This is a top-down single-track (bicycle) model: the front and rear tyre pairs are collapsed into one front and one rear "tyre" acting at the axle centrelines, 1.28 m ahead of and behind the centre of mass — the same wheelbase as the 3D car this page pairs with.
Each axle generates a lateral force proportional to its slip angle — the angle between where the tyre points and where it is actually travelling — up to a limit set by surface grip (μ) × the load on that axle (a friction circle: the more longitudinal force an axle is already using to accelerate or brake, the less lateral grip it has left for cornering). Push past that limit and the tyre stops tracking the steering angle and slides: that is a drift.
- Engine power scales the peak driving force available at the rear axle (this is a rear-wheel-drive kick car, like the original).
- Surface grip is the sand's friction coefficient — soft, dry sand near 0.5, firm wet hardpack near 1.1.
- Vehicle mass changes both how hard the engine can accelerate it and how much yaw inertia resists spinning, so a heavier car turns in more sluggishly but carries more momentum through a slide.
Holding the handbrake locks the rear axle's grip down to a fraction of normal, so a small steering input is enough to break rear traction and swing the tail out — exactly the same mechanic that lets the 3D version drift around the boardwalk ramps.