Today we are proud to introduce the CorkSport 51R Battery Tray for 2006-2007 Mazdaspeed 6! This products adds some much needed room for larger intakes by switching to a much narrower “51R” sized battery. We sized the CS battery tray to fit our 4” intake with no problems or modifications to your car. It’s a 30 minute install which opens up your engine bay for further mods and even makes later installs and maintenance easier. Read on for full details and check out the Mazdaspeed 6 51R Battery Tray in our shop to purchase.
Today is a huge day for the Speed community; one that has been coming for a long time with both celebration and frustration. Never the less time is up and this project is ready for the community as a whole!
We are proud to announce the Performance Exhaust Manifold for the Mazdaspeed 3 & 6! With over 2 years in development, the MPS exhaust manifold has been long waiting, but for good reason. A project of this scale does not happen overnight; many variables have to be considered, evaluated, and verified.
I’m confident you have seen “leaked” images from our 6 Alpha and Beta testers over the recent month, but we can make it official.
CorkSport
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But with so many options currently available what makes the CorkSport option compelling? Why should you care?
That’s a great question and one that can easily be answered with multiple great reasons. The most obvious is the design: this includes the overall shape and the type of material & manufacturing.
Mazdaspeed Exhaust Manifold
Material & Manufacturing: In our initial investigation and vetting of this project we strongly considered two primary manufacturing methods; Casting and Tubular fabrication (check out the blog here). In a nutshell, we opted for a cast manufacturing method because it reduced the chance of failure modes, reduced the overall size and weight, and gave us more flexibility in design.
Like most exhaust manifolds, we opted to use 304 stainless steel because it is corrosion-resistant, handles heat well, and is a common and cost-effective material.
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Following up is Design: The list of details that went into the design is far too long to list here, but we can cover the major items that define the CS Exhaust Mani. With investment casting, we had a lot more flexibility in design with the bend radius, diameters, and wall thickness of the individual runners. This allowed us to increase the inner diameter of the runners to 1.59 inches, achieve a 0.200-inch wall thickness, and fine-tune the path and bends of each runner to optimize runner length and flow.
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With that flexibility in design, we were able to increase peak flow and improve flow balance per runner. Overall we were able to increase peak flow 45% over the OEM manifold and 33% over the XS Power V3.
Next up in design, and arguably the most exciting and unique aspect, is the modular flange system.
Mazdaspeed Exhaust Manifold
This is unlike any other manifold available for the Mazdaspeed today…you can choose your flange between OEM Stock Flange, Precision V-Band, or T3. Sure all these options are available today from other options, but none are modular. Say you pull the trigger on the OE Stock Flange today, but a year from now you want to upgrade your build to a Precision V-band flange. With any other manifold, you would have to buy another $900+ manifold to get the new flange, but with the CorkSport Exhaust Manifold, you just have to get the new flange elbow for your setup. This is MUCH MUCH cheaper and easier to change!
CorkSport
Speaking of install, compared to the typical performance exhaust manifold the CS design is cake to install. With the modular design, you are not fighting the entire bulk for the manifold and flange at the same time. You can leave you turbocharger unmoved connected to the downpipe and intake system, you just install the flange elbow after the manifold is in and bolted to the engine.
Mazdaspeed Exhaust Manifold
Making life even easier…we opted to develop a pre-fabbed dump tube (screamer pipe) for the Tial 44mm EWG. This is an optional feature for the kit, but one we highly suggest because it’s just so damned easy. Designed for MPS 3 and MPS 6, it fits around most standard downpipes and dumps below the sub-frame right behind the drive axle. Also included with each kit is a SS heat shield that is required for the GEN1 and GEN2 Mazdaspeed 3. You Mazdaspeed 6 guys just get a cool garage ornament.
So how does the CS exhaust manifold stack up on power?
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First up is a fully bolted CST4 MS3 with a 6th port fuel system: Comparing the CS EM to the OEM EM, this drop-in test we found that the turbo was spooling faster, carried more mid and upper range power and held that gain through to redline. Overall it improved power under that curve which is what truly makes a car fast and fun to drive.
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Next up is a fully bolted and built CST6 MS3 with 8th port fuel system: Just like the previous graph, we saw an improvement in spool, mid and upper rpm ranges, and carried it to redline. The difference here is the exhaust manifold we are comparing. This is showing the difference between the CS EM and the XS Power V3.
With that being said, the CorkSport Exhaust Mani has been proven to 685whp on this same car and with the CST6. We are confident the CS exhaust manifold has far more capacity to support; if we have anything to do with that we will prove it.
Mazdaspeed Exhaust Manifold
Lastly is sound…we’ve been asked a lot about the sound. How will it affect the sound? Will it sound like a Honda now? Will it be louder?
We knew the sound was critical because let’s be honest…we are all car guys/gals and Mazdaspeed has a great unique sound to it. We did not want to lose that so we did our best to hit performance goals without sacrificing the Mazdaspeed grumble.
One of our Beta testers put together a great video comparing the sound of OEM vs CorkSport. The car is a GEN1 MS3 with a built engine, full bolt-ons, CST4, and Cobb Exhaust system. Check out this video link for sound!
In our design, we kept a varied length runner design to help maintain the Mazdaspeed grumble. We believe we succeeded in keeping that classic grumble, but also refined the sound a bit. We like to describe it as exotic. Either way, the grumble lives on, and honestly, none of our beta testers can stop grinning ear to ear with every WOT pull.
With that being said act fast! We know these are going to fly off the shelf and we are going to do our damn very best to keep them in stock for everyone, but don’t wait!
It’s been a long time coming but it has finally returned:
the CorkSport Front Mount Intercooler Kit for Mazdaspeed 6! We’ve had many
challenges on this project but we’re happy to report that it’s finally here and
better than ever. We originally released this way back in 2012 (check out the
release blog HERE
for a throwback) but the only thing we kept from that kit was the intercooler
core itself. All of the piping, silicone, and mounting has been redesigned for
best fitment and minimizing trimming needed for install. Check out the images
and full info below!
To start things off, let’s look into the intercooler itself. It is a unique design where both the inlet and outlet point toward the driver’s side of the vehicle. This means our pipe routing is a little more complicated than most, but it makes it much easier to fit as you do not need to relocate your windshield washer bottle or deal with any of the fitment issues that come with squeezing a pipe through the passenger side of the car.
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The intercooler core is a high
flowing, bar and plate design that measures 21”x10”x3”. This is good for
efficient flow up to 500-550WHP yet adds minimal boost lag, even at lower
power/boost levels. This big core fits snugly behind the crashbar to eliminate
trimming the crashbar or your underbody shields. There is still some trimming required
to fit the core and piping, however almost all of it is trimming on plastic
components, with one metal cut on a thin sheet metal bracket.
Moving onto the piping, the CS
intercooler kit uses varied piping sizes for the hot and cold side intercooler
pipes. The 2.25” hot side pipe ensures the charge air reaches the intercooler
as fast as possible, helping reduce boost lag. The cold side uses 2.5” piping
in the first half and 3” piping in the second half. Having this large volume of
cool charge air directly in front of the throttle body helps with throttle
response and the large diameter further helps with peak flow capacity. This
piping setup has proven itself to work great on our GEN2 MS3 FMIC
kit, and has been pushed to 684WHP on Barett’s GEN1 (he modified the GEN2 piping to fit his GEN1).
There was painstaking care taken
to ensure the kit is as easy as possible to fit on your MS6. The hot pipe has a
lot more freedom for intake fitments than our previous kit and we made sure all
the CS intakes fit like a glove. Other aftermarket intakes have not been test
fit but check out the images, they will give you a good idea if your SRI will
fit or not. All the piping is mandrel bent and comes in a polished finish, so
it is ready to install right out of the box and look and perform great!
Keeping everything together is the
custom designed silicone couplers. You may notice that some of the silicone
sections are longer than a typical silicone coupler. This is to ensure the best
fitment as some shapes can simply not be made easily in a piece of pipe.
As with most CS silicone
components, each coupler uses 4-plys of nylon reinforcement braiding and 5
layers of silicone. This is typically very good at resisting expansion under
high levels of boost; however, we wanted to really make sure the long couplers
of the MS6 kit do not expand. Any coupler longer than about 6” uses an extra
layer reinforcement made of metal wire. This further resists expansion under
boost, and even helps keep all the piping stable between mounting locations.
While the outside of the coupler may look bumpy, the insides are still very
smooth like a typical piece of silicone.
Each Mazdaspeed 6 intercooler kit
comes with everything you need for install. Stainless steel T-bolt clamps are
included for each connection to ensure secure, leak free joints. The
intercooler mounting bracket, hardware, and full color install instructions are
also included so you know you can get the job done right.
We’re happy to finally have this out and are excited to see you all get your hands on them. Be sure to drop any questions you may have below and check out the product listing for more images!
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CorkSport Mazdaspeed 6 Front Mount Intercooler November 15th, 2022CorkSport
The CorkSport Single Runner Intake Manifold Gasket is here!
Designed for OEM and upgraded intake manifolds with or without ported cylinder
heads on the DISI MZR in the Mazdaspeed 3, Mazdaspeed 6, and Mazda CX-7 Turbo,
the CS IM gasket is one of those things you don’t realize you need until it’s
too late. The OEM gasket often fails to seal once reused and can cause a
restriction when going to enlarged ports. This can be frustrating as who wants
to take their car back apart after a manifold upgrade because of a stupid
gasket? If this sounds familiar, read on as we introduce you to the CS single
runner gasket!
We collaborated with Cometic
gaskets to design the intake manifold gasket; testing multiple materials to
really determine what will hold up to the abuse of a Mazdaspeed. Cometic’s
Aluminum Foamette Material (AFM) in 0.060” thickness was by far the best
choice. It uses an aluminum core surrounded by a synthetic nitrile rubber
coating. This material seals fantastically well, even if there are some minor
surface imperfections or even O-ring grooves that are present with some
aftermarket intake manifolds. This material is also resistant to motor oil and
fuels, plus can be reused should you need to perform valve cleaning or have to
take your intake manifold off for an install.
Aside from offering better sealing
than an OEM gasket, the CS IM gasket offers performance benefits. When going
for more power, it is very common to upgrade the port sizes on the intake
manifold and/or cylinder head. Doing this and reusing an OEM gasket can leave
an edge of a gasket or even the center dividers of the OEM gasket in the way of
airflow. The CorkSport IM gasket eliminates this problem by using enlarged
ports that will suit the most aggressive of porting with no flow restriction.
Plus, we went to a single runner opening to eliminate the divider present in
the OEM gasket to further prevent flow restrictions. There is also the added
safety benefit, as a piece of an OEM gasket hanging in the airflow path could
break off and enter the engine which would never end well. This is truly a
performance gasket, meant to give you room for whatever flow you want to put
through it.
There is also a less obvious
performance benefit than flow: thermal insulation. OEM gaskets are made out of
metal, which means as your engine heats up, this heat can directly transfer
easily into your intake manifold. This is also an issue with O-ring sealing as
the intake manifold is directly touching the cylinder head. More heat in your
intake manifold means it’s harder for your boosted air temps to stay cool when
traveling through your intake manifold. While not a huge benefit, colder charge
air will always help you make more power. Since the CorkSport Single Runner IM
Gasket has the synthetic nitrile rubber coating, heat transfer into the intake
manifold is more difficult, keeping your charge air just that little bit
cooler!
The CorkSport IM gasket comes with
a spacer for the lower mount of the intake manifold made of the same AFM
material. This is critical as the CS gasket is six times thicker than OEM so
the lower mount no longer lines up properly. Failure to use a spacer like this
can cause leaks at the cylinder head flange or worst case, warping or damage to
your intake manifold or cylinder head.
The CorkSport Single Runner Intake Manifold Gasket is a great upgrade to optimize your manifold upgrade or simply ensure your next maintenance day goes smoothly. Let us know if you have any questions and visit the product listing if you’d like to pick one up!
MZR DISI Single Runner Intake Manifold Gasket March 5th, 2020CorkSport
Back in 2015, CorkSport announced the launch of the “CorkSport Turbo” or “CorkSport 18G” a high performance drop-in turbo upgrade for the MazdaSpeed 3, Mazdaspeed 6, and CX-7. Fast forward to 2020 this potent turbo is now called the CST4 with the introduction of the CorkSport CST5 and CST6 Turbochargers.
The CST4 has found home in thousands of community members
Mazdaspeeds since launch and continues to be a highly sot after upgrade today…a
testament to the CST4’s performance and durability. Starting from scratch, the
CST4 is a 100% brand new performance unit.
No core, no revised K04 parts…this is a performance turbocharger from
the ground up.
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Let’s recap on what makes the CST4 the best turbo and a great fit for the MazdaSpeed. A proven MHI journal bearing center section, these offer great cooling capabilities and fantastic reliability, especially when combined with our high performance journal bearings and 360° high performance thrust bearing. The CST4 can seriously take a beating, and does it in a package that fits perfect in the OEM location.
Attached to this center section is
a compressor and turbine wheel combo that is a little unconventional. Creating
boost is a custom MHI 18Gbillet compressor wheel that is rated at 50lb/min
while the turbine that drives the CST4 is a MHI TD05H 9 blade design. Compared
to a traditional 12 blade turbine wheel, the CorkSport design is lighter weight
for faster spool times and less blades for higher maximum flow capacity.
The wheels are wrapped in new housings. On the compressor side there is an OEM diameter inlet to simplify the installing with any intake system you had setup with your K04. The turbine housing maintains the stock flange design for easy fitment with any exhaust manifold and downpipe that bolted to the K04.
So what’s the hype now?
Great question! The community has
pushed this turbo to the limits and has asked for more…with the development of
the 500whp CST5 and 600whp CST6 we found that an EWG turbine housing can be
very beneficial to boost control. That development
bleed over to the CST4 in the form of a EWG turbine housing for increase boost
control and an increase in A/R size.
Like the CST5, you can now choose your boost control. Internal wastegate for a stealth and simple install or go for the EWG turbine housing for extra noise and a little more top end power potential. The choice is now yours.
Now what does all of this tech
mean for you and your car? If you have a stock block you can easily max out
power (~380WHP depending on fuel and bolt-ons) and keep some of the K04 spool
you love. With professional tuning you
can keep a safe tune that hits hard and carries power.
The wheel and housing options
delivers great response as well as great power. When pushed to its limits on a built
block, 20psi was hit at 3300-3400RPM with peak boost around 27-28psi carried to
7000rpm. Obviously this isn’t stable for a stock block but is possible on fully
built cars with full bolt-ons and a high flowing head.
Both the IWG and EWG options come with a full hardware kit that includes everything you need for install. This means all coolant/oil lines, new gaskets, new crush washers, and even new studs and crimp nuts for both the turbine and downpipe flanges. The EWG setup includes a custom designed elbow for great EWG actuator fitment on MS3 and MS6, and the correct clamp to attach it to the housing. More info to come later on an add-on screamer pipe option.
Each CST4 also comes with full CorkSport support, including full color install instructions, a 1-year warranty, and assistance with any questions you may have. We are extremely excited for you all to get your hands on the CST4 and start taking your FBO Mazdaspeed to the next level. Check out the product listing for full details and to place to order.
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GET THE CST4
For A limited time get $125 off the CST4. Enjoy a more boost and increase your Mazda WHP up to 400!
