It’s no secret at CorkSport we love our cars, and we love working with customers who feel the same way about theirs. That shared enthusiasm is a huge part of CorkSport; it’s something we look for whenever we bring on a new team member. The love of Mazdas was immediately evident when we first met Luke McCarvel, and we’re thrilled to announce he’s the latest member of CorkSport!
Since you may talk with or meet him in the coming months, we asked him to go ahead and write a little introduction—and show off his Mazdaspeed 3, pictured here, with his message below.
Hi, CorkSport community! My name is Luke McCarvel and I’m the newest member of the CorkSport team! I’ve been a part of the speed community for a little over two years now and I couldn’t be any happier with the opportunity I’ve had to meet great people and have lots of fun.
A little bit about my car: It’s a 2009 true red Mazdaspeed 3 with full bolt-ons. All of the work I’ve done myself, and it has been quite satisfying. I’m a track rat and any chance I get to push the platform further is a chance I’m willing to take.
I am very excited to be a part of this team and look forward to the new journey I am starting with some awesome people and awesome customers. I can’t wait to see what the future holds and how I can help people achieve their goals with their cars!!
Cheers.
Meet Luke McCarvel, the Newest Member of Our CorkSport Team! November 4th, 2015Derrick Ambrose
After countless hours designing, testing, and adjusting, we released our drop-in turbo for the Mazdaspeed, and we’re very proud of it—and thrilled about the responses we’ve already received from our beta testers. (See the first reviews on the listing.)
Obviously, with a product this big, we wanted to inform our CorkSport customers as much as possible about the advantages of our turbo vs. the OEM and competitors, and how much power buyers could expect to gain.
Barett wrote a huge white paper on the turbocharger, detailing all of this. From the benefit of a drop-in (no new coolant lines, oil lines, or a intake system are required to install and operate it) to the details of a turbocharger’s anatomy, you can read all about what makes our turbo stand apart.
Our goal was to create a performance-driven turbocharger that wouldn’t break your bank or require a mechanical engineering degree to install. We’re happy to say we succeeded, but see for yourself.
Thank you for over two years of being awesome customers and making my job incredible! If you haven’t heard yet, I’ll be leaving CorkSport on May 19th to pursue my next dream, which is exciting, and sad. After more than two years of being at CorkSport I have learned so much and worked with thousands of incredible customers!
With that said, I wanted to leave you all with a giant thanks, and some things I have learned:
1: Mazda has the most Zoom-Zoom
During my time here, I got to work on, drive, and chat about everything from Mazda 323 GTXs to 2018 Mazdaspeed 3s! Throughout the years of different cars, models, and generations, what I’ve learned is that Mazda really does know how to make some of the MOST FUN cars available. Not only do they make some of the best cars to drive, but they do it at a reasonable price and with incredible reliability (typically….. I’m looking at you timing chain…..). Whether you want cheap cornering (Miata MX-5), high-power (Mazdaspeed 3/6), rally car fun (323 GTX), continual 9000rpm buzzing (RX7/RX8), or need a family hauler that handles better than most sedans (Mazda 5/CX-5), Mazda had/has an option for you. Plus, with their latest generations you can get some of the most refined, practical, fuel efficient, and best handling cars around!
2: CorkSport has the best coworkers
A lot of people I talk to seem to just gripe and whine about their coworkers. Not me, I feel lucky to have hung out every day with awesome coworkers who love cars, love Mazda, and are genuinely cool people. “Business” trips with coworkers meant that not only was I flying to hang out with dozens of awesome customers, watch Mazda drag races, track days, and car shows, but also that I got to share some great beers with my coworkers in the airport and laugh during car rides. On top of these perks, I know that my coworkers would (and have) spot me cash for lunch on a regular basis, watch each other’s dogs when we were on vacation, borrow each other’s cars just for the heck of it, and throw regular Christmas, summer, Soup Cook-Off, and just regular hang out parties.
3: CorkSport has the best perks
I got to drive a Mazdaspeed, I got to work on engines, I got to talk to other car nuts, and I got paid to do it! On top of that I had great job benefits (retirement + medical and stuff) and a CEO and environment that cared about pushing me toward personal growth. CorkSport has an awesome work environment. Every month we have personal development meetings as a whole company where we would discuss things like Success Magazine articles, share self-help books (7 Habits of Highly Effective People), or participate in team-building exercises. We even had personal life coaches for awhile! As if that wasn’t enough, we often had “OPTO FUN” breaks. These could be anything from surprise ice cream breaks for everyone, to foosball tournaments, RC Car Racing, or games of Charades in the middle of the day….. that we got paid for! Talk about FUN!
4: CorkSport has the Best Customers
Everyday at CorkSport I was privileged to deal with dozens of car enthusiasts. From picking up the phone and talking to someone about their brand new Mazdaspeed 3, to writing 50 emails back and forth to the same customer about their entire process, to turning wrenches with customers at install days, I got to help, hang out with, and chat with the car guys that shared the same thing as me…. a love of their Mazda. Over the course of two years I answered over 20,000 emails from you guys, spent over a month straight on the phone (close to 950 cumulative hours), and broken several knuckles while wrenching with you. I consider that all great, but even better, I was able to attend several Mazda Meets and meet hundreds of you face to face, go-kart with you, drag race with you, drink with you, eat with you, and mostly, share our love of cars with you.
So thanks! Thanks for being the best damned customers in the whole world!
See you around, and stay Zoom-Zoomy.
Cheers,
Spencer@CorkSport
Goodbye CorkSport Customers! Thank You! May 18th, 2015Derrick Ambrose
We love driving Mazdas, but taking and sharing awesome shots of Mazdaspeeds, Miatas, and every other Mazda is the next best thing.
One of the best parts of our job is seeing so many sick rides from our customers, and we wanted to share a few of our favorite Instagram accounts. Are we missing any? If you want to be featured in the future, or in our Instagram Pic of the Day, tag us and use the #CorkSport hashtag.
We’ve seen rumors about the next Mazdaspeed float around for the past two years on a consistent basis. The only thing more consistently seen is the question of when it will arrive.
This year?
Next year?
Next decade?
Recent reports have stated that the 2015 Frankfurt Auto show (which takes place in September) is going to have the concept of the all-new Mazdaspeed 3.
If so, this could be our first glimpse at the next generation of our favorite turbo Mazda! I wouldn’t hold your breath for too much info, though. Whether a new MS3 will debut or not, this will probably just be a concept car for eye candy. I would expect details on the car to be at least another year out.
In the meantime, we still believe the rumors that the next generation Mazdaspeed 3 should be soon. Stats like 300hp, AWD, hatchback, and a price tag of about $30,000-$35,000 get thrown around a lot. Mazda will probably use the 2.5L SkyActiv engine, which could be fantastic since that would mean placing a turbo on a current 2.5L SkyActiv would not only be possible, but hopefully relatively simple.
Let’s all hope for the best, and maybe we will see a concept and more info in September!
Stay Tuned!
-Spencer
*Prices reflect the current pricing at the time of the blog writing
Could We Have a NEW Mazdaspeed This Year? December 17th, 2018Derrick Ambrose
