Mazda has supported more road racers over the past decade than any other automaker and is now stepping up the support to include extended TV coverage on the new Velocity network.
Velocity is the cable network created by Discovery communications that provides high-octane programming for its viewers with programming geared toward events, with live auctions and world rally championships and real-life adrenaline-pumping shows.
The Mazda Motorsports Hour will be hosted by award-winning motorsports broadcaster, Rick Benjamin and will include 24 shows that be broadcast from April through November with content that will include feature races from the Star Mazda Championship presented by Goodyear and Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship – two tiers of the Mazda Road to Indy Ladder – and SCCA Pro Racing’s Playboy MX-5 Cup. Joining Benjamin in the booth will be racers Randy Pobst for the MX 5 Cup, and James Hinchcliffe for Star Mazda and USF2000. Todd Lewis will be the pit reporter.
A competitive field of more than 30 cars are expected at each of this year’s 11 SCCA Pro Racing Playboy Mazda MX-5 Cup races. The spec series based on the popular auto platform has served as a launching pad for young drivers as well as a place where veteran racers can find intense competition at a good value.
Drivers who show promise and success on the track in any of these series throughout the season qualify for additional chances to learn additional skills at being a professional driver and earn “MAZDASPEED Motorsports Scholarships” that include off-track developmental competitions and feature the creation of business plans and sponsor development processes upon which the driver moves to the next step in their racing career.
“Hardcore fans know that some of the most intense action can be found in the Playboy MX-5 Cup, Star Mazda and Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship. But if you weren’t at the race, you are left to take our word for it. Now, thanks to a partnership with Velocity, and Carolinas Production Group, fans can enjoy the action on a regular basis from their living room,” noted Jim Jordan, Alternative Marketing Manager, Mazda North America. Retrieved from Mazda Media, https://www.mazdausamedia.com/content/mazda-teams-velocity-2012-us-tv-broadcasts.
To find Velocity on your local cable system, go to Velocity.com.
Gwynne-
Mazda Motorsports Hour to Debut On New Velocity Network September 13th, 2018CorkSport
Today, we are releasing our all-new CorkSport Stage One Power Series Short Ram Intake! Developed as an introductory package, the stage one intake replaces the factory airbox with an open intake system while maintaining the use of the factory turbo inlet pipe.
Unlike our classic CorkSport Power Series Short Ram Intake, this kit does not include an upgraded turbo inlet pipe allowing us to provide this introductory package for your Mazdaspeed. This affordable option for upgrading the Mazdaspeed 3 intake system includes our precision machined MAF housing made from billet aluminum with included air straightener, durable dry flow air filter, and custom-reinforced silicone connector.
This easy-to-install short ram intake forces volumes of air to your engine through the dry flow air filter and MAF housing and down the silicone connector providing a noticeable improvement in power along with improved fuel economy. Initially testing the CorkSport Stage One Mazdaspeed 3 Short Ram Intake netted peak gains of +12 HP and + 17 lb torque.
Choose from a red, blue or black air filter and MAF housing to customize the look of your engine bay, and polished T-bolt clamps to tailor the look of your intake system.
This was developed as an affordable alternative to CorkSport’s number one selling Mazdaspeed 3 Power Series Intake System with included turbo inlet pipe. By adding the CorkSport Mazdaspeed 3 Turbo Inlet Pipe, customers can expect to see an additional 14% improvement in airflow over the stock pipe and significantly decreased airflow turbulence by removing the restrictive nature of the stock pipe with the sweeping curves associated with the mandrel-bent aluminum 60mm piping used in the CorkSport pipe.
Ok Mazda, we as enthusiasts, need to be brutally honest and let you know that you may have missed a key detail when you edited your latest commercial. Take a look and pay careful attention to the “Mazda” rally car shown in the 21st second of the video.
Mazda hasn’t offered a high-flying rally car since the 1994 Familia (323) GTR, like the one pictured below in competition.
Sure there are people running cars in the 2wd classes, like the protégé that Eric Burmeister recently brought out of retirement, and several 2wd Mazda 3’s and Mazdaspeed 3’s, but nothing like the mystery machine shown in the commercial.
Someone from the 323GTX yahoo group took the frame out of the video with the car in question.
Turns out that the car in question was a WRX and not a Mazda at all!
In Mazdas defense, they switched marketing companies a few years ago and it was probably an advertising executive that wasn’t familiar with Mazdas history that made the decision to use the video. And to be fair, it was only a one second clip, but that ad would have been much better with a 323 GTR instead of a clip of a WRX.
There are some great clips that could have been sourced from mazda Japan of the 323 GTR flying through the air from the WRC competition days instead of the substitute chosen by the advertising company with the front end taped up.
CorkSport is pleased to announce the re-release of the CorkSport Turbo Inlet Pipe for the Mazdaspeed 3, Mazdaspeed 6 and CX7. The newest version of our turbo inlet pipe has been redesigned to provide seamless fitment with OEM or other aftermarket intake systems by replicating the fitment of the factory TIP to the intake.
This popular product maintains its ability to provide improved responsiveness and power while now providing even better fitment for customers running stock or other another non-CorkSport brand aftermarket intake.
Unlike other turbo inlet pipes on the market, CorkSport’s Turbo Inlet Pipe is constructed from mandrel bent aluminum making it a true high performance turbocharger inlet pipe. It has been designed with a downstream recirculation valve fitting to prevent turbulence backwash around the MAF sensor and avoid unnecessary check engine lights and stumbling.
During extensive testing, the CorkSport Turbo Inlet Pipe showed a 14% improvement over the stock pipe and significantly decreased airflow turbulence by removing the restrictive nature of the stock pipe with the sweeping curves associated with the mandrel bent aluminum 60mm piping used in the CorkSport pipe.
CorkSport has designed the turbo inlet pipe to be purchased as a standalone piece to compliment your current stock or aftermarket intake set-up or can be purchased with the CorkSport Mazdaspeed 3 Short Ram Intake for the best value on the market.
When combined with the CorkSport Mazdaspeed 3 Short Ram Intake, flow test results showed a 54% improvement over the stock air box and turbo inlet pipe and netted max gains in dyno testing of +25lbs of torque and +33HP.
Sold separately the CorkSport Turbo Inlet Pipe can be purchased for $109.00 and can be customized to compliment the look of your engine bay with polished or powder coated black aluminum piping and your choice of red, black or blue silicone. Purchase the CorkSport Short Ram Intake along with the turbo inlet pipe for an additional $140.00 to get the most gains from this power modification.
Product Release! CorkSport Redesigned Turbo Inlet Pipe May 31st, 2012CorkSport
The title of this blog is really the truth, but let me explain. We have done a couple blog posts on the Van Herck Mazda 3 that is competing in the Belgian Touring Car Series over the last year.
This 2010 Mazda 3 sedan, powered by a 20B 3 rotor engine started life as a plain model silver Mazda 3 sedan powered by a 1.6 diesel engine. In today’s post we will explore the evolution of the Team Van Herck Mazda 3 and how it became the machine it is today.
The process starts with several hours of stripping the car to get a chassis ready to start work.
Next they changed the drive train layout from a front wheel drive econobox to a rear wheel drive 450 hp 20B racecar. This involves some serious surgery.
The chassis was fitted to a frame rack in order to modify the front and rear chassis. A core engine was setup to get the support frames built and the transmission mounted. You can also see the beginning of the intake penned in on the card board box.
The new framework is welded into the chassis along with the roll cage for safety. There is a huge amount of time into adding the subframe and roll cage. You can see the bolt up locations for the rear diff in the bottom of the V in the cage on the right side.
With the Mazda 3 being changed to rear wheel drive it required more space for the rear tires for the 3 rotor engine. The inner wheel liners had to be built and incorporated into the new rear suspension. The upper suspension pick up points are shown just above the new rear frame.
You may not recognize the black rear differential sub frame, that is because it is from a BMW. In this case it was used for two reasons, #1 there are tons of them available, and #2 there are plenty of options available for final drive ratios.
The rear shot through the trunk really shows the extra width given to the rear wheels.
After all of the frame work was finished up the entire chassis was painted white including the roll cage. The seat was mounted along with the pedals, steering, and wiring was started.
The rear suspension links and shock absorbers were mounted up with the new hubs.
The engine bay was coated with a layer of reflective heat insulation. Critical areas like the frame rail which is next to the exit point of the exhaust for the 20b engine. If you look at the center of the picture you can see an opening in the firewall for the exhaust to travel in. The piping exhaust travels in an enclosed channel through the right side of the chassis.
You can see the tunnel for the exhaust system along the floor of the chassis on the passenger side. More of the wiring is completed for the fuse panel and engine control.
The car uses stainless steel packed Magnaflow mufflers and v-band clamps for quick release if it needs to be changed. You can see the exit path from the exhaust tunnel. Also notice there is no floor between the frame fitted yet. It will be filled in with aluminum to enclose the car with minimal weight.
In the front of the car, the factory crash bar has been hit with a hole saw to lighten it up and filled in with pipe to keep the air passing through it from being too turbulent. The crash bar now also houses the tow strap and an alternate mount point on the right side of the car. On the hood you can see the markings for the ducting and the planned vents.
The front suspension reveals more surprises if you look close. The suspension subframe is made from aluminum and not from a Mazda 3. The knuckle is also aluminum but from a front wheel drive vehicle as you can see the splines for an axle would go in the middle of the hub. What road race car wouldn’t be complete with some huge AP racing rotors and calipers.
With the engine fitted you get a good sense of how the layout of the airbox for the intake will be. The picture gives you a good shot of the peripheral port intake manifold on the CLR built 20B. The hydraulic reservoirs are pretty easy to ID which is a must in the heat of racing when you come into the pits and you need to quickly ID items under the hood.
With the partially finished airbox you can get a sense of size of the air intake that will be fed by the hood ducting when it is completed. The metal framework above the radiator is for additional coolers which were mounted later.
With the rest of the intake installed you cannot see the engine in the Mazda 3, just some sexy purpose built carbon fiber ducting. You also get a good idea of how wide the tires are on this Mazda 3. With the widebody front fenders, they are huge.
The trunk of the Mazda 3 gets the treatment too when it comes to function. There are coolers for the rear differential and the transmissions along with the remote reservoirs for the rear shocks. If you notice the coolant tank is also set opposite the driver in the chassis to help balance out the loads.
After 1 year of hard work the Mazda 3 was out for a shakedown run at the track. The irony of the door logos is worth a laugh, it definitely is a “New Mazda”
The last touches of the Mazda 3 were completed by adding the liverly from Mazda and the Garage van Herck Raceteam.
It was reported at the first event the other teams were very surprised at the speed of the rotary powered Mazda 3.
Here are some great videos of the 20B powdered Mazda 3
Special thanks to MVdesign for the video.
2012 should be a great year for the Mazda 3 and Garage van Herck
-Derrick
How to make a 1.6 Diesel Mazda 3 fun! February 3rd, 2012CorkSport
