The Size Matter Series – Have You Seen It? Drifting A Semi

In March of 2011, Mike Ryan driving the Freightliner Cascadia, Pikes Peak Special took to El Toro Marine Base and tore it up. He and his 1,950 horsepower Detroit Diesel powered Freightliner Semi drifted around the base with ease. The course is setup like a Gymkhana course. Gymkhana is basically a cross between autocross and drifting. These courses can be very complex and difficult and are meant to test the skill of the driver.

Over the last couple of years, a little more than 1.8 million people have viewed the video (below). So, Ryan decided it was time for another “Gymkhana” series short film. This time, instead of partnering with the beautiful Actress and Model Melany Delorenza; Ryan’s costar is Daniel Leavitt driving his Nissan V8 powered 240SX. Ryan rented the Matson shipping lines in Long Beach for the day.

The main star in this film is still the Freightliner but this time, it has a bunch more power. The 14l Detroit Diesel features a Banks Power Super-turbo setup. The Super-Turbo has an 8.3 liter lysholm style supercharger paired with a BorgWarner S500 turbocharger. According to Banks Power, this combination makes 180 psi of boost at sea level. To keep the truck reliable, there are a while host of Banks products like water methanol on board to give the truck well over 2,000 horsepower.

One of the crowning finishing touches to this video is the jump Ryan makes with the 10,000 pound Freightliner. “We had bad weather again, plus, between homeland security and the insurance company, we almost didn’t get to do the jump,” said Gale Banks, CEO of Banks Power.