Keiichi Tsuchiya

Drift legend · Japan

Keiichi Tsuchiya driving the TRD AE86 N2 at Tsukuba, onboard-style action shot

Lightweight rhythm before horsepower theatre.

The human bridge between touge mythology, AE86 worship, instructional media and drift becoming a visible driving language.

Tsuchiya started as a touring-car driver in the late 1970s and was campaigning a Toyota AE86 Levin in Japanese GT racing when he began running the same chassis after-hours on Mt. Akagi, Mt. Haruna and the Gunma touge network. The driving style he used, sliding the car through every corner instead of trying to grip, wasn't called drift yet. It was called "Tsuchiya driving".

In 1987 he released the underground VHS series "Pluspy", long-form touge footage of him drifting the AE86. The tapes circulated hand to hand across Japan, made him an outlaw in the official motorsport community for a moment, and turned him into the original drift media figure. The Drift King nickname followed.

He was a co-founder of D1 Grand Prix in 2000, the first formal Japanese drift series. Today he still appears at Goodwood Festival of Speed and Toyota Gazoo Racing events in the TRD AE86 N2, the AE86 still tied to him forty years later. Every modern professional drifter under fifty has either watched his Pluspy tapes or been taught by someone who did.

At a glance

  • Role: Origin myth
  • Region: Japan

Career highlights

  • 1977: GT debut, Toyota AE86 Levin. Begins running the Levin in Japanese touring-car series. The "Tsuchiya driving" style starts to form.
  • 1987: Pluspy VHS release. The underground touge tapes that exported drift as a discipline. The Drift King title follows.
  • 2000: D1 Grand Prix co-founder. Helps formalise the first Japanese pro drift series. Codifies judging criteria still in use.

Signature cars

Video

Source: Goodwood Road & Racing