fitted it with a larger, more flowing item. Fitting the larger intercooler took a fair bit of work to sort out, but the end result was worth it.

The new Tein coilover suspension has now also arrived from Japan, which will be the main focus to helping to get the car set up for the upcoming drift school and G1 Extreme Drift Championship in 2008. Some more suspension upgrades have also been ordered; adjustable rear upper arms and adjustable rear toe arms which will be fitted by Mettina on their arrival.

Monday October 1, 2007

It’s been a long time coming, but finally 618 Motorsport’s Nissan 180SX is about to land in Australia. The car is due to hit the Australian shores in Brisbane in the first week of October. And once it has cleared customs, it will be on the road to its new home in Adelaide.

On arrival in Adelaide, the car will undergo a make over. A lot of the car’s standard parts will be removed to make way for the fitment of some high performance bits. The work will be carried out by Mettina and Leon and should have them busy for quite some time.

The car is due to hit the track on its first outing on Sunday 25th November at Mallala for Drift School. Mettina (Lil Dori) will then run the car at a practice day to be held on Sunday 9th December after which the car will be stripped down to have its roll cage fitted. Once the roll cage is fitted, the car will have its body kit fitted and receive a full respray in fluorescent orange paint.