Category: Mazda2

AKA the Duece, the Mazda 2 is a great handling sub-compact car which CorkSport offers limited performance parts for including intake, springs and other suspension parts.

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1 Month and 1000 Miles

Recently I took a several hundred mile road trip in the 2. With a full load of people I was able to test out the car under a maximum capacity scenario. The car had 4 passengers and several bags in the trunk. Initially I wasn’t sure how well everything would fit into such a small car. After loading up the hatch, everything ended up fitting in just fine. If it were an overnight trip it would have been a bit cramped with the extra baggage we would have had in the hatch.

The trip we took was down the beautiful Columbia gorge to Parkdale Oregon. The trip had plenty of hills, twisty roads, and elevation to really put the Mazda 2 to the test. The twisty roads and the hills were great fun even with the loaded up car. The 2 handled great even through the large sweepers with the extra weight. The car has plenty of power still to overtake cars in the passing lanes with a down shift to 4th gear. The only time I had any moments were I wished for more power was climbing the hill outside of Hood River to Parkdale. When the altitude starts really climbing the fully loaded car could use about 10-20 more horsepower.

The 2 averaged 33 miles per gallon on the drive. This was mostly at highway speeds of 55-60 mph with the hill climbs. I consider this really good mileage considering the driving conditions. The drive from Hood River to Parkdale was in 4th gear climbing the elevation for about 20-25 minutes. I also had plenty of spots where I was gunning it coming out of corners too. I had thought the drive would have made a bigger dent in the fuel economy.

The 6 speaker stereo in the 2 sounds great and is easy to use. The Aux input jack for the factory stereo made it handy to hook up an MP3 player and keep the driving tunes going without having to load CDs. I found myself adjusting the volume knob on the stereo and not the steering wheel though. I think it is just from habit from my old car and once I get used to using it more it will be natural.

After we returned I asked the other passengers their thoughts about our 3 hour adventure in the Mazda 2. There were no complaints and there were plenty of praises for how comfortable the seats are. One other complement for the 2 was about the drink holders. Counting the spaces in the front doors you have spots for 5 bottles of water. As the driver I did not have any problems finding a comfortable driving position.

Having driven the new Mazda 2 for a month and putting 1000 miles on it I can say that the fun driving factor has not worn off. I look forward to driving the car each chance I get. I give the Mazda 2 an A+ for a road trip vehicle.

– Derrick

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The Mazda 2 Arrives!

Its Here!

On Wednesday around noon I picked up my liquid silver Mazda 2 at the port in Tacoma, Washington. 10 miles is what the Mazda 2 had on it from the trip out of the factory, on to a ship, off the same ship, and around a really big parking lot. After an inspection of the 2 and peeling off a bunch of white protective stickers I was on my way to the gas station. Mazda doesn’t put much fuel in the cars at the factory.

The first things that jumped out at me: I love the clutch and the shifter. The clutch engagement is precise and you know when it is engaging. The shifter really reminds me of a Miata. It is precise in motion and the feedback from gear engagement is very clear.

After filling up with fuel I headed to I-5 and spent the next two hours driving south to CorkSport. With the light curb weight of the Mazda 2 the 100hp engine makes getting on the freeway was really effortless. I shifted at 4000 rpm going through the gears to get to 5th gear @ 60 MPH. The 1.5 liter engine has some pretty decent torque making freeway driving a breeze. I did not have to downshift at any point on the 136 mile drive back.

The Mazda 2 is really quiet in the cab on the freeway. Road noise is minimal and I have a feeling that most of the noise was from the tires. We will test out the noise down the road later when we upgrade the Mazda 2 with different wheels and tires.

The Mazda 2 really feels like a small Mazda 3. All of the interior, switch gear, gauges, everything feels really solid. The radio sounds good and is easy to use. The preset buttons are a little weird being on the right side of the face but it is easy enough to work around once your presets are in.

My verdict on the Mazda 2 is that this car is well worth the wait. When I arrived at CorkSport after the two hour drive I had a big smile on my face. This is a great car which has tons of potential.

Check out the Mazda 2 Project on our CorkSport webpage for updates on the car. We already have started development on parts and we will be updating the progress of the Mazda 2 as often as we can.

– Derrick

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The Elusive Mazda 2

In early April I placed an order for a green, Touring package, 5 speed Mazda 2 the first day you could order one. I made it clear that I wanted to get one of the first shipment vehicles with the dealership. Several weeks later I received a call that I could not get a green Mazda 2 touring model with a 5 speed transmission before the end of July at best. The reason being is the first several productions of the Mazda 2 there were no green touring 5 speed models built. There were green models built just none that matched my criteria. They did have the crystal pearl white model in the 5 speed touring available in the vehicles coming to the US. So I chose the white Mazda 2 and after thinking about it for a while and seeing pictures of it grew on me.

Early this week I received a telephone call. The dealership was confirming the model I wanted and the sales staff there found a problem. The white car on order for me was a white sport model with an automatic transmission. I am happy they realized the car was not what I wanted except for the color. The bad news is my choice of colors was down at two now. I could get a black or silver Mazda 2 if I want one in July. If I want any of the other colors like white or green I would be looking at August at the best. I gave it some thought and I have chosen to get a silver car. Not my first or second choice but it should do the trick. It will make my Mt Dew style graphics job a bit more difficult but I think we can manage to make a show stopper.

– Derrick

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May-June Event Wrap Up

I’ve attended quite a few events over the last two months, everything from a pre-release Mazda 2 measuring session in LA to the All Mazda Meet in Newburgh, NY. Take a look at where else we have been:

May 12th, MazdasNW

There was a really big turnout at the May monthly meet at NorthGate mall in Seattle. There was a huge range of vehicles, RX-7s, B series trucks, Mazda 3s, Mazda 6s, MX-6, etc. This meet was surprising simply in the quantity of people and cars. There were several notable vehicles at the meet. A really nice FD RX-7 showed up at the event, which was all built by the owner. The whole car was well thought out and looked amazing. There was a really nice B Series truck with quite a long list of modifications as well, which I liked.


The whole range of Mazdas


Really nice FD RX-7

May 19th, Mazda 2 Measuring Session.

For the first time ever Mazda put up a vehicle and let companies get a chance to look at a new model before it is released through what they call a SEMA measuring session. This gives companies like CorkSport a chance to get measurements and start getting parts built and ready to sell as soon as the car is available. We flew down to Irvine, CA to spend the day collecting information to make new parts. Mazda provided two cars to look at and get information from.

While we were in Irvine we stopped by Tuttle Click Mazda, a Mazda dealership that offers our CorkSport brand products. If you’re in the greater Irvine, CA area stop by and check them out!


Tuttle Click Mazda

Their parts department showroom was in the middle of a remodel for better product displays while we were visiting so we couldn’t check out their awesome CorkSport display. If you are in So Cal and want to pick up CorkSport products locally give George a call at 949 421 3200. He is the parts manager for Tuttle Click Mazda. They had a good selection of Mazdas on the lot including a Red 2010 Mazdaspeed 3 with powder coated wheels and no front plate.


New and black powder coated wheels and no front plate

June 9th, MazdasNW

The June MazdasNW monthly meet had a smaller turnout than usual due to the Junuary weather the NW was experiencing. Despite the threat of rain we trekked to Federal Way, WA to attend the meet. One lucky customer was able to have their CorkSport Mazdaspeed6 cat-back exhaust delivered, saving him quite a bit in shipping costs.


Ecstatic new owner of a CorkSport Mazdaspeed 6 Exhaust

We also got a chance to do investigative work into the 2010 Mazdaspeed 3 as to why the factory keyless entry system was not working on our Project Mazdaspeed3. More details on that adventure can be seen in my blog post about it.


Troubleshooting the elusive keyless entry problem

June 5th, OCC All Mazda Meet

One June 4th at 9:30pm Chris and I hopped on a plane headed to for Newark, NJ to attend the OCC Mazda Meet. The plane landed at 5:30am local time (Sleep?? What’s that?) and we jumped in our rental and headed north to Newburgh, NY. Heading up the freeway we got passed by a train of Mazdaspeed3s on their way to the meet.


A train of Mazdaspeed 3s

The event didn’t officially start until 10am but people started showing up early. When we arrived at 7:30 people were already getting cars parked in the lot. Due to an unexpected surprise our parts we had shipped to the event via UPS did not arrive so we were limited on the parts we had crammed in our carry-on bags to show at the event. This was one of the bigger all Mazda non-rotary specific events which I have attended. The RSVP list had 532 people signed up and 273 vehicles. Here’s a few pictures from the event, there were lots of cool cars there.


Really nice and rare yellow MP3 Protege


Rotaries including a really clean RX-3


Chris milking a giant NY cow

June 19th, MazdasNW Summer BBQ

MazdasNW hosted their annual summertime BBQ in Carnation, WA at Tolt McDonald Park. MazdasNW provided the food, drink, and cooking (thanks!) for the BBQ. The weather was unusually kind to us and there was no rain all day.

In true MazdasNW style, a parts installation immediately took place. A CorkSport SRI was installed at the event on a Mazdaspeed 6.


Installing the CorkSport SRI


Installation complete

Well, that’s it for events for the last two months. We have plenty more events lined up for the next 3 months, so stay tuned here for all the updates!

– Derrick

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Portland Auto Show AKA Derrick checks out the Mazda 2

I went to the Portland Auto Show a few weekends ago to see the new cars for the upcoming year, I know we’ve talked about it already but I really wanted to talk about it. Ok, ok you got me, I really just want another opportunity to talk about / drool over the Mazda 2. Mazda brought a standard model green version to the show. They had it on a fancy display pedestal surrounded with one of those black rope separators you use to keep people in line at the bank.

My first thought after seeing the car in person is “small”. Seeing it in pictures and looking at one in person gives you a better scale of a vehicle size. If you haven’t seen a Mazda 2 in person it is bigger than a 88-92 Ford Festiva but smaller than a 90-94 323 hatchback.

On the outside the cars lines look better than pictures have shown. I walked around the car checking it out from all angles and I couldn’t find a spot that look off or I would want to change right off the bat. The wheels they used on the Mazda 2 are a good looking 8 spoke wheel.

One thing I did not see was the cool looking tail lights that can bee seen on the Japanese models. You can see the LED pattern in the tail light housing below. If they are not an option for North America we will be importing the lights.

I wasn’t allowed to hop in the car but I was able to get a good look at the inside. It is roomy for a small car. The inside of the car says Mazda 3. The trim, and design of the interior will make any Mazda 3 owners feel right at home. I had a chance to ride in a 2008 model tuned by AutoExe in Tokyo several years ago. The interior looks really close to the earlier models not sold in North America. Mazda says the interiors for the North America models will be upgraded and have a better feel. I am thinking this will be quality of materials more than styling.

Last but not least Mazda was giving away cool cans of Mazda 2 energy drink! They told me it tastes like Red Bull but I and going to save this souvenir.


Can -O-Zoom

While I was at the show I checked out the Ford Fiesta to see how close it was to the 2 since they share the same platform. The fit and finish of the Ford left something to be desired. From the exterior to the interior styling you can see where Mazda had put in little touches to make the car look or perform better. Even the exhaust on the Mazda 2 looked better constructed than the Fiesta.

After my trip to the auto show I can say I still want a Mazda 2 and I can’t wait to get one.

– Derrick