Anyone been to Essex arena with a nice car?

[WRLondon]

Just did a drift practice day there in my cheap mx5
And my god I was one of two that drove there and back in the same car?
There was llike no run off area in the corners and 9 people going round a pretty much a massive roundabout

Got a good 16 laps in until I spun out and smacked the front end clipping the apex avoiding another car

Put some before and after shots are but it's pretty much shifted the entire front end towards the passenger side
still drives straight and true though!

First drift day and ironically I think it's safer to do street-o!
Less likely to write of your car anyway!

So where do you drift these £14k mint cars? Lol

[Ricky Emery]

Welcome to arena essex. General consensus is only take a car there if your not worried about a few dings. Was it the white one with the wide nice fitment wheels, that had the bmw slightly hit it?

But yeah go to proper tracks like Lydden hill or even DWYB at pod or Norfolk Arena etc. Look on here in the practice sessions bit.

But yeah plenty of people have been over there in full on comp cars etc. Just a risk you take....

[burgerboy78]

First drift day and ironically I think it's safer to do street-o!

this ha. but yea what Ricky said i wouldn't go arena unless i had a shit BMW with the exhaust hacked off it so it sounds "sick"....

[WRLondon]

No that was the only other car!
I was in the silver one with L plates on haha!!
Happened around 7:30, Im not too fussed about a knock
But I lost the use of reverse gear so couldn't reverse if I spun out again lol
That was a nicer mx5 than mine and was very surprise d to see it out there

[WRLondon]

Yeah my car cost sub £600 and it was like driving a brand new m3 haha
Seemed like the other drivers wouldn't mind slamming into the side of you at 40mph either
Which didn't help the nervousness of a first track day
Anyway, hammer is out and see if I can straighten it out after work Tomo

[RyanH]

Possibly not the best place for your first day! I'd give pod or Norfolk arena a go next time, there's a lot less to hit

[Sam H]

your car was under 600 quid and you're moaning about drifting arena?

[Brunosr13]

I done with a old 6 series and a black cab, was good fun lol

[Sam H]

I've taken a few volvos. All have been under 600 quid lol. It's just wall-tap practice, you don't want to do it with a supermade rear bumper.

[dale_b]

I spent a bit shy of a grand on buying a badass Merc 560 SEC Just for Arena... Only mod was a welded diff, and hacked exhaust off at down pipes... Drive it there a couple of times, letting all hell break loose through dartford tunnel with all 8 cylinders singing away was pretty entertaining.. It didn't make it back the last time as I cracked the plastic at the bottom of the rad so it didn't hold water.. My mate was there with an empty truck so made sense to truck it home.. Now iv done Arena a handful of times I'd take anything round there.. More power the better, link it without a manji..lol

[dale_b]

It's just wall-tap practice

you know at Teesside last month when it rained and most people went into first corner and spun... I noticed the regulars at arena went in without spinning.... The relentless laps on that slippery wet track teach more than wall rubbing skills

[WRLondon]

Haha not moaning, having to drive it back was the problem!
I'm literally just starting out this drifting thing and didn't do too bad

Can link turns And that just the lack of run off area and a lot of cars
means when it goes wrong your more than likely going to skid out
And smack the walls or another car!
I'll post up some pics in abit

Probably be better with a dry track as the surface is abit more predictable
Didn't need the 4 spare wheels I brought as they soak the track!
Up for another go but would have to bring a truck along!

[WRLondon]

For your amusement;





yes the headlights are stuck up, well one is but i leave both up so it doesnt look retarded haha

[WRLondon]

note the difference in wheel / arch clearance haha

[Liam.]

looks like a scrapper before you crashed it to be honest

[MJG]

Arena is just the same as any other banger track, but it's a bit more manic and they push you out with more cars than they should.

You surely knew there was no run off before you went? Just like streeto, but you hit your soft comfortable bodywork first instead of your critical wheel and suspension components... Unless you go really hard.

You have to drift it knowing that if you make a mistake, your car is gone. If you're happy doing that then you can have a great time in any car, but if you're not up to that level then you'll probably crash, so you should stick to a cheap disposable car.

I've drifted at Buxton, which is not artificially wetted, but is about 6 feet narrower than Essex, in all manner of cars and the only time I crashed one was when I spun coming out of the infield and bounced backwards off the armco but that was only a small prang really. I've driven cars that cost the owner £10k where he said he'd cut my throat if I crashed it or kerbed his 19's, I've driven my boss's £8k s14, and I've also driven £200 shit heaps that aren't even road legal. You just drive them accordingly and take only the risks you are prepared to take.

Bottom line: There's a fucking wall around the track, and if you crash you'll obviously damage your car, so don't moan that you damaged said car. The people who drift mint cars around there are obviously more experienced and more careful than you.

[spaniel]

i went to essex for my first drift day cos santa pod got cancelled, i did ok and didn't hit the wall too hard, trouble was next time i went i got cocky and went into the wall backwards pretty fast, also i've done the same as you but harder and really bent the chassis, i bit of gaffa tape and a few cable ties got me home tho lol.
it might not be a great track but if you don't care about your car then its a bit of cheap fun and you can learn enough from it with the stupidly wet track.

[japdrifter_s13]

It's a banger track mate, it is what it is, I wouldn't take anything but a rwd shitter there.
But that's simply cause I don't fancy wrecking my road car, don't forget your not always nessessarily gonna hit the wall due to a mistake of your own. There's other people to avoid out there, of varied talent

[WRLondon]

Lol,
tbh the car cost me £300 with full mot etc. so im not too fussed

and does the L plates not sort of suggest im not very experienced at this? haha!

and yeah the main thing isnt sliding around the corners which i can do to some extent
but worrying about the 8 other £100 scrappers who wouldnt think twice about slamming into to you!

i think santa pod dwyb is more up my street tbh

police have put a defective vehicle notice on it because of the looks (mechanically fine!)
so breaking for parts and buying another lol

[spin-king]

drifting is motorsport at some time your gunna have a ping as much as i like my car its hitting buxton as i dont see the point having a drift/track car and worrying about craching (id rather not though lol)

seen some nice/posh cars skidding at birmingham wheels and having fun its all about common sense so i am fooked lol

sorry well off topic