THE BERSERKER - A ROCKET BUNNY KITTED, TYRE SHREDDING V8 MONSTER!
When you’re living life at a different angle, the best way to do it is with some sick Japanese style and a rowdy American V8!
While the majority of people in this world are happy in their crappy daily commuter cars, going from point A to B with biggest lack of excitement, there are some people in this world that have high octane flowing through their veins, looking for excitement in every corner.
Professional drifter George Myburgh is definitely one of those people that crave adrenaline and that’s exactly why he competes in one of the most exciting, thrilling motorsport disciplines in the world, DRIFTING! George owns a LS2 V8 powered, widebody Nissan Silvia S14 aptly named ‘Berseker’.
This monster is definitely one of the best looking and sounding drift cars we’ve seen in a long time. Surprisingly most of the work around building the car into what it is today as well as the maintenance of it is done by George himself. The saying ‘if you want something done right, do it yourself’ immediately comes to mind, and boy has he done things right! The car as mentioned before is a Nissan Silvia S14 which has been extensively modified in a multitude of ways. The most obvious thing you immediately notice on the car is its amazing vinyl wrap design that’s layered over its white body, designed by Supafly Design & Media, clearly showing of George’s title sponsor, GT Radial, who supplies him with all those tyres that he destroys ever so often. Another unmissable part of the exterior is the cars’ extremely sexy bodykit. The kit on the car is a custom S14 Rocket Bunny V2 kit done by Bobby Brewis at BB Performance, which has widened the track of the car quite a bit, giving the car a devastatingly aggressive look. With drifting being a contact sport, all the body parts on the car are now fiberglass, which includes the front and rear fenders, boot, bonnet and front and rear bumpers. Moulds were made of all the parts so when they get smashed during competition, they can easily be replaced with new ones. The front end of the car was also tubed, for easy replacement of panels and the entire chassis was stitch welded inside and under the car, for ultimate strength and rigidity. The car still has original S14a Kouki headlights though. Finishing off the exterior of the car are the wheels. In the front it runs 17” Rota GTR D wheels in black while in the back there is a set of red 18” Lenso D1R wheels measuring in at a rather wide 10J. All four wheels are obviously wrapped in GT Radial tyres at all times, with 225/45/17’s in front and 245/40/18’s in the rear.
One of the most vital parts of a drift car is without a doubt its suspension setup, so you don’t even have to question whether this baby runs a full drift setup. In the front this machine has BB Performance BOBFAB suspension with Driftworks shocks. Moving over to the back there’s Geomaster Driftworks knuckles with Driftworks adjustable arms and BC Racing shocks. The sub frame has been fitted with aluminium bushes wherever possible. The brakes have also been completely changed from stock, with Porsche discs and calipers in front, Subaru STi rear discs and calipers, a brake bias control unit, braided brake lines all around and of course a custom hydraulic handbrake to help lock up those rear tyres with ease, a really vital part in any drift car. Making turning easier and more precise is taken care of electric steering with its own control module.
Big power is what gets those tyres smoking so easily and for that George looked at some American muscle as a power plant for this demon. Inside the belly of this beast sits a V8 Chevrolet LS2 aluminium block with a whole ladder of upgrades and changes done to it. First up it was stroked to 6.6L with a Manley forged stroker kit rotating assembly and a 4.005 bore with 4-inch stroke. Inside the motor it runs a Lunati cam as well as Lunati link bar high rev lifters, Lunati roller rockers and Lunati double valve springs. It was also fitted with 70cc combustion chamber LS3 heads and a LS3 intake manifold. To combat any and all oil issues, it runs a 3 stage dry sump with steel braided FTF hoses and fittings. There’s also a separate oil cooler with FTF lines and fittings in the mix. To keep up with fuel requirements this very thirsty guy uses 800cc Siemens injectors and a large 100mm throttle body. Supplying fuel to the thirsty injectors is the job of a Bosch 044 fuel pump that feeds off a custom 45L aluminium fuel cell, all connected again with FTF steel braided hoses and fittings. Letting this powerful beast breathe easily, as well as helping it produce an epic soundtrack is two custom headers that runs out the front of the car. Helping it all tick like clockwork is a trusted Dicktator 60-2 engine management system. Cooling of the engine is taken care of a very cleverly installed rear mount Nascar 100mm dual pass radiator with cowling and fan also running FTF lines and fittings. Lastly there is a Race redtop lightweight gel battery, to keep extra weight down and it takes up as little space as possible.
With all this added power, the stock drivetrain wouldn’t even have lasted a day. So the sort out the issue it was all beefed up nicely. A 6kg flywheel was fitted to Quartermaster triple plate clutch. It runs a concentric slave cylinder and it’s all connected to a G-Force 5 speed dog box, that’s able to handle the newfound power and torque with ease. A custom prop shaft was built for the car specifically and it also runs a Winters Performance quick change diff.
Inside the car, you can immediately see it’s all business. The whole interior was spec’d to comply with Supadrift and Drift Allstars regulations. This starts with a custom roll cage with gussets that runs along the interior of the car. The standard pedals were chucked and in its place sits a Tilton top mount pedal box. For the driver there’s a Sparco wrap-around race seat with Driftworks harness while the passenger can get comfortable in a Corbeau Forza Sport seat with a Sabelt harness. The steering wheel is also a Sabelt item while the shifter in the car is very interesting to say the least, and I’m sure it can have ‘multiple uses’.
This car might look intimidating in its static form but wait till this beast gets fired up and George shows off what he can do with it as you can see in the photos and video. The only words I can muster up that describes it well enough is ‘Fucking Epic’ and I think that’s the proper way to end this story off.
Car Specs
Model: Nissan Silvia S14
Power: 500HP, 750Nm
Engine: LS2 aluminium block, Stroked to 6.6L with Manley forged stroker kit rotating assembly , 4.005 bore with 4-inch stroke, Lunati cam, Lunati link bar high rev lifters, 70cc combustion chamber LS3 heads, LS3 intake manifold, Lunati roller rockers, Lunati double valve springs, 3 stage dry sump system, 800cc Siemens injectors, 100mm throttle body, Dicktator 60-2 engine management, Oil cooler, Custom headers, Bosch 044 fuel pump, 45L custom aluminium fuel cell, Steel braided FTF hoses and fittings all around, NASCAR 100mm dual pass radiator (Cowling and fan), Race red top lightweight gel battery
Chassis: Spec’d to Supadrift and Drift Allstars regulations, Tubed front end and bolt on for easy replacement, Entire chassis stitch welded inside and under car
Suspension: Front Suspension BB performance BOBFAB suspension with Driftworks shocks, Rear suspension Geomaster Driftworks knuckles with Driftworks adjustable arms and BC Racing shocks, Aluminium sub frame bushes, Electric steering with control module
Brakes: Brakes bias control, Porsche front brake calipers and discs, Subaru STI rear discs and calipers, Braided brake lines, Custom hydraulic handbrake
Drivetrain: 6kg flywheel, Quartermaster triple plate clutch, Concentric slave cylinder, G-Force 5 speed dog box, Winters Performance quick change diff, Custom prop shaft
Exterior: Custom S14 Rocket Bunny V2 kit, Fiberglass rear fenders, Fiberglass front fenders, Fiberglass boot, Fiberglass bonnet, Fiberglass front and rear bumpers , S14A Kouki original headlights, Custom vinyl wrap
Interior: Tilton pedal box top mount, Sparco wrap around race seat, Corbeau Forza Sport seat, Sabelt harness, Driftworks harness, Custom roll cage with gussets, Custom shifter
Wheels: 17” Rota GTR D wheels front, 18” Lenso D1R wheels rear, 225/45/17 GT Radial tyres front, 245/40/18 GT Radial tyres rear
Sponsors: GT Radial tyres, Dirt Nurse, Insurance Zone
Social Media:
Berserker Drifting
Instagram
Shoot location
The Rock Raceway
CHECK OUT THE PHOTO-SHOOT OF NATASHA WITH THE NISSAN SILVIA S14
NATASHA CATHERINE - NISSAN SILVIA S14 - EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW AND PICTURES