If you’re wondering how to drift in Forza Horizon 6, we don’t blame you, because the series’ latest entry is set in Japan, the home of drifting. As such, a lot of the game revolves around it, from the Drift Club missions with Jordan to the drift zone locations dotted throughout the map. And while you may be able to coast through some of the early drift sections in Forza Horizon 6 with little practice, nailing the more difficult ones will require some more advanced knowledge.
These are our top drifting tips for beginners who are looking to learn how to drift in Forza Horizon 6, so you can continue to develop your skills.
Complete the Drift Club events
First up, you should be completing all six chapters of the Drift Club with Jordan. This can be found beside the Daikoku Parking Area on the island southeast of Tokyo City. These gradually get more difficult, but earning three stars in each chapter is more forgiving than the game’s drift zones, so these chapters are excellent for practicing and seeing how capable you are at drifting right out of the gate.
Use one of the best cars for drifting
Any car can drift or be tuned to drift in Forza Horizon 6, but there are a few cars that can be considered the best drift cars. What’s even better is that most of the best choices are pretty cheap.
Use a RWD car
Rear-wheel drive cars are the most suitable for drifting. This is because you want the back end to provide the power, while the front wheels are focused solely on steering and controlling the angle. If you’re drifting in a car with a different drivetrain, check to see if you can change the drivetrain when tuning.
Toggle manual shifting
Sorry, folks: drifting is way harder if you play on automatic. Getting to grips with manual shifting can take a little while, but if you want to nail drifting, it’s pretty much a necessity. Not that you need to shift gears much while drifting, but it allows you to control your RPMs, which is crucial. You’ll rarely want to be in anything higher than third gear, fourth at a push, when drifting.
Turn off all assists
Alongside manual shifting, you also must turn off anti-lock braking, assisted steering, traction control, and stability control. All of these settings being enabled will actively work against you while drifting because they’re focused on making it easier to stay on the road and point the car in a straight line.
Use either drag or snow tires
This sounds like a nonsensical tip given the fact there are dedicated drift tires in the game, but they’re actually not the best option for drifting usually. This is because they have a slightly higher grip than what is ideal for drifting. Instead, drag and snow tires have the lowest grip on asphalt, so they allow you to slide every which way and rack up that drift score.
This may sound like a cop out tip, but learning exactly how to tune your car to focus on drifting is much more advanced than you need to think about right now. Other players will have found more optimized drifting setups and uploaded them, so all you need to do is search for the “drift” keyword when in your garage. As long as your chosen setup follows the above rules — RWD, drag or snow tires, a recommended car — chances are it’s a decent drifting build.
Ignore the racing line
If you have the driving line on — or even if you don’t, but you’re conditioned to follow it from so much racing — you need to learn to basically do the exact opposite. Drifting is all about entering a corner from the inside, drifting to the outside until the rear of your car almost clips the wall, then pulling the car back to the inside as you exit.
The e-brake is your friend
Initiating a drift is easiest when you use the e-brake, and if you feel like you’re losing the drift mid-corner, don’t be afraid to tap it again. This should allow you to alter your angle slightly and continue drifting.
Feather the throttle
You don’t want to have your foot constantly on the gas while drifting because it’ll mean you’re far more likely to spin out. Instead, as you’re decelerating into the corner, use a quick pump of the throttle to push you around the corner, then use it gingerly to carry you through to the exit.
Practice at the drag strips
Practicing on Forza Horizon 6’s busy roads can be a pain, and although there are some excellent drift zones for practicing — the Kawazu Nanadaru Loop Bridge in the southwest corner of the map is a personal favorite — you’ll find the most open space at one of the game’s three drag strips: Irokawa Quarter Mile, Ito Half Mile, and Festival Kilometer. (Alternatively, if you want to use these areas for their true purpose, make sure to bring along one of the best drag cars.)
When you have these tips nailed down, you can look to more advanced tips, such as building your own setups and drifting in a straight line. For now though, these tips should be enough to have you well on your way to completing every drift zone.
