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BMW sets two Guinness World Records, drifting sideways for 232.5 miles

bmw sets two guinness world records drifting sideways for 2325 miles record  longest drift with 2018 m5 9
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BMWs are known to be quite the drift-mobiles, thanks to their loyalty to the rear-wheel drive tradition. To uphold this reputation even more, BMW and its coveted M Performance Division just set two new Guinness World Records with the latest 2018 BMW M5 sedan.

On December 11, 2017, an all-new BMW M5 sedan set off with driving instructor Johan Schwartz behind the wheel. Schwartz then drifted the M4 around BMW’s Performance Center in Greer, South Carolina, setting a record for the “Greatest Distance Vehicle Drift,” traveling sideways for a total of 232.5 miles over eight hours around a skid pad. Not only did Schwartz set his record of 232.5 miles, he smashed his previous record attempt by 143 miles. But it doesn’t stop there.

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During the same attempt, BMW also set the first record for the “Longest Twin Vehicle Drift (Water Assisted)” where the firm had a second car drift alongside the primary attempt car. The second car, a previous generation F10 M5 with BMW Performance Center Chief Drifting Instructor Matt Mullins at the wheel, went sideways alongside the first car for a total of 49.25 miles over the course of one hour, out of the total attempt’s eight-hour period.

And to make sure the first car kept going, the second car also acted as a mobile supply car, and refueled the primary car during the drift attempt.

Yes, you read that correctly. They refueled the primary car with a second car, while it was drifting sideways, around a skid pad, to make sure it could keep going during its record-setting attempt. They accomplished this by equipping the first car with a jet fighter-derived “dry break fuel” system, a completely custom setup just for this record attempt. The supply car refilled the first M5 a total of five separate times over the eight-hour drift.

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“We knew going in that if we were going to recapture the world record for longest sustained drift and set the bar as high as possible, we would need to find a way to keep the M5 going without stopping to refuel,” said Schwartz. “In the end, the refueling system worked flawlessly and the M5 performed as expected. It was a big win all around.”

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Chris Chin
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