XP1 design story: an experimental drift chassis

XP stands for “Experimental”. The idea behind the series was literally to experiment: try extreme, different concepts that no other drift car on the market had. The XP1 was the first one.

Silvias, 180SXs and Formula 1

The XP1 mixes two worlds. On one side, drift cars like the Nissan Silvia and 180SX. On the other, concepts from Formula 1 and other motorsports that you would never find on a drift car. A lot of inspiration also came from other makers on Instagram.

The motorsport side gave the XP1 its signature: a front mono-shock, a single damper for both front wheels, the kind of layout you see in hillclimb cars and Formula 1.

The first prototype failed at the front

The part that failed was the flex system. How it would move had not been worked out properly, and the result could neither flex nor be adjusted. The front end had to be redesigned from scratch.

That showed on track. With no good front system, the first runs didn’t feel great: there was no feedback from the front. Once the flex was revised, it was night and day.

The lesson stayed: a concept only works if the execution is right.

The key decision

The mono-shock. It was the part that failed the most, but the conviction was always there that it could work and that it was a good system. In the end it held up, and it is still the front end of the XP1 and the XP2. Making it work meant getting the chassis flex right, and that is the job of the flex slider today.

What the XP1 improved

The belt drive. The D3 was the first commercial MMC chassis with belts, and the XP1 brought a drivetrain layout that is much easier to service.

The XP1 kept evolving after launch. Its manual has gone from V1.0 to V1.5.1, with a reworked flex system, steering, wheelbase and belt tension fixes, new balljoints, an ESC support and compatibility with the RDX spool. The build guide has the full history.