But you already knew this about us. We work our 9-5 serving Mazdas and then on the weekends, we hit the track with our very own Mazda.
What exactly goes into our Derrick-driven Mazda3 race car? CorkSport.
Check out our performance in action infographic and see what goes into the CS race car. Don’t worry: if you have an older Mazda, we still have you covered.
Get improved handling and road feel while maintaining a comfortable ride. Our rear motor mount reduces your engine’s movement which enhances the power transfer from engine to tire, therefore improving throttle response, gear shifting, and driver feedback.
Gain more horsepower and torque by creating a free-flowing system without restrictions. You’ll get smooth flow, increased power, and a faster spool up.
Give your car the performance appearance and edge you have been looking for. You’ll get a quicker turning response, crisper road feel, and a firmer spring rate, all while maintaining excellent ride quality.
Remove the tendency to overpower the front tires under hard cornering. Our rear sway bar increases the spring rate on side of the suspension which is compressed most and its adjustability allows you to fine tune the handling.
Now get some drive time in and hit the track.
Cheers,
CorkSport
Mazda Performance In Action at the Track January 13th, 2016CorkSport
It’s about that time of the year where we tear out a piece of a paper and jot down all of our New Years resolutions. Most forget about these resolutions halfway through the year, but this year is your year. It’s time to grasp your resolution with your bare hands and get it done! Here are some New Years resolution ideas that you can incorporate into your own list:
1. Hit the local Autocross event this year.
We all love going in the straight line or hitting the racetrack, but there’s nothing like the accessibility of an Autocross. An autocross gives you more of a visual of your driving abilities and gives your car less of a beating than if you were on a full-length race course or a quarter-mile drag strip. Of course this depends on how smoothly you go through the course and whether or not you lodged any cones in your wheel-well.
We’ve all been here. Every session online you get distracted by visiting the Corksport web store and stop by the Corksport adjustable struts and shocks combo product page. You keep looking into the Mazda forums, doing research, and dreaming how that pesky wheel gap makes your car look like it’s a monster truck. Now is the year to save up and finally treat yourself. Try getting a jar and commit to saving a small percentage of your paycheck to work towards paying off the suspension kit (or any other awesome modification) with straight-up cash.
3. Attend a Mazda Meet.
There’s nothing like attending a Mazda Meet and talking cars with other Mazda owners. This is where you can get inspiration, connect with other local Mazda owners/enthusiasts, and even local tuning shop owners. Have an issue with your Mazda? We bet you can find somebody at the meet who had the same problem and knows exactly how to fix it. Checking out the forums is a great step but there’s nothing like a Mazda enthusiast actually seeing what the issue is in person. Besides, who doesn’t want to make more Mazda friends?
4. Learn to Race.
We’ve all taken on-ramps at a faster than suggested speed, trying to establish a race-line. It’s fun to think of yourself as a race car driver. What if you can actually be one? There are a lot of opportunities at your local track to get instruction from professional race car drivers. A great place to start is the SCCA website. Maybe it’s time you actually became a race car driver?
5. Let somebody change the radio station or playlist.
Most people hate it when a passenger starts messing with the radio. Who wants to listen to a slow jam with four dudes in the car (maybe some of you do)? From the great words of the most played out song in 2014: let it go! Relax. One day just let a passenger do whatever they want to the radio. Only once of course.
6. Finish that project.
Everybody has that one project that sits untouched in the corner of their garage or shop for what seems like forever. It’s collecting dust, and you’re starting to pile stuff around it. Time to get it out and finish it up. Whether it be plasti-dipping the valve cover, finally getting an alignment after lowering your car, or actually installing that Corksport Transmission Motor Mount that’s been sitting in your garage for a few weeks. Maybe it’s time you set everything aside and just do it.
7. Take a noob out to the shop.
We all have a friend that is very eager to learn more about working on cars or just about cars in general. This person can be just one of your friends or even your 7-year old nephew (it’s never too early to learn how to turn that wrench). It’s time to pass on your knowledge, because, to be honest, everybody remembers that one person that taught them everything to help them get started in tuning and modding. It’s time for you to be THAT person.
8. Help a friend with their project.
We all have that friend who buys a ton of parts and pays for an auto shop to install it for them. It’s time to lend your services and give your friend a helping hand. If you think about it, you can technically complete resolution number 7 and 8 at the same time.
9. Give a friend a bluetooth device.
With all the laws being passed in every state regarding hands-off communication devices in the car, this can not only prevent your friend from receiving a ticket but also keep them safe on the road. Buy one for yourself if you haven’t already!
10. Participate in the next Mazda toy drive.
It’s time to give and have fun doing it. Every year a local car club runs a toy drive to benefit needy kids in the area. It’s also a great time to meet other Mazda owners and just talk cars. Most car clubs will do a food drive in November and a toy drive in December. You’ll be doing a good deed and you get to see some awesome local Mazdas.
Don’t forget to put your New Years resolution somewhere that’s highly visible. To be honest it’s hard to complete all the resolutions you ever make but there’s nothing like that accomplished feeling you get when you do complete one.
Good luck this year and don’t forget to keep reminding yourself about your resolutions by posting notes EVERYWHERE!
– Corksport
ZoomZoom
Top 10 New Years Resolutions for a Car Guy September 13th, 2018CorkSport
Take a peek and you will probably find another broken steel, gold zinc-coated bracket. Stop your 4 month ritual to the local auto parts store and upgrade to something much better!
Introducing the new CorkSport Sway Bar Bracket!
Manufactured from high-grade 6061-T6 aluminum, these precision machined brackets are strong, durable, and look great. Plus it’s 100% designed and manufactured right here in the Pacific NW, USA. (BUY NOW)
But wait, there’s more!
Not only did we fix the broken bracket problem, we went a step further.We use 1” and 1-1/8” poly bushings to really get your sway under control.Made from 90A durometer polyurethane, these bushings are far stiffer and much more durable than rubber bushings.Polyurethane will not deform or crack over time like the rubber counterparts so frequently do.
Time to get technical!
If you have any doubts about the strength of the CorkSport brackets then let the next images put your mind at ease.The magenta arrows represent the force that is applied in the approximate direction that the bar pushes on the bracket.The green arrows represent the “fixturing” or bolting of the bracket to the vehicle.
Above is the FEA (Finite Element Analysis) result after applying a force of 1000 lbf to the steel bracket.Obviously the bracket has deformed significantly, but is also an exaggeration to show the deformation.The deformation scale factor is 16:1 (I’ll talk about this in more detail later).Now there are two key things to see from this image. 1. The yield strength of the material is ~51k PSI, but you can clearly see that the maximum stress in the bracket is ~150k PSI.2. That maximum stress is represented by the color red.If you look back at the first image in the blog you will see where the typical fracture in the bracket is; the exact same location as the red in the image above.
Now let’s take a look at the CorkSport bracket with the same force in the same direction.
Above is the FEA result after applying a force of 1000 lbf to the aluminum CorkSport bracket.Obviously the bracket has deformed significantly, but is also an exaggeration to show the deformation.The deformation scale factor is 192:1 (Yup, you read that right).Now let’s compare those two key things. 1. The yield strength of the material is ~31k PSI, but you can clearly see that the maximum stress in the bracket is only ~26k PSI.2. The bracket is not experiencing any yielding (permanent bending) due to the 1000 lbf.
Let’s talk about that “deformation scale factor”.In most instances when conducting FEA, the material deforms so little that you can’t actually see it.To assist in the designing process the computer program automatically scales the deformation (exaggerates it) so that the naked eye can easily see it.So what’s another way to “look” at this deformation scale factor?If the same force of 1000 lbf is applied to both brackets, yet the steel bracket has a 16:1 (small exaggeration) scale and the CorkSport bracket is 192:1 (extreme exaggeration) scale, then there is an obvious difference of strengths.
With such a huge difference, my engineering curiosity kicked in, I began investigating. The conclusion I came to is staggering.The steel bracket began to yield when a mere 350 lbf was applied, whereas the CorkSport bracket could handle 1200 lbf.This means that the CorkSport bracket is nearly 3.5 times stronger than the steel bracket!
Let’s keep this simple. You want the juice, the news, the lowdown, the gossip on everything Mazda….
Well good news! We have some great rumors for you here, and a little dose of truth. Let’s take a dive.
Mazda CX-3
First up, the Mazda CX-3. This lightweight, compact crossover should be going toe to toe with the Nissan Juke and other compact SUVs. Rumor has it that it should be powered by the 2.0L SkyActiv, likely the same one in the Mazda3. To be clear, this little gem won’t have to be waited on for very long. The CX-3 is set to release next spring, and better yet, debuting at the LA Auto Show in less than a month. Yep, we should have our hands on this guy sooner than later!
2016 Mazdaspeed
Then again, you probably didn’t come here for news on a compact crossover that has killer gas mileage, room, and the practicality of a sedan/suv/compact car blended into one. You’re probably here for this: the 2016 Mazdaspeed. Though there still aren’t any confirmed dates or models, we keep getting “insider rumors”. According to Motortrend and their “insider”:
“What gets added to the lineup in addition to those cars is the interesting bit… the company plans to focus heavily on development of niche products, or in other words, special editions.”
Special editions? Sounds like Mazdaspeeds to me! Any other “special editions” you can think of? Nope. I’m sold. Motortrend also states that a 2016 Mazda 6 Coupe will be released (see their rendering below).
Hatchbacks
As exciting as a coupe is, we tend to be bigger fans of Hatchbacks, specifically hatchback Mazdaspeed 3’s. So what does Motortrend think we have in store?
“Another important niche model is also planned for 2016: the much-anticipated Mazdaspeed3. This hot hatch will employ a 2.5-liter Skyactiv G turbocharged gasoline engine pumping out more than 300 hp and incorporating a new lightweight all-wheel drive system. To add even more spice to the company’s lineup, we can also expect to see Mazdaspeed versions of the Mazda2 and Mazda6.”
Wait, what? Mazdaspeed 3, Mazdaspeed 2, and Mazdaspeed 6? I’m all ears.
But will it happen? Looking at Mazda’s past, they certainly have touched most of their smaller cars with the hand of Mazdaspeed. Protege, MX-5, the 3 and the 6 all have been turboed and “Mazdaspeedified” before, so doing the 3 and 6 again is a no brainer…
But the 2? I think it’s highly possible. Most likely, the Mazda MX-5 will get a Mazdaspeed version before any of the other cars, and then they’ll dump the same engine in the new Mazda 2. Why not?
Whatever Mazda decides to do, we’re pumped. Looking at the models they have cranked out in the past 2 years have been impressive and we are very excited for more models and specifically their “niche…special editions”.
Precision Adjustability for those Demanding Control
If you have been enjoying your new Mazdaspeed 3 or Mazda 3 but were wishing you could improve the handling, CorkSport is here to help. With the release of our new CorkSport Mazdaspeed 3 and Mazda 3 Adjustable Struts and Shocks you have a real solution for the street, track and everything in between. The CorkSport Mazdaspeed 3 and Mazda 3 struts and shocks are 15 way adjustable and are an easy bolt-in affair with stock or aftermarket springs.
CorkSport shocks and struts are made with gas charged twin tube shock absorbers to allow the shock to react faster and more predictably, for a quicker response time and will help to keep the tire firmly planted on the road. You will have the ability to change both rebound and compression damping simultaneously for greatly improved ride quality. Their mostly stock appearance and color makes them great for anyone trying to keep a low profile, or have a “sleeper” in the corners.
With 15 ways to adjust them with just rotating a knob it’s simple to change settings for any type of driving. Whether you want a soft feel for cruising, aggressive performance for spirited driving, or full stiffness for autocross and track days the CorkSport Adjustable Struts and Shocks can meet your demands.
