A little over four years ago, BMW set a record for the longest vehicle drift after going sideways with an M5 for 232.5 miles (374.17 kilometers). It had to be refueled mid-drift by another M5 to keep on going for a grand total of eight hours. Impressive, right? Well, Russian man Evghenii Novokşonov might beg to differ after organizing his very own stunt with his trusty VAZ-2106.
A sedan as well, albeit far less impressive than the Bavarian ultimate driving machine, his family car of Soviet origins had to be modified in an attempt to dethrone the M5. Rather than being refueled by an identical vehicle, his VAZ-2106 was equipped with an extra gasoline tank able to store 200 liters (nearly 53 gallons), on top of the original 40-liter (10.5-gallon) tank. A fuel pump also had to be installed to make the connection between the two tanks.
As mentioned by the Moldavian website Autoblog.md, the lengthy drift attempt took place on the frozen Kaldîlake in the Chelyabinsk region, Russia's seventh-largest city and the second-largest city in the Ural Federal District. In an event livestreamed on YouTube that took place on a purpose-built surface, Evghenii went on a drifting spree for no fewer than 273.2 miles (439.8 kilometers).
Drifting Will Never Be Uncool:
Consequently, he unofficially eclipsed BMW Performance Driving School instructor Johan Schwart and his M5. As a refresher, the official record-breaking drift run took place in December 2017 on a wet skidpad at the BMW Performance Center in Greer, South Carolina. That said, Evghenii needed substantially more time as his marathon lasted for a whopping 17 hours and 34 minutes, from 10 AM until around 4 AM the next day.
The car’s radiator failed in the 16th hour of what must have been an exhausting run, but he kept on going for another 90 minutes or so before ultimately deciding to stop. Because of sanctions against Russia, it's impossible for him to register his record with Guinness. That said, he did collect donations during the livestream to apply for the Russian Book of Records.
He needs $1,500 to pay the fee, and already has half of the money from donations and hopes sponsors will provide the remaining half. We sincerely wish him good luck, and hopefully, Guinness will give him a call soon.
