Additional things to note:

You probably know this, but to begin a drift optimally, you want to quickly let go of accelerate, tap brake, and reapply and hold accelerate, in that order.

I forgot to mention that it is OK to feather the gas on and off during the final difficult S-Turn at the end of Palm Beach (the reset heavy area with traffic). It can be used as a last resort to adjust your position if you feel like you don't have the correct line and may crash.

Playing on an Xbox vs Xbox 360: You can still play just fine on a 360 (in most instances) but you will have to put up with several annoyances: It is recommended to play on an original Xbox when possible.

-Performance issues with dropped frames. It isn't a deal breaker but can be noticeable. -Varies, but some 360's will have loading issues when transitioning from one stage to the next (like the level pops into view at the last second). -Annoying audio glitch. Your engine sound will start to persist between attempts, so you will hear a droning sound during loading, menus and gameplay. The only way to fix it is to exit to the dashboard.

Lastly, the game menu's are in 4:3, but the actual gameplay is 16:9, so it is suggested to play in 16:9 widescreen (stretch your TV aspect ratio) and it may improve your ability to play.

Remember to practice in time trial mode too if you find that easier. It won't teach you how to avoid traffic but you may get a better feel for how to make the turns then take what you leared into OutRun mode.