"For his first unsuccessful foray in drift racing," Universal revealed in a press release announcing the new film's inevitability, "Shaun unknowingly takes on D.K., the 'Drift King,' with ties to the Yakuza, the Japanese crime machine. The only way he can pay off the debt of his loss is to venture into the deadly realm of the Tokyo underworld, where the stakes are life and death."

But before the first reel of film can be shot, director Justin Lin needs car. Lots of cars. Fast and furious cars. The 32-year-old director who earned his reputation with 2002's Sundance hit, Better Luck Tomorrow, began his search for the right machines at Irwindale Speedway east of Los Angeles this past June.

A Day in Irwindale
Dennis McCarthy, the vehicle coordinator for the new production quickly brought together tuner cars, production cars and modified cars from individuals from around Southern California for Lin to consider for roles in the movie.

"I called some people I knew," said McCarthy, "and in a few days they all showed up." The cars, about 30 in all, including many cars from the second film 2 Fast 2 Furious, were gathered in the parking lot alongside the track's main grandstand with 60 or so attending owners and hangers-on.

With the third film set in both Southern California and Japan, the production's automotive needs are eclectic. Mike Walsh, the owner of Premiere Studio Rentals, which provides vehicles to film and television productions, brought out both a clapped-out '71 Monte Carlo for scenes early in the film and a beautiful '70 Dodge Challenger R/T convertible that had made its film debut in 1994's Natural Born Killers. R.J. DeVera, who had a small part in the first
Fast and Furious, brought with him three different Nissan 350Zs — all looking particularly sweet sitting on wheels from DeVera's company, Ro_Ja. And Rhys Millen, who interrupted his drifting career to be the primary driver of the General Lee Dodge Charger for the big screen version of
The Dukes of Hazzard, brought out an 800-horsepower twin-turbocharged version of the current pontiac GTO.

The car companies want in, too. Mitsubishi's starring role in 2 Fast 2 Furious was seen in the industry as marketing genius. This time Dodge, Ford, General Motors, Mazda and Volkswagen want in, and brought out examples of their lineups for Lin to look over.

The automotive star of the film, however, may wind up being a rather innocuous-looking '67 Ford Mustang fastback that was lined up next to Mitch Allread's radical '68 Toyota Coronan Rumors were flying among the participants there that the car was destined to wind up with the drivetrain from a Nissan Skyline GT-R — including its twin-turbocharged inline six — under its sheet metal as an important plot point in the film. But rumors fly when facts are few, and the filmmakers themselves are keeping quiet.

Getting the Drift
But the star of the show was the drifting exhibition.

Once McCarthy had walked Justin Lin around to see all the various cars in the parking lot (all of which was carefully recorded on video by Universal for use in publicity and on the DVD), the producers and director moved to the grandstands and the drifters moved onto the track.

Team Toyo was out first with its 2005 Ford Mustang GT drift machine powered by a 2004 Mustang Cobra supercharged DOHC, 32-valve, 4.6-liter V8 and driven by Ken Gushi. As Gushi pirouetted the car around the Irwindale infield spewing off clouds of tire smoke, one of the film's producers was heard saying, "We've got to get us a really good tire deal."

Then Millen showed the drifting talents of an unmodified GTO and a production Corvette for the benefit of General Motors, and both cars looked impressive. But their muffled exhaust notes couldn't match the rumbling V8 glory of Gushi's uncorked Mustang or the turbocharged scream of Team Toyo Drift's Nissan 240SX"
If there's one thing drifting is, it's dramatic, and by the looks on the director's and producers' faces, it's clear they were mightily impressed. We'll find out which cars at the audition make it into the film when filming begins, and we'll find out if drifting, the Yakuza and a venture into the deadly realm of the Tokyo underworld pay off at the box office next summer."


wtf,so ken gushi and millen are in on the death of drifting as we know and love it? and wtf do the yakuza have to do with drifting?!? when your out slidin around u ever been shot at or asked to pay you protection money by the yakuza?i think nott.....i dont know this movie just seems gay to me...i bet the cars are all gonna be 350z rx7 3rd gen that is,s15,any high buck rear wheels drive car..nothin practical.....like a simple 240,or s13 s14 in japan,and a no corrola's..just nsk's and high buck cars s o they can make a lil money from the car manufactures....ok im done bitchin.

 

Well there is a good side to all this....Look what FAST and FURIOUS did for the Supra and RX7...They bring so much money now, For those of us that have nice RWD Imports...Our values will surely increase after this movie....Im just trying to be positive thats all.

 

this movie will fucking suck. it's gonna be lame ass mustang drifting and riced out Z's.

 

Money talks. WOuldn't you do it for 1/2 a Mill?

EDIT: You have to see the marketing/business side. All the drivers and teams in the circuits are gonna start making more $$$ off this because drifting will be known EVERYWHERE by EVERYONE. Instead of a hundred spectators at these events it will be 1,000s.

 

Guchi and Millen are just hired guns at this point. I'm sure Toyo wants in so they can have their name all over everything. Poor GM is scrambling for anything they can get.

I think it's good that the director is trying to get to know drifting, but he's got a lot of work to do once his playtime in Irwindale is done.

 

and once again...

when the last one came out, i said the next one will be about drifting, and years later, the truth.

 

ya, the prices will go up but 240s will get scarce and they will be gay ff3 and initial d fanatic's cars. but u will be able to find an occasionall 240......wrapped around a tree. good thing about the corolla scene is u cant find em. esp some 15yr old retards.


ive put plenty of work in my car and my car's value is still is still more than ive put in.

suspension
motor
wheels
tires
starter
aero bumper
jdm brackets
sideskirts
megasquirt
and misc

and it will just go up. i love my rolla

 

nah man,for real i wouldnt...1.cuase im not that good to get paid that.2. cuase i got no money now,and im happy as hell...so nahh,i dont thhink i would..but ya never know..it is alot money,and im glad to see gushi and millen makin money doin what they love....and it could be good for the sport..could be bad in the long run..i guess we will just have to see.

 

i call bs. if you were that good and they asked you would do it. just because u have money doesnt mean u have to be frivalous and idiotic with it.... a person could act the same and have a cool extra $500,000 in the bank account. if you were given the opp and you didnt, you wouldnt be 'honorable' you'd be a 'moron'