Posts

Posted on

Turbo Inlet Pipe Differences

There are some significant differences about how we designed our turbo inlet pipe compared to the other solutions offered for the DISI engine. We get a couple common questions that we thought would be worth reviewing for our readers about our design vs. the other options on the market today.

The first question we get asked most often is also the most obvious difference, which is why we chose metal over silicone. CorkSport uses a mandrel bent aluminum pipe to replace the factory plastic pipe instead of silicone. The reason we chose metal in place of silicone is to maintain a better flow through a very tight area. Metal cannot distort in shape or size and provides a smooth pipe to flow through that does not have the rougher characteristics associated with the nylon braid used in silicone.

The second question that comes up most frequently is, can a metal turbo inlet pipe transfer heat to the air rushing through the pipe at a rate that would increase the temperature of the air going into the motor? To begin with, the pipe itself is insulated from touching the turbo or block by silicone so the actual heat transferred into it is very low. It is insulated from the bracket that it bolts to by rubber and has no other contact with the engine bay other than through the air. The physical air in the engine bay should be the same no matter what intake you run so the turbo inlet pipe will eventually reach the same temperature.

In order to test this we ran our test car on the same day with less than 10 degrees difference between ambient air temp between tests. We put the car on the dyno and ran the car at the same load from the same rpm range at 20psi. This was about 2500 to 6500rpms. The above graph shows the difference between intake air temp and boost air temp. The intake air temp is basically outside air temp and the boost air temp is the temperature of the air entering the engine. There was basically no difference from metal to plastic telling us that the metal is not able to transfer heat any faster than the plastic to the actual air traveling into the motor.

Bottom line, during testing, the CorkSport Turbo Inlet Pipe showed a 14% improvement in flow over the stock turbo inlet pipe, resulting in improved boost levels, and customers can rest easy knowing that the aluminum piping will not affect the temperature of the air running to the motor

Brydon-

Posted on

Product Release! CorkSport Mazdaspeed 6 Front Sway Bar

CorkSport is pleased to announce the release of yet another Mazdaspeed 6 product, the CorkSport Mazdaspeed 6 Front Sway Bar!

The newly released Mazdaspeed 6 Front Sway Bar will improve handling by minimizing body roll during cornering and reducing understeer by strengthening the lower suspension connection across the front with a larger diameter bar that has been engineered to match the stiffness of the CorkSport Rear Sway Bar.

The Mazdaspeed 6 Front Sway Bar is made from CNC machined 28.5mm 4130 steel and provides 70% more stiffness than stock front sway bar. The powder coated black finish offers long lasting durability and performance. The included polyurethane mounting bushings eliminate the sloppy handling caused by the stock rubber bushings and offer long life and resistance to common contaminants that would destroy rubber bushings.

“The Mazdaspeed 6 can benefit greatly from the addition of a front sway bar because of the tendency the vehicle has to understeer,” said CorkSport Engineer, Brydon Foster, “We engineered our Mazdaspeed 6 Front Sway Bar with our Rear Sway Bar in mind to promote neutral handling.”

The CorkSport Mazdaspeed 6 Front Sway Bar can be purchased as a set with the CorkSport Mazdaspeed 6 Rear Sway bar for $358 or can be purchased as a standalone product to compliment your current Mazdaspeed 6 suspension set-up for $199.

For more information about the CorkSport Mazdaspeed 6 Front Sway Bar, please visit https://www.corksport.com/corksport-2006-2007-mazdaspeed-6-front-sway-bar.html

Posted on

Product Release! CorkSport Mazda CX-7 Airbox

We know CX-7 owners do not get a lot of attention from Mazda aftermarket performance companies and can often times be overlooked when it comes to performance parts that would otherwise be considered a standard offering for DISI engine Mazda vehicles.

With that said, CorkSport is happy to provide a little love for the CX-7 family with the release of the all new CorkSport Mazda CX-7 Air Box.

Designed specifically for the Mazda CX7, the CorkSport CX-7 Air Box for CorkSport SRI provides protection from the hot underhood air of the engine bay while adding additional access to ambient air temperatures, resulting in greatly reduced temperatures in and around your SRI for less heat soak and more power.

The CorkSport Mazda CX7 Cold Air Box for CorkSport SRI connects to the air induction scoop and can be further modified with an additional opening that can be connected to piping leading to the fenderwell.

The CX-7 Air Box is easy to install allowing customers to quickly upgrade their SRI and get the added advantage that comes with a CAI without the pressure drops inherent to longer intake piping.

For more information or to purchase today, please visit our online catalog at www.corksport.com

Posted on

Product Release! CorkSport Mazdaspeed 6 Short Shift Plate

CorkSport is pleased to announce the all new CorkSport Short Shift Plate designed specifically for the Mazdaspeed 6!

Mazdaspeed 6 Short Shift Plate Complete Kit

CorkSport’s Mazdaspeed 6 Short Shift Plate has been designed to provide a 33% reduction in shift throw for more spirited driving. The unique design of our shift plate provides maximum benefit to Mazdaspeed 6 drivers by changing the geometry at the shifter end to remove the feeling of synchros where it is most noticeable, in gears one and two, and bolts directly to the car eliminating the need to bolt to the factory or an aftermarket counterweight.

Unlike some of the other shift plates on the market today, because the CorkSport Mazdaspeed 6 Shift Plate installs on the shifter end of the transmission, it eliminates any possibility of binding or rubbing on the shift links that shift plates installed at the transmission end may cause. It also makes installation a breeze, taking just 15-20 minutes install, allowing for customers to quickly transition back and forth between the factory shifter to short shifter if they so desire.

Speed6 Short Shifter

Made from precision machined steel plate with a powder coated black finish, the CorkSport Mazdaspeed 6 Short Shift Plate is built for lasting durability and good looks. It comes with all the needed hardware, full color installation instructions, and is backed by CorkSport’s full two year warranty.

The CorkSport Mazdaspeed 6 Short Shift Plate is available at www.corksport.com

Posted on

Product Release! CorkSport Cold Air Intake for the 2010+ Mazdaspeed 3

When CorkSport set out to develop a Cold Air Intake (CAI) we took several things into consideration. First and most obviously, we wanted the CAI to make more power over stock and allow for free-flowing air into the intake chamber. The factory intake overall on the Mazdaspeed 3 is chock-full of poor bends and choke points. Just by changing the filter section, you can get a large increase in horsepower and when coupled with an aftermarket turbo inlet pipe that runs between the intake section and the turbo, the increase is even greater.

Mazdaspeed intake system

The new Stage III CorkSport Power Series Cold Air Intake does just that by replacing the factory airbox with a cold pipe intake system to dramatically reduce intake restrictions and provide an impressive improvement in power throughout the entire engine’s RPM range. During initial testing the CorkSport Stage III Cold Air Intake for 2010+ Mazdaspeed 3 saw a 10-12% increase in power and torque when tested against the stock intake system.

Dyno of air intake

Next, we thought about the best intake system to run in all weather conditions and came up with a system that is convertible between a short ram intake and a cold air intake. This gives customers an optimal set-up for their intake system year-round. During the warmer months, a cold air intake can be run which will suck air from the fender liner instead of the hot engine bay where a short ram intake would be situated. While testing, we saw differences of up to 50 degrees Fahrenheit in the moderate climate of the northwest. This could be higher in other parts of the country that hit much higher temperatures. While driving the engine bay is not much warmer than outside but while you sit the engine bay becomes very warm. Moving the intake to the fender liner pulls air that is not in the engine bay so the air is much cooler.

Then during the cooler rainy and snowy months, you can switch out your CAI with the Stage I or Stage II SRI intake just by quickly and easily removing a pipe and moving the filter location. With the SRI set-up the path to the turbo is greatly decreased and there is almost no chance of sucking up water during the wet months making it ideal for cold, rainy weather.

Mazdaspeed 3 Short Ram Intake System

Finally, we compared our product to the competition on the market. We purchased a popular competitor Cold Air intake and did a head-to-head test, of their intake against ours on the dyno. We also attempted to verify the competition’s claims of a 33hp gain. The below graph shows the results. The red line is the Stage III Corksport Cold Air Intake with Turbo Inlet Pipe, green line is the Corksport Cold Air Intake without turbo inlet pipe and the pink line is the popular competitors Cold Air Intake.

Dyno data for short ram intake system for the Mazdaspeed 3

Notice the peak power is almost the same between the CorkSport’s two intake set-up’s but there is a massive increase in mid-range power and torque with the optional turbo inlet pipe. If you look at the competitor’s results compared to the Corksport intake, you will notice the lines stay together for a while before diverging slightly in the mid-range and top-end. Both intakes show improvements over stock but the CorkSport Intake shows slightly more mid-range and upper rpm power and torque.

The Corksport Stage III Intake that comes with optional turbo inlet pipe shows the most gains overall being at some points 7% more efficient than the popular competitors. The turbo inlet pipe is also not offered by the competition making the upgrade to the full system a perfect choice for those that want the most efficient system posible. At no point could we duplicate the +33hp gain or roughly 15% improvement claimed by this competitor.

The CorkSport Cold Air Intake can be purchased as a standalone performance part and includes our precision machined MAF housing made from billet aluminum with included air straightener, durable dry flow air filter, mandrel bent aluminum cold pipe and custom reinforced silicone connectors. It is also available as an upgrade kit for current customers with a CorkSport Stage I or Stage II Short Ram Intake with included mandrel bent aluminum cold pipe and custom reinforced silicone connector and optional Turbo Inlet Pipe.

The kit is available to purchase in powder-coated black or polished aluminum with any combination of red, blue, or black fliter and silicone connectors and the choice of polished aluminum or stealth black T-bolt clamps to truly customize the look of your engine bay.

To find out more or purchase a CorkSport Cold Air Intake today, please visit the CorkSport catalog online today at www.corksport.com or call 360-260-CORK.