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Posted
Jan 31 2012, 05:30 PM
by
Mike Garrett
with 13 comment(s)
What happens when Vaughn Gittin Jr., K&N and HPI Racing get together for some fun?
This.
Enjoy!
-Mike Garrett
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Posted
Nov 15 2011, 04:40 PM
by
Charles Kha
with 62 comment(s)
Need for Speed The Run starts hitting shelves today - the European launch is this Friday - and there's some aspects to the game that we thought you'd find interesting. The Run features actors Sean Faris and Christina Hendricks (yes, of Mad Men fame), so it made sense for actual cars to be included too. Rod, Carl, Andy and I were entrusted with coming up with a short list of real-world cars that would gel with The Run's cross-crountry street racing theme. And I think we came up with a...
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Posted
Nov 10 2011, 02:00 PM
by
Larry Chen
with 15 comment(s)
I felt so privileged to have the chance to follow Team USA around at World Drift Series China in Hang Zhou. Even though our drivers are given unfavorable conditions and unfavorable odds, they still seem to make the best out of it. Vaughn Gittin Jr's crew chief, Ian Stewart, of Auto Sport Dynamics, told me that he loves competing in China. He mentioned that it brings everyone back to the roots of drifting. The teams don't have fancy rigs and spare parts are very limited. Drifting in China...
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Posted
Nov 09 2011, 09:30 PM
by
Larry Chen
with 37 comment(s)
The first round of World Drift Series China was a big success for Team Need for Speed. Vaughn Gittin Jr. finished first and Matt Powers finished second. The event was held in the industrial and smoggy city of Tianjin. The second and final round of the series was held in the beautiful city of Hang Zhou. Five members of the media came along for the Asian adventure. Three of which, including me, were Speedhunters. Midway through our fourteen-hour flight to China, I decided to check on the boys of team...
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Posted
Oct 06 2011, 09:30 PM
by
Larry Chen
with 30 comment(s)
Our final day in China started off with a big bang. The cars started to arrive around 3 AM local Beijing time. The last car to arrive was Vaughn Gittin Jr.'s Mustang, which showed up at 6 AM. All night the cars were pulled out of the containers along with all the spare parts and tires needed to keep these machines running. This is Todd Ho. He actually grew up in California but he moved to China recently for work. Todd was the very first driver to swap in a LS motor in his FC RX-7 and drove it...
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Posted
Oct 05 2011, 11:00 PM
by
Larry Chen
with 21 comment(s)
I had a feeling it would not be a normal day as we touched down in Beijing at 8:30 AM local time. How often can you say you were stuck in the middle of a Chinese freeway during rush hour? I was traveling with six mechanics, five drivers, four members of the media (including me) and one judge. We were all headed to World Drift Series China in the city of Tianjin. In China, everyone seemed to have switched on tourist mode. Everyone, including Justin Shreeve and Joe Ayala, from "Tandem of die,"...
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Posted
May 16 2011, 06:00 PM
by
Vaughn Gittin Jr
with 57 comment(s)
After almost exactly a year from its conception, I was able to take the RTR-X on a maiden voyage. Willow Springs was the location we chose for the flogging to commence. There has been a ton of work by an incredible team to get the car to this point and I simply could not wait to get behind the wheel of our creation. While the following pictures show that the RTR-X is obviously not a "trailer queen", it did roll up in my new hauler. She does enjoy getting her beauty rest on the lower deck...
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Posted
Apr 28 2011, 02:00 PM
by
Linhbergh
with 31 comment(s)
As many of you already know, the RTR-X hit the dyno last week at and put down solid numbers: 401 horses and 378 FT/LBS of torque. The Ford 5.0L V8 and those numbers were designed to do one thing, to burn through a set of tires as quickly as possible. Yesterday, at Willow Springs International Raceway, Vaughn Gittin Jr. did exactly that. JR along with the guys from Twins Turbo Motorsports had their first test session with the car. As you can see, in these photos, the test session went quite well....
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Posted
Apr 11 2011, 10:30 AM
by
Larry Chen
with 36 comment(s)
The word "epic" is easily over used in today's society, and it has lost some meaning. However, when I say this event was "epic"..... I am really sincere about it. I actually felt bad for anyone who was following Rhys Millen. He made more smoke than anyone else, thanks to a wheel speed of 135mph going into turn ten of the street course. It was clear and sunny Friday morning, but as the day progressed, it rained. Luckily, it dried up before qualifying. Kyle Mohan put down epic...
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Posted
Feb 16 2011, 01:00 PM
by
Vaughn Gittin Jr
with 35 comment(s)
Since my last update, the entire crew over at Twins Turbo have been working real hard transforming the Team Need For Speed RTR-X from looking the part at SEMA to being ready to hit the track\street. We are now coming down the home stretch and it is almost time to take the RTR-X out on it's maiden voyage! I plan to break it in the right way; there will be no 6000 RPM clutch-kicks, absolutely no yanks on the E-brake, I will never mash the right pedal to the floor, and I promise it will never touch...
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Posted
Dec 24 2010, 12:26 PM
by
Vaughn Gittin Jr
with 20 comment(s)
I know it's been a while since I last updated everyone on the progress of the RTR-X and I would love to blame it on a long vacation in the Carribean, but unfortunately that's not the case! ;) Sad truth is I finally am just getting my head above water from the insanity and aftermath of winning the Formula Drift Championship and SEMA fun, amongst many other fun things going on. It has been flattering getting messages and emails with interest to see more updates. The love for the RTR-X that...
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Posted
Dec 01 2010, 06:50 PM
by
Vaughn Gittin Jr
with 30 comment(s)
It's official! This weekend at Gymkhana GRID I will be joining forces with my good friend Ken Block and the Monster World Rally team to compete at Irwindale Speedway. Ken offered me the the chance to drive his sick 1978 Ford Escort RS rally car, and I just couldn't refuse the opportunity to blast that thing around Irwindale! Ken and I have never competed in an event together, so this should be fun for sure. Hope to see some of you out there! - Vaughn Gittin Jr. Official press release Buy...
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Posted
Nov 30 2010, 06:40 PM
by
Vaughn Gittin Jr
with 23 comment(s)
Check out this super funny video from Ken and the Gymkhana Grid team. I guess this means that the cat's out of the bag and you all know that I will in fact be driving at this event. I won't be driving my trusty Monster Energy Falken Tire Ford Mustang, but I did get an awesome opportunity to drive something that I think you all will like! Check back tomorrow to find out what car I will be blasting around Irwindale Speedway in!
- Vaughn Gittin Jr.
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Posted
Sep 30 2010, 05:00 PM
by
Vaughn Gittin Jr
with 9 comment(s)
Heading into Sonoma after an awesome event and 3rd place finish in Vegas, my confidence was still very high. Although I was not thrilled that I lost to Dai in a battle for the third time this year in Vegas, I was obviously extremely happy to still be leading the points heading into Round Six. My strategy at Sonoma was the same as it has been all year - to be calm, collected, and most importantly, to have fun. I really don't love the layout at Sonoma, however, I find a fun challenge at every course...
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Posted
Aug 31 2010, 08:00 PM
by
Vaughn Gittin Jr
with 10 comment(s)
Check out this video from Formula Drift Round 5 in the crazy
hot desert of Las Vegas, Nevada. Andy Laputka once again has put
together a great summary of the happenings in my world throughout the
competition. I hope you all enjoy it!
- Vaughn Gittin Jr.
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Posted
Aug 22 2010, 01:46 AM
by
Mike Garrett
with 15 comment(s)
Last year in New Jersey, Falken Tire swept the podium for the first time ever at a Formula Drift event. Tonight in Vegas, the teal and blue repeated that feat - lead by Tyler McQuarrie in his drop top Z. Tyler took the win on a hot night in Vegas while Dai Yoshihara and Vaughn Gittin Jr. took second and third respectively, with the battle for the championship getting hotter by the minute.
We've got plenty of coverage on the way, but for now big congrats go to Tyler, Dai, Vaughn and everyone at Team Falken.
-Mike Garrett...
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Posted
Jul 26 2010, 02:01 PM
by
Vaughn Gittin Jr
with 22 comment(s)
I look forward to FD Seattle every year. The crowd is hands-down one of the best of the series. The track is extremely fast and fun, and the bank there is like a never-ending drift inches away from a wall. This event always makes for very tight battles and for some reason a lot of them end up in carnage! Team Falken and I showed up ready to rock and I was looking forward to keeping our podium streak alive. Thursday and Friday practice went great. I focused on getting the car dialed-in for qualifying...
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Posted
Jun 03 2010, 10:00 AM
by
Andy Blackmore
with 5 comment(s)
Head over to the desktop section of Speedhunters to download one of two desktops of the Team Need for Speed RTR-X Concept Images, complete with the new livery. Available in Widescreen and Standard formats. -Andy Blackmore RTR-X Build on Speedhunters Speedhunters Desktops
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Posted
Jun 01 2010, 01:30 PM
by
Vaughn Gittin Jr
with 51 comment(s)
Here are the new 3D renderings of the RTR-X for you all to check out. Thanks to Andy for working over the weekend to get them done in time for today's press release that you can check out HERE . I hope you all agree that these views do the car a bit more justice then the 2D renderings posted last week. More build updates to come in the very near future! Formula D Round 3 in New Jersey here I come! - Vaughn Gittin Jr.
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