Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again

Photography by Larry Chen

It has been three years since we last visited the famed Pikes Peak International Hill Climb (PPIHC) with this Toyota 86 racer. In the time since, Evasive Motorsports has been busy buttoning up the chassis with more power, a new driver, and a new partnership. Avid readers will remember late last year during time attack competition at Road Atlanta when we highlighted what changed on the car since its 2016 climb.

Well, the Race to the Clouds has come and gone again. Despite qualifying second in its class behind the BBI Autosport Porsche GT3 Cup car entry this year, the ENEOS/Evasive Motorsports Toyota 86—piloted by former Formula DRIFT champion Daijiro Yoshihara—unfortunately suffered a mechanical failure before completing the climb again. It’s truly heartbreaking for the team, considering the strong pace the car achieved during the testing sessions.

Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again

With 156 turns laid out over the course of 12.42 miles, PPIHC is one of the most grueling climbs in the world, and challenges not only the focus and skill of drivers, but also the torture that a car can withstand. Battling randomly changing weather conditions, ever-increasing altitude, and rapidly depleting atmosphere this climb to the 14,115-foot summit of Pikes Peak is the ultimate test of man and machine.

We caught up with Mike Chang, CEO and co-founder of Evasive Motorsports, to talk about his emotions during this year’s Hill Climb, and what went wrong when their entry suffered defeat to the mountain once again…

Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again

Front Street Media: When did the idea to climb Pikes Peak again in 2019 initially come to mind?

Mike Chang, Evasive Motorsports: Last year, casually talking to Dai about it and how it would be a challenge for both him as a driver and us as a team, and it took off from there.

FSM: When did you actually decide it was happening?

MC: I would say probably after SEMA it was kind of on our mind, but nothing was solidified. We didn’t have all of the pieces come together yet, but by early this year ENEOS approached us with a serious offer, and we sat down with Dai to do it.

FSM: Why bring on Dai Yoshihara as the driver?

MC: Dai is a capable driver. Also, he is our good friend, and together we’ve had success in time attack in the past, so it was a great match.

Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again

FSM: What has changed on the car since we featured it at Road Atlanta?

MC: It has a new turbo, and a brand new engine now. The previous engine—the one we ran for Atlanta—is completely fine, but this new one has basically zero miles. So brand-new block, stroker, and then the head, we did some extra work to it. The valve seats are beryllium seats, so that allows us to rev the car much higher and safer. So basically, from top to bottom was completely new and refreshed. We didn’t want to chance it with the used engine.

FSM: What was the most significant change to the car since its last trip up the mountain?

MC: Not too many parts have changed; it’s more on the tuning side. The turbo and engine are new, but a lot has been done to the suspension and aero tuning. We did do some shock adjustments, as far as changing the canister pressure, and the ride height settings. And then the aero was all pretty minor, but we added louvers to the fenders and more venting on the hood.

FSM: What kind of preparations did the team and car go through leading up to the hill climb this year?

MC: We went to Buttonwillow a few times, Big Willow, and Horse Thief Mile. So four to five of those testing sessions and the official Pikes test days.

Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again

FSM: Walk me through your feelings once the car drove through the starting gate on Sunday.

MC: I was anxious and nervous. You never know what happens once the car leaves the starting line. There is always the possibility of something going wrong no matter how much preparation was done beforehand.

FSM: What happened to the car in the Devil’s Playground zone of the mountain?

MC: Something in the rearend let go. We don’t know exactly what yet, but I have a pretty good idea of what happened. What it is, is that the rear differential assembly, it’s not robust enough.

FSM: How do you go about diagnosing why the failure happened?

MC: For drifting, people have used the same FR-S rear without much issue, but I think with the sequential, the slicks, and the overall load we have on all the components—everything else is beefed up. The engine, transmission, driveshaft, the axles are all very beefy, but the last thing that got upsized or increased in capacity is the rear differential. At the same time it’s just kind of bad luck, because if it would have went out on us in any of the testing, then we would have known to address that problem. But unfortunately that wasn’t the case, so it had to happen on race day.

Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again Return Of The Mack: Evasive Motorsports’ 86 Races To The Clouds Again

FSM: What went through your mind when you finally got word that the mountain won yet another year?

MC: Disappointment, but we knew we did our best. Luck just was not on our side this year. We are also wholly saddened at the life that was lost. RIP Carlin Dunne.

FSM: Who helps to make it possible for your team to pursue this challenge?

MC: All of our sponsors: ENEOS, Turn 14 Distribution, Yokohama Tires, Garrett Motion, Stoptech, EVS Tuning, GReddy, Sparco USA, APR Performance, MotoIQ, Gran Turismo, Ignition Projects, and all that supported us along the way!

ENEOS/Evasive Motorsports Toyota 86

Engine:3.4L 2JZGTE non-VVTi, Brian Crower Forged lightweight stroker crank, JE Pistons Forged Asymmetric 11.0:1 Pistons, Carrillo H-Beam Rods, Titan Motorsports Billet Main Caps, Brian Crower Adjustable Cam Gears, GSC Power S2 Cams, GSC Power +1mm Intake and Exhaust Valves, GSC Power Springs, retainers, valve seals, ETS Twinscroll T4 Turbo Manifold, Garrett GTX3598R T4 Turbo with 1.01 and 1.15A/R, Turbosmart WG60 wastegate, ENEOS 15w50 Racing Oil, Greddy custom 4-inch Race Downpipe Exhaust (fender exit), Greddy custom wastegate dump tubes, Greddy V-Mount Intercooler, Injector Dynamics 2000cc Injectors, Radium Fuel Surge Tank, ATL Well Cell 12-gallon Fuel Cell, Holley HydraMat11x11 and 15x8 cross, Koyo Oil Cooler, Canton Accusump, Design Craft Alternator relocator
Drivetrain:Samsonas 6-speed Sequential Gearbox, Tilton Triple Plate Clutch, Titan Motorsports Flywheel, Tilton Hydraulic Throwout Bearing, Custom Aluminum Driveshaft, Driveshaft Shop axles, Greddy Rear Differential Cover, OS Giken1.5-way differential, Revolution 4.785 Final Ring and Pinion Gears (WPC Treated), Tilton differential pump and Greddy oil cooler
Suspension:KW Suspensions 3-way Competition coilovers, Wisefab Grip type front and rear suspension kit (Front knuckles, control arms, tie rods, top mounts, rear knuckles, control arms), GT Spec rear subframe reinforcement bar, Whiteline 22mm 2-pt adjustable front sway bar, Whiteline 18mm 3-pt adjustable rear sway bar, Whiteline adjustable end links, Evasive Motorsports Corner balance and Race Spec alignment
Wheels/Tires:Yokohama Wheel Advan Racing GT in Racing White (Front 18x11 +15, Rear 18x12 +20), Yokohama Tire (Dry, Wet, Rain), Project Kics Ti64 Titanium lug nuts, Project Kics PCD conversion spacers, StopTech Trophy Race Big Brake kit with Endurance Race Pads Front and Rear, Stoptech Brake Fluid, Tilton Hanging Pedal box and master cylinders, Custom front brake scoops

Chassis:Evasive Motorsports Custom Weld-in Cage, GT Spec front 4-point brace, GT Spec front fender brace, GT Spec front lower subframe reinforcement, GT Spec rear lower T-brace, Evasive Motorsports custom front tow hook, Sparco rear tow hook
Exterior:Rocket Bunny Widebody kit, Rocket Bunny custom front over fenders +30mm, APR Performance Front Bumper, APR Performance Front Splitter Custom by EVS Tuning, APR Performance carbon fiber side skirts, APR Performance wind deflector, APR Performance GT1000 rear wing, EVS Tuning Custom Rear Diffuser, EVS Tuning GTLM Mirrors, TRD Fender Wing, TRD rear stabilizing cover, Seibon dry carbon hood*, Seibon dry carbon roof, Seibon dry carbon doors*, Seibon dry carbon trunk, Plastics 4 Performance lexan side windows
Interior:Sparco PRO-ADV Seat, Sparco Steering Wheel, Sparco 6-point HANS compatible belts, Sparco Helmet, VAC Motorsports Seat Mounts, Motec C165 Display, Motec M130 ECU, Motec PDM, Liteblox lithium Ion Battery, Custom rear bulk head panel, Fire Extinguisher x 2

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