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Photo
of Katsuhiro Ueo's AE86 courtesy of www.d1gp.com
Name:
Katsuhiro Ueo
Location:
Kumamoto, Japan
Born:
1972
Sponsor:
Car Boutique / Sift Garage
Vehicle:
1985 Toyota Corolla Sprinter Trueno AE86
Engine: 4AG
AE92 motor, I-4, 16-valve, 1600cc, 12.5:1 compression ratio, 82mm bore, 77mm stroke; Revolver GT pistons, rings, injectors, valves, header, exhaust; Toyota factory AE111 crankshaft and connecting rods, AE101 throttle bodies; Ueo Secret Type prototype camshafts; Matsuda SPL AE92-kouki cylinder head; TRD valve springs, Short Shift kit; Toda valve retainers, intake manifold, fuel rail, air intake, cam gears; Sard fuel regulator; Nissan CA18 catalytic converter, SR20 crankshaft sensor, Skyline GTR BCNR33 fuel pump; Tomei REYTEC ECU and ignition system; NGK
plugs.
Gears:
Cusco Type RS two-way LSD; Exedy prototype clutch
Suspension: Revolver Ueo SPL coilovers (90mm total lowering), front strut tower brace; Largus front and rear stabilizer bars; Cusco pillow ball mounts, rear lateral links, trailing rod assembly, adjustable pillow ball tension rods
Wheels
/ Tires: Volk Racing TE37 14x7.0; Bridgestone RE01 185/60R14
Brakes: iMAGE pads; APP Earl's lines
Exterior: Sift Racing Garage cream paint;
J-Blood body kit, hood, and rear wing; carbon headlight covers
Interior: Bride Zeta II driver and Zeta passenger seats; TRS four-point harness; MOMO 350mm steering wheel
Katsuhiro
Ueo first became widely noticed when he appeared in an Ikaten
drifting competition featured on Option Video. At the time of the
Ikaten competition, Ueo was driving a black, hatchback modified AE85
("hachi-go"). His drifting impressed Drift King Keiichi
Tsuchiya and Ueo took home the win after going head to head with
another top level drifter and a then unknown Masao Suenaga.
Recognized
as a local champion in the Kyushu region, Ueo stepped up his game to
premier at the D1 Grand Prix professional drifting series in Japan.
A fierce competitor, Ueo held his ground against competitors with
much faster and more powerful vehicles. It would take Ueo 2 seasons
before finally taking home the season championship in 2002.
Ueo
has expressed that although there are many great cars for drifting
out there, his heart will always belong to the AE86 ("hachiroku");
his fans would have it no other way as they anticipate seeing Ueo
push his Tomei powered AE86 to it's 10,000 RPM redline on each and
every pass.
To
keep his drifting skills sharp, Ueo admits drifting at least 5 times
each week, usually on the winding mountain roads of his home in
Kumamoto. Ueo claims to reach top speeds of 120mph (190+ kph) on the
touge and says that although he's the best, some of his friends are
pretty good at keeping up with him.
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