Nissan GT-R NISMO sets 189mph Guinness World DRIFT record (+video)

Photo Nissan GT-R NISMO Guinness World Record Drift

Nissan GT-R NISMO (pictured) sets 189mph Guinness World DRIFT record

A Nissan GT-R Nismo has set a new Guinness World record for drifting, with Masato Kawabata in a 1360hp GT-R drifting at 189mph.

Drifting car at speed with the tail hanging out is the staple fodder of car shows like Top Gear, but in Japan it’s the stuff of competition. And Nissan has taken that to a whole new level with a new Guinness World Record for drifting in a modified Nissan GT-R Nismo.

The existing record for drifting was set in 2013 by Polish rally driver Jakub Przygonski who set a 135mph drifting record at an airport near Warsaw, but Nissan’s attempt went way further than anyone could have expected.

Nissan had all the cards in its hand from the start, with a specially tuned GT-R Nismo delivering a huge 1360hp and converted to rear-wheel drive, and they commandeered Masato Kawabata – the Japanese drift champion and holder of the D1 Grand Prix title – to pilot the GT-R.

Nissan took the GT-R Nismo and Masato Kawabata to the Fujairah International Airport in UAE to attempt to break the record, and under Guinness World Record rules he had just three attempts to break the 135mph record.

Kawabata’s first attempt smashed the record with a 170mph drift at a 55 degree angle, but on his third attempt the record was smashed again, with Kawabata managing to get the GT-R sideways at 189.5 mph.

Which is going to make anything delivered by ‘New’ Top Gear or Clarkson, Hammond and May’s new Amazon show look positively tame by comparison.