1. Preparation

• Time needed: 5-30 minutes
• Tools needed : Surface cleaning, cable cutters, measureing tape
• Materials needed: Few cable ties, race tape / various tape, DriftBit kit.
• Skills needed: Basic car knowledge

Every car is different, and each install of DriftBit is unique. A good install of the product will enable you to get the best performance our of your DriftBit. The install is quite simple and straightforward.

Make sure your car is in a safe, parked area.

1. Antenna install

DriftBit uses 2 highly sensitive, highly accurate GPS antennas to determine your Drift angle. They need a clear, unobstructed view of the sky. The more sky they see, the better they perform.

For DriftBit to function correctly, these GPS antennae need to “see” a certain number of GPS satellites (20) to be able to perform its calculations.   If the antennas cant see the right amount of satellites then your DriftBit will not display an accurate Drift Angle. Following this guide will enable your DriftBit the best possible setup for maximum satellite visability.

DriftBit antennas perform best when mounted on a metallic surface, such as a metal body panel. If your vehicle uses composite body panels (such as fiberglass or Carbon fiber) where you are going to mount your antenna, then you’ll need a metalic pad to 1st mount to the surface (such as the DriftBit Antenna pads).

Antennas should have AT LEAST 50mm (5cm) of the metal surface surrounding the antenna. Give the antenna some metal all around it.

-Install your atennas, either using Setup1, or Setup2.

Make sure the antennas are in the center of the vehicle. Use your measuring tape to help acheive this.

For best results, use SETUP 1. We have found this setup performs the best and most consistently given all weather / satellite conditions. If you chose to use “setup2”, and find your drift data is not correct, change your setup, to “setup 1″. 

Tip – If you have poor results using “setup1”, move Antenna 2, forwards to the front of the car before switching to “setup1”.

The antennas have a magnet & 3m adheasive to mount to the surface of your vehicle. The adheasive is VERY strong. Cut the edges of the adhesive backing and use limited amounts of the adhesive backing if you do not want to have a semi-perminate install. 

Note* The 3m adheavise can also be completely removed, which makes the magnet work considerably better.

Note** To remove an antenna that has been completely stuck down with the 3m adheasive, use a heatgun and fishhing line- (slide it underneath to break the adheasive bond).

-Once your antenna are fixed into place, you need to run the cables into the cabin. You do NOT want to “Pinch” the wires between a door/ boot seal. Run cables through factory body grommets.

On our 370z, we ran the rear / Anttenna  1 cable through the rear window washer sprayer hole, then through the factory grommet. Drift Cars dont need clear rear windows :p

Antenna 2 cable was run along the front window sil, then down the passenger side, into the engine bay, then into the cabin using the factory ECU grommet.

Tip* putting racetape down inbetween the glass seal makes a good system to hold the antenna cable neatly into the glass seal. (as per pic)

Tip* Another “tweak” to improve your setup is to mount the antenna’s wire in the same direction.

Tip* The antenna can be stuck down with tape on its side for a temparary install.

Tip* The antenna and the cable can be LIGHTLY painted / wrapped to match your vehicles paint.

2. Unit Install

The DriftBit unit needs to be mounted so it can reach the antenna cables, and power.

On our 370z, we mounted the unit to the rear factory brace. Lots of Drifters mount theirs to their rollcage.

-When mounting to something rigid/ solid – use the provided foam behind the unit, so you’re not mouting directly to a rigid surface.

The DriftBit unit has tabs with slots to alow you to cable tie or screw the unit down. In our 370z, we’re using cable ties.

-Once your unit is mounted, run the cables to it.

Antenna 1 (REAR) cable end is screwed (Finger tight is ok!) into the ANT1 port

Antenna 2 (FRONT) cable end is screwed (Finger tight is ok!) into the ANT2 port

Run the power cable into the power port of the unit. Powering the unit is explained in the next section.

Coil any excess cable neatly, with no smaller then 100mm (10cm) coils, and cable tie it neatly out of the way.

Note* DO NOT knot, crush, or over tension the cable. 

Finally, secure all cables. We used cable ties for this.

4. Power

DriftBit is powered by a standard USB output. 5v, 3amp MAX.

**NOTE** The DriftBit unit has a small battery inbuilt, which will keep the unit on for 5-15 seconds in case you spin and neeed to crank your engine (which turns off accessory power)

You can provide this power a number of ways:

1. Your Car’s inbuilt USB power port
2. An external battery pack (such as the Battleist pack found here)
3. 12v to 5v converter cable powered of your car’s cigarette port (such as the Battleist cable found here)
4. 12v to 5v converter cable wired into your car’s 12v source  (such as the Battleist cable here) (cut the cigarette plug off)

In our 370z, we used the Battleist 12v to 5v USB converter cable, and ran that into the DriftBit.

Once the unit is powered, you should see the LED status liights turn on. This indicates a successful power up.