Ask the Expert | CorkSport Mazda Performance Blog

November 30, 2017April 24, 2021

Winterize – Dear Car Guy

Dear Car Guy,

It’s beginning to look a lot like WINTER, and for those of us who aren’t so lucky to have a daily driver, it’s time to start to winterize our Mazdas.

If you’re not one of those who put their Mazda baby to sleep for the long winter months, check out the tips below to best prepare for winter driving, and keeping yourself safe!

CHECK YOUR TIRES!

• Consider getting snow tires. If you live in an area that gets a lot of snow, swap out your regular tires for all-season tires or snow tires. Seems obvious, but snow tires have a softer rubber that allows them to retain flexibility in the coldest of weather. They also have specifically-designed tread pattern for gripping in ice and snow. They aren’t guaranteed to keep you from slipping and sliding in your car, but they help with better traction. (In winter, any extra help to keep us from losing control of our Mazdas)

• Check the tire pressure. If you’re not opting for winter tires, check your tires often and keep them properly inflated, however this is needed for all tire types. Cold weather changes the air pressure in your tires and causes it to drop (No, it’s not the local kids deflating your tires… I’ve fallen for that one before). Remember that properly inflated tires keep better contact with the road, and while you can’t always keep from slipping, you can do your best to have more connection to the pavement.

• Check the security of your mudflaps. Mudflaps can help keep road debris from killing your paint, be sure yours are securely installed on your ride for maximum protection. If you don’t have them yet, we can hook you up with a fresh set of mudflaps here.

CHECK YOUR FLUIDS AND ENGINE!

• Fill your wiper fluid and change out your blades. Remember that seeing the road is a requirement to staying on it! An ample supply of wiper fluid and new blades will give you a good line of sight in those nasty winter storms. Be sure to use the wiper fluid that has a lower freezing temperature. Otherwise, you’ll be trying to clear your windshield and failing.

• Get an oil change. For your Mazda’s engine to run, it needs the correct oil lubrication. Unfortunately, colder temperatures reduce the effectiveness of the oil. The colder it is outside, the thicker the oil gets. Thickened oil has trouble circulating through your engine, which means your engine doesn’t get appropriately lubricated during startup. Check the owner’s manual to see what oil is currently used in your Mazda, as well as, the recommended viscosity (thickness of the oil) level for different climates.

• Check your anti-freeze mixture. The ratio of your water to anti-freeze mixture should be 50:50 to prevent your radiator coolant from freezing. If you’re unsure, your local auto parts store should have a relatively cheap anti-freeze tester.

• Check your belts and hoses. Colder temperatures potentially weaken the belts and hoses. Look for signs of wear, and replace if needed. In the scenario that a belt snaps while you’re driving, you’ll have to wait for a tow truck, or that trusted buddy to get you out of the cold.

PROTECT YOUR CAR!

• Remove vulnerable exterior mods. Exterior modifications like front lips, custom wheels, and any other exterior bolt-ons that you cherish should be removed. The elements will take their toll on your car, even if it’s parked in the garage at night. From salt on the roads to new potholes you can’t see in the rain, keeping these beloved mods in the garage for the season will preserve your investment.

• Install floor mats. If you don’t already have floor mats in your ride, putting them in the front and back of the car will help keep your interior carpet pristine. Floor mats are easier to clean and can be removed to wash if the mud or snow gets too intense. Click here to check out our CS floor mats.

• Secure your Seat Covers. If you don’t have them, winter is the best time to use them! If you do, make sure that you have them securely installed. The wet from rain and snow isn’t great for the interior and seats. They’re also great for protecting your back and passenger seats from corners of boxes or crockpots of chili while carting presents and food from place to place.

PROTECT YOURSELF!

• Stock your car with emergency supplies. This is one that my dad never let me leave home without. Snacks, blankets, towels, waters, and emergency/first aid kit should be in your trunk during the winter seasons (if it’s not always in there). You never know where or when you might get stranded during winter, and if it’s for longer than expected being prepared is key! Also, the towel is great for kids, passengers, and pets who might be a little muddy or wet from the weather.

Note here from CorkSport: Keeping spare cash in your emergency kit can often help if you’re financially strapped and need to pay for a tow. It could save your butt one day (I know it has saved mine in emergencies!).

• Check your emergency supplies. Road flares, jumper cables, and first aid supplies should be checked for expiration and usability. Road flares do not always have expiration dates. However, the summer months with high heat can sometimes render them unusable (storage above 120 degrees for longer than a week should be avoided), as well as they could be expired if you got your kit for Christmas from Grandma a few years ago.

Whether you’re driving a Mazdaspeed 3, Mazdaspeed 6, or you’re riding around in a Mazda 3 or Mazda 6, we hope that you use our tips to keep yourself safer this winter!

We also sincerely hope that you’re not trying to weather any storms in a Miata or MX5… our Mazda enthusiasts are awesome, but that’s just a different level of crazy!

Anyone else have some good tips or tricks for winter driving in your Mazda or Mazdaspeed?

Share your thoughts or tips in the comments; I am sure we could all use them!

Wishing you safety, warmth, and clear weather this winter!

Cheers,
Kim@CorkSport

November 16, 2017April 10, 2024

Luke’s Build: My Mazdaspeed 3 Journey

Hello CorkSport family!

I have been thinking about how much my Mazdaspeed3 has gone through in the past couple weeks; I figured I would allow all of my CS crew to enjoy the look back on my journey with me!

2009 Mazdaspeed 3 GT. Mods include:

Built engine	CorkSport Mazdaspeed intake manifold	CorkSport short shifter
Turbo back exhaust	CorkSport MAP sensor	Cobb AccessPort
CorkSport Mazdaspeed big turbo	CorkSport EBCS	CorkSport adjustable strut/shock/ spring combo
CorkSport heat shields	CorkSport FMIC	Drag bags
CorkSport 3.5” intake	AEM methanol injection kit	Purple Drank Tuned on 92 pump and 92/methanol

I have always had a love for cars, due to my dad always owning some sort of sporty car throughout my childhood. My love of cars started because my dad would let me control the steering wheel in our BMW 318i while cruising on the freeway. That continued as I got older, and as my dad bought faster cars, and of course as I was allowed to start learning to drive.

My very first boosted car was a 2003 Mini Cooper S.

The Mini Cooper S in that year came standard with a 1.6 liter, inline four cylinders, with a supercharger on roughly ten pounds of boost stock. As soon as I bought the car, I was instantly hooked, and had a need and desire for more power. In the time that I owned the Mini, I was able to do a few modifications to it, including: 15% reduction pulley on the supercharger, cold air intake, upgraded top mount intercooler, and a catback exhaust. Those modifications bumped the boost up to about 15psi. For what the car was, it was pretty quick. I owned the car for about three years, and along the way, the car started to have small issues here and there, and eventually, it was time to part ways with the Mini.

When I went looking for my next car, I test drove a 2005 Subaru WRX. Let’s just say that I didn’t know what was best for me at the time.

I took the WRX home to let the girlfriend see it, and instantly got a “HELL NO!” The interior was too basic, and the mileage was pretty high for the price the dealership was asking. I took the car back the next morning and looked around some more.

All of sudden there she was, my Mazdaspeed.

The car showed up overnight, and as soon as I saw it, I had to drive it. I called the girlfriend, and instantly got a NO NO NO. I told her this car was different, and that I thought she would like this one. Took the Mazdaspeed3 home, grabbed the girlfriend, took her for a test drive and got the approval (I know I sound a little whipped here… but, I knew it was going to be more than just a car, so having her approval meant it would be easier in the future when I asked for more). I signed the paperwork, and took the car home. When I acquired the Mazda, it was pretty much stock. It had a short ram intake, and a downpipe installed, other than that it was mine to build and enjoy.

Fast forward about six months, and I had decide to buy a Cobb AccessPort after reading all of the forums. I did that to make sure I could monitor certain things like knock and fuel pressure. Two essential things to keep an eye on. While I was reading the forums, I noticed that people kept bringing up making sure you had your fuel pump internals upgraded. I had no idea if mine had been done. The only thing I knew was my fuel pressure never dropped below 1600psi under wide open throttle. Bought the internals, and sure enough, I had stock ones in there still. After that happened, the modding bug took full effect. Soon enough, the car was fully bolted running e85 for all of the timings. Tuned by Purple Drank, the car went 12.8 @ 110mph in the 1320. I was impressed with the stock turbo at this point and considered my car to be “fast.” Little did I realize there was much more to be had.

I landed the job at CorkSport, and as you can imagine, the car almost instantly got a turbo upgrade.

I kept running the stock block but decided to no longer run e85, and just run pump and methanol. Using the additional fueling, the car made 400whp and 400wtq. My tuner even warned me that I was dancing with the devil at this point. I cared, but not as much as someone else because I secretly wanted a built engine anyways. Took the car to the track one night, and sure enough, on the last run, the car blew a quarter size hole in piston 3. I knew I had a chance of ring land failure, and it failed hard! I guess that meant it was time for a built engine right?

So it was, I decided to rebuild the engine with forged Manley goodness. I had beat the crap out of my MS3 so why not?

I put the car back together towards the end of 2016, slapped the CorkSport turbo on and started the break in/ tuning process. Once the engine was fully broken in, it was time to turn up the boost. Ryan Martin, at Purple Drank Tuning, was excited to give me more power than I had ever had before. The car was making 25psi of boost at 3500rpm, and on the top end, the car was making right around 420whp. Impressive turbo, considering it’s not the biggest snail, but on a built engine it sure packs a wallop.

As more time went by, the more my coworker Brett kept saying that I needed to be way faster than him if I was going to have a built engine. I should have just ignored him, but I caved into the peer pressure and bought a used Gt3582r!

I should have just stuck with the CorkSport turbo; only a couple months later, this turbo decided to destroy its oil seals and turn my car into a diesel truck.

So what am I currently running you may ask??

The new CS Mazdaspeed CST6 prototype turbo may be a thing of our future, but for now it’s keeping me going. Some of you may have seen its development posted in places on Facebook, for some of you this might be the first time. Check out this beauty though! Still in testing phases, but results are looking good! The current plan is to finish the pump gas tune, and then turn on the meth and see what the turbo will do.

Mazdaspeed 3 Turbo Upgrade 600 WHP Turbo better than garrettt turbo

I have owned my Mazdaspeed3 for a little over four years.

When I first bought the Mazda, I thought it was the fastest car ever. Now I look back on those days and think how slow the car actually was. I have put back-breaking hard work into making my car as fast as it is today. It really just goes to show you that hard work and dedication allows you to reach your goals with your car.

For all of the Mazda Enthusiasts out there, it doesn’t matter where you are with your build, just stick with it.

At some point, you will reach the goal you have been working towards (or find that you have new goals once those are reached). I know this because I have done it! If anyone reading this ever has any questions, feel free to contact me at CorkSport! Until next time!

Cheers,

Luke

November 14, 2017April 26, 2023

Kill The Nannies – How to Overcome Mazda’s Safety Measures for Racing

Nannies. One thing we have discovered while racing our Mazda 3 is that the OEM safety systems in the newest generation of Mazda 3 work well, too well in fact for racing.

Each year, new safety features are added by Mazda which make the cars safer and reduces the risk of collisions. This is great for day-to-day driving and commuting, but it presents a problem if you plan to take your car to the track to race it.

The OEM system in the car really frowns on lifting a rear tire off the ground, or when you get wheel spin accelerating out of a slow-speed corner. They design the cars against these things happening for safety purposes (understandably). However, Mazda does give you a button on your dash to turn off the traction control. This gets us racers around the limitations to a certain degree.

Let me explain:

When you disengage traction control, the system which measures yaw/pitch and ensures your car has all the wheels on the ground is actually still working, even with the button off. What the button does essentially is give you a sort of leash with more leeway, until the computer thinks you have gone too far of course, then it will kick in traction control again.

So, how do we get past these nanny systems so we can push our cars for maximum performance?

Can you simply unplug the computer which controls the this? I wish it were that simple, but you cannot. The systems in the car are all tied to each other, and the car may not start, it may not run safely, or it may run in a limp mode. A good example of this in our 2015 Mazda3 is: if you unplug the rearview mirror the car won’t start. The ABS is also controlled by the same unit, and this is very handy to have on the track. The ABS is very good in the Mazda3 by the way, so I recommend you keep it.

The solution we’ve come up with at CorkSport is pretty simple: Leave the computer plugged in and turn it over.

That’s it, simple, nothing else is required. What happens when you turn the computer upside down is the computer loses its physical reference point, so it defaults by turning off the stability control and nannies, but most-importantly, the ABS still functions.

A big word of caution: The computer which controls the nannies also runs the airbags. If you race your car on the track, the airbags will have been removed from your car already. DO NOT drive your airbag-equipped car with the module flipped over.

The reason this solution works for the track is that our Mazda 3 race car has additional safety equipment installed, with the 6-point harness and halo seat, along with the rest of the driver’s safety gear, that keep you from injury in the event of any wrecks.

FYI: When using this “hack”, your Mazda 3 dashboard will light up like a Christmas tree from all of the warnings; but that is a small price to pay for the improved performance while racing.

–Derrick

DISCLAIMER: This modification is for racing purposes ONLY. Doing so will render many of your car’s safety systems ineffective. Installing other safety systems after this modification is essential.

November 7, 2017November 27, 2017

2018 Mazda 3 CBR – Transmission Modes Comparison

If you didn’t know already, CorkSport recently bought a brand new 2018 Mazda 3 Hatchback Touring Model… with an automatic transmission.

Yes, I know, a performance aftermarket parts company has an automatic; I’m right there with you, but there’s a good reason for it. CorkSport has a couple Mazda3 6-Speed Manuals and a couple manual and automatic Mazda 6’s, but no automatic Mazda 3; so it made sense to add that to the garage, especially with the many new performance parts we have in the pipe line. Check those out here.

Now back to the CorkSport’s new 2018 Mazda 3.

The 6-speed automatic comes equipped with three transmission control modes; Standard (default), Sport, and Manual (aka manumatic).

We became curious about how those three modes affected the driving experience, specifically the shift points. I believe we all understand how the Manual control mode works, as it provides nearly 100% control of the shift points, so for the comparison I am going to focus on the differences between the Standard and Sport modes since those are controlled by the ECU.

Driving the car on the street, you can easily feel the difference between the Standard and Sport modes of the Mazda3.

The Standard mode feels soft, relaxed, and maybe even lazy between shifts. It seems to default to the highest gear (lowest engine RPM) possible in every driving situation. This is great for fuel economy, but disappointing for smiles-per-gallon. Push the Sport toggle, and the car comes alive. The engine pulls through the RPM range longer for each gear and seems more eager to accelerate with the slightest throttle input. MUCH better.

The Butt Dyno is great and all, but it’s subjective, so we decided to strap the car down on the dyno to see what is happening; what exactly is changing between the Standard and Sport modes with the CorkSport 2018 Mazda3.

On the dyno, things become much clearer, but first, we had to set up the dyno to provide us with useful information. Typically we are testing wheel Torque and Horsepower, not shift points. It was interesting to play with the various parameters the dyno has available to find a readout that would convey the shift points and the effort the car was exerting. Check out the graph below; this is not your typical dyno plot.

With this dyno plot we quickly see that is much different than the typical readout. I’m going to break it down, so it’s clear and easy for you to understand what is going on.

Description: Standard Mode = Red, Sport Mode = Green

The horizontal axis is our independent variable in the test. This is the variable/parameter we can control directly in the test. Since we are trying to understand the difference in shift points between the Standard and Sport modes, Road Speed was the logical choice. To be consistent, the throttle input percent for both Standard and Sport modes was held constant throughout the test runs.

The two vertical axis’s are the dependent variables in the test; these are the parameters that depend on engine RPM. On the right side of the dyno plot, we have engine RPM; this is represented by the lines with dots. On the left side of the dyno plot, we have tractive effort, which is essentially the amount of force the tires are applying to the road surface.

Looking at the two graphs, it’s clear that the Sport mode shift points and tractive effort are much different than Standard mode. This is interesting because we can now visualize what we were feeling while driving the Mazda 3 Hatchback on the street.

In Sport mode, the car carries through the engine RPM longer, and the resulting RPM after each shift is also higher. Because each gear is carried to a higher RPM the resulting power is much greater, which is shown with the tractive effort plots.

Finishing statement: Sport mode significantly changes the way the car drives and responds. If you are looking for some fun out in the curves, don’t be shy, hit that Sport toggle and let the Mazda do what it was designed to do best.

Happy driving!

-Barett @ CS

November 14, 2016November 30, 2016

How Not To End Your National Championship Race

In September, CorkSport participated in the SCCA Runoffs, the largest club race event held every year. In 2016, the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course hosted the event in Lexington, Ohio. Having only raced there in a simulator, we spent two days testing at the track the weekend before and received coaching from Will Dodd, a local Spec Miata racer who has spent plenty of time getting to know the course. After trying several setup changes along with the awesome BFG rain tires for the first time on our Mazda 3, we felt pretty good about our odds of placing higher for qualifying.

SCCA Runoffs 2016 CorkSport Mazdaspeed — Credit: Melissa K Lepper

The runoffs format is made up of four qualifying days followed by a one-shot, winner-take-all championship race. For the Touring 4 group there were 34 people entered, which made for great racing no matter where you were in the field. The T4 field also shares the qualifying session with the B-Spec class, which adds excitement catching up to them on the track with the higher top speeds of the T4 cars.

Qualifying session #1

On the out lap, an Rx8 blew a line off his oil cooler and laid down a puddle in turn two (aka the keyhole) and proceeded to drive down the straight before he went off in turn four. This meant heading into four you were staring at a car in the gravel, the fastest spot on the track heading into a heavy brake zone. Not a good place to go off. The session should have been called with the oil down but the stewards let us run around the track, which was a waste of time. The best time I managed was a 1:47.84 — horrible for T4.

Qualifying session #2

The bad part about qualifying poorly in the first session is you are placed in order of speed from all of the days of qualifying. This meant I was sitting in 22^nd behind several drivers I knew I could beat, and I would have to get a fast clean lap. After six laps I cleared the other cars and caught up to the B-Spec cars, which made me back off a bit. This was a bummer, since the predictive lap timer in the car showed I was on path to run a low 1:42 time.

The end result from Q2: I was in 18^th with a 1:43.107. After the session was over, I was pulled into tech to make sure my car was in compliance with the rules. After 60 minutes of tech fun to make sure my car didn’t have a spool, the fuel was from the track, my ECU was stock, and we were cut free. Lucky for me they didn’t find the nitrous tank hidden in the trunk. (J/k)

Qualifying session #3

I went faster and was consistently in the 1:42s, but everyone else went faster as well. I slid back from 18^th to 19^th. Boo!

Qualifying session #4

Last chance to make a difference on Thursday. We went over the car setup and made sure we were in the best shape for starting higher in the field. In the end it didn’t make a difference. I got caught in traffic and struggled with the car. I was going to be starting 19^th. There was one bright spot though: The top speed I hit was one of the highest at 120.8 mph going into turn four, which means I was exiting the keyhole carrying more speed.

Race Day

After getting new brakes installed on the car and running a hardship lap to make sure everything was good, we were set to race. Will noted that being on the inside at the start was a good place to pick up after going through Madness (corner five) and into six due to the track line and the width of the track. Being in 19^th, I was on the inside to start.

SCCA Runoff Corner Five "Madness" — Credit: Melissa K Lepper

The start went well; I got the jump on a few Rx8s and moved up a few spots heading into four with a Pontiac Solstice in tow behind me. So far so good. I got though turn nine and the Pontiac was able to carry a bit more speed than me, so he went around the outside — a pretty hairy move but I saw him and left him space so he didn’t get run off the track. We proceeded to have a drag race when it happened. We made contact, and his right rear tire hit the side of my car at the driver’s door. We got wheel-on-wheel contact that spun him across my front and took his tire bead off. He went spinning off the track towards the wall.

I had hit the brakes so I wouldn’t punch his car in the door with the front of the Mazda 3. My car was pulling hard to the left; his hit wheel had punctured my left front. In a live track with a race going on, stopping is not an option. So in an effort to not cross the track to get to pit lane, I opted to pull into the middle of the track at turn 12 and park behind the wall to wait out the race.

I had my phone in my car, which prompted me to post this video while I watched the finish.

The other driver was able to pull into pit late. I was happy to see he did not hit the wall. I was able to talk to another racer I know who caught our contact on his camera. He was willing to share it with me.

This wasn’t the way any racer likes their week to end but it is racing. You never know what is going to happen out there on the track.

Derrick