--- title: "The 2018 BMW M5 Pioneers Mid-Drift Refueling in World’s Longest Drift Record Attempt" description: "When an M5 meets an aerial tanker." date: "2018-01-08" modified: "2018-01-09" authors: - name: "Kyle Cheromcha" job_title: "Editor-in-Chief" link: "https://www.thedrive.com/authors/kyle-cheromcha" url: "https://www.thedrive.com/watch-this/17478/the-2018-bmw-m5-pioneers-mid-drift-refueling-in-worlds-longest-drift-record-attempt" categories: - "BMW News" - "News" - "News by Brand" - "Watch This" tags: - "AWD" - "BMW" - "Drifting" - "German Cars" - "guinness world record" - "luxury" - "M5" - "RWD" - "sedan" - "sports car" --- # The 2018 BMW M5 Pioneers Mid-Drift Refueling in World’s Longest Drift Record Attempt ![]() *\www.thedrive.com\* BMW knows that more than a few purists raised their eyebrows when it announced the [sixth-generation 2018 M5]() would be going all-wheel-drive. So to send a message and show off the sport sedan's promised rear-wheel-drive-only mode, BMW had a singular goal in mind: Using it to reclaim the record for the world's longest drift, [currently held by Toyota.]() But first, it had to figure out how to get enough gas in the car to do so. The video of the record attempt will drop on Tuesday, and chances are if BMW has gone to this much trouble promoting it, it will top the 102.5-mile, six-hour slide laid down in a Toyota 86 last year. Toyota added an extra fuel tank to the car to keep the drift going as long as possible, and as this behind-the-scenes video shows, BMW decided to one-up its Japanese rival by developing a mid-run refueling system involving a spare M5, a high-pressure hose, a spot of tandem drifting. Driving instructor Johan Schwartz set the original longest drift record back in 2013 in an F10 M5, circling a [skidpad]() for the equivalent of 51.3 miles. But Toyota sent a GT86 spinning for nearly 90 miles in 2014, eventually topping its own record with the lightly-modified 86 last year. The Guinness World Record rules also allow drivers to stop and refuel—it's technically a record for the longest distance drifted in an eight-hour period—but BMW rightly decided that would be boring, unsporting, and not nearly dangerous enough. It also didn't want to modify the new model. https://youtube.com/embed/h5IuC4WlUxU The solution is not unlike a military aircraft [refueling in flight,]() with the spare M5 carrying an extra fuel cell capable of pumping 18 gallons in 50 seconds, a specially-designed hose attachment, and a daring stuntman to lean out the car's back window and physically connect it to the world record attempt car mid-drift. How well did it work? We'll all find out Tuesday morning. ## Author Overseeing an expert staff of writers and editors from his lair in Los Angeles, Kyle shapes The Drive’s singular approach to covering the automotive industry and car culture. He’s been with the site as a writer since 2017, taking over as editor in 2019. On a daily basis, Kyle is responsible for directing The Drive's editorial news and car review content strategies, setting special coverage priorities, managing complex reporting projects, and ensuring what you read on the page meets our high internal standards for quality and trustworthiness. He is also the executive producer of The Drive's YouTube channel, which was relaunched in February 2024 to great acclaim and has accumulated over 14M new views in its first year back on the scene. He hosts a biweekly series on the channel where he breaks down fascinating and complicated stories from the automotive world. ### Author social links [Bluesky]() [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]()