You Won't Believe Who's Drifting This 500-HP Datsun 1200 Coupe

The art of drifting can be brutal to master, but a teenager from North of London makes drifting look easy, and his go-to is a classic Datsun 1200 Coupe, also known as the Nissan Sunny, powered by Nissan's famous engine, the SR20.

Renowned LA-based car photographer Larry Chen talked to the drifter kid named Archie Sugar-Harmer at an LZ Fest. British Pro Drifter Archie is 17 years old (16 years old in the video) and doesn't even have a driver's license yet.

But he is already running alongside drifting icons like three-time Formula Drift champion James Deane.

Archie started drifting when he turned 13. Drifting isn't his first motorsport stint, however. He went the go-karting route at the age of eight. But with the expensive cost of karting and the politics behind it, much like Formula 1, he had to leave the sport before finding himself in the seat of a drift car.

His drift car is believed to be a 1971 model of the Datsun 1200 Coupe GX, which has evolved to become the Nissan Sentra we know today. As mentioned earlier, the car runs a 2.0-liter SR20 engine, and Archie estimated the power unit produces around 500 horsepower.

The trunk is one of the most excellent features of this Datsun 1200 build. It can automatically open whenever the engine needs more air for cooling. The car also features clean exterior and interior finishes, as Archie and his dad want to use the vehicle for drifting and as a show car.

Speaking of the interior, the car has a full roll cage, Bride seats, a fire extinguisher, carbon fiber door panels, and a carbon dashboard. There's also an IRP shifter, which is something Chen uses. Chen also runs an SR20 engine in his 240Z, which took 20 years to complete.

As for Archie, his car will be a BMW E36 3 Series once he gets his driver's license. Hopefully, one day, we will see him climb the ranks and enter major drifting series such as Formula D.