looks like a MS3 FMIC soon to come

[azmavhockey3]

check out Corksports new mazdaspeed6 FMIC... looks pretty bad ass


http://www.corksport.com/store/large/1zpd9/MS6_Engine/CorkSport_Mazdaspeed_6_Power_Series_Front_Mount_In tercooler_Kit.html

http://www.corksport.com/content/00/01/06/61/73/userimages/Installed%20MS6%20engine%20bay.jpg
http://www.corksport.com/content/00/01/06/61/73/userimages/FMIC%20MS6%201.jpg

[Hirudin]

Hey, that's a good idea! Turn the ram air ducting originally for the TMIC into ram air ducting for a giant air filter.

I think a FMIC is going to be my first major modification...

[oskinosmee]

Thats pretty nice

[spd3king]

love the panel filter replacing where the TMIC was.

i will be fabbing something up likethat.

[Conso]

its not worth it to us to get the fmic, no room unless u loose front bumber otherwise its pointless, go w/ a bigger top mount w/ a bigger core

[crashkelly]

its not worth it to us to get the fmic, no room unless u loose front bumber otherwise its pointless, go w/ a bigger top mount w/ a bigger core

I agree with that...plus look at all that piping...with the TMIC you have th advantage of very little lag...I am going to agree with the bigger TMIC is better theory.

[p5sundevil]

between the bigger tmic's available and methanol injection there isnt a need to do a fmic untill your talking 500-600+HP, and like others have said then you have to deal with all the piping and a little more lag. Not saying it isnt a good deisgn from corksport, just not needed unless you have huge hp intentions.

[crashkelly]

between the bigger tmic's available and methanol injection there isnt a need to do a fmic untill your talking 500-600+HP, and like others have said then you have to deal with all the piping and a little more lag. Not saying it isnt a good deisgn from corksport, just not needed unless you have huge hp intentions.

You said what i was thinking...big TMIC and meth injection will get you very far

[bmman93]

Lags Not That Bad Wit A Front Mount As Ever Makes It Out To Be! I Personaly Have Done 2 In The Past Year And Its Not That Noticalbe! On The V-dubs I Did, We Lost Like .5 Lb To 1lb Of Boost And U Cant Notice It! And Te Cooler Air Makes Up For That Loss! Jsut A Thoght


I Think It Looks Kool!

And U Dont Lose Ur Bumper! U Might Have To Modify It And/or Get Rid Of The Bumper Reinforcment!(or Modify It All And Keep It Safe)

Just A Thought From A Body Man

[Haltech]

Front Mount is to advertise, " Hey everyone, i have a turbo! " but is not anymore efficient than the bigger core TMIC's. The cost alone will not benefit the power. As pointed out, the Meth is the biggest bang for the buck. Another thing to look at is how the blow off valve location has changed and that you're dealing with another mass air meter tuning problem once you goto a standback setup. No thanks, ill pass.

[DuBy]

x2

[crashkelly]

Lags Not That Bad Wit A Front Mount As Ever Makes It Out To Be! I Personaly Have Done 2 In The Past Year And Its Not That Noticalbe! On The V-dubs I Did, We Lost Like .5 Lb To 1lb Of Boost And U Cant Notice It! And Te Cooler Air Makes Up For That Loss! Jsut A Thoght


I Think It Looks Kool!

And U Dont Lose Ur Bumper! U Might Have To Modify It And/or Get Rid Of The Bumper Reinforcment!(or Modify It All And Keep It Safe)

Just A Thought From A Body Man


How bought learning grammar and taking off the caps lock captain america...

[bykeryder4life]

Yeah like said above a fmic is useless unless you plan to have huge hp, even getting a top mount intercooler with a larger core really isnt necessary a 3" or 3.25" can handle plenty of power you dont need a 3.5" intercooler thats just going to rub when your motor rocks back and forth. Bigger doesnt mean better always

[p5sundevil]

honestly it depends on where your going with your horsepower numbers, id say anything under 400 the stock tmic plus meth will work, 400-500 will also need the bigger core to be truly efficient and maybe 500+ to 600+ can use the FMIC....there is a setup that works for everyones plans, you just have to take a look at your projected or desired numbers and plan accordingly.

[ispypsi]

the intercooler piping looks pretty small in diameter, like around 2" or 2.25" for most of it. hard to tell really. but even with all that piping, you're not going to see much of a noticeable difference in lag and throttle response because the stock turbo is well, small and responsive. heck, in stock form, it's already a 1/4 blip of the throttle away from full boost it seems.

it looks like a quality kit esp with the shiny piping and i love the way they integrated the intake filter in there. genius! i do think the BOV location could have remained a tad closer to stock, you would almost think with a setup like that, that you could just put the MAFs housing in the hot pipe and have the BOV nearer the turbo outlet and just run blow-through MAFs. there is plenty of straight pipe on that hotpipe to allow for it too without causing turbulent MAFs readings.

the biggest thing with the TMIC is the heat soak, which is only gonna be a big deal if you're doing something slower like autocrossing, but it seems I've seen alot of speed 3's doing auto-x and havn't heard any complaints about heat soak...but i'd like to see some tests maybe on temps. plus it would depend upon the courses, some of the miata courses down here are super tight and stay in very low speeds, not allowing alot of airflow to the TMIC, where other courses are more open and have some straights or faster areas to get some flow going.

in the end, i love the kit, but i'm going to stick with my TMIC (or an upgrade in the future). i've never used meth before, but that could be an option as well.

plus i love the sleeper status with the stock speed 3 setup - no FMIC, no SMIC in the side of the bumper, no suby-style hood scoop.

[tru-boost]

have any of you ever opened your hood after driving in the rain ??
i have and my TMIC gets soaked !! if you drive at freeway speeds in the rain LOTS of water gets up in that area. guess where all that water will end up with this set-up ?! no thanks !

[maestro]

have any of you ever opened your hood after driving in the rain ??
i have and my TMIC gets soaked !! if you drive at freeway speeds in the rain LOTS of water gets up in that area. guess where all that water will end up with this set-up ?! no thanks !

I have opened my hood after driving in the rain.
I use a shop towel to wipe the small amount of water that gets in there after the touchless car washes (the ones that spray water directly into the front end). It's only an issue if one is too lazy to get out of the car and pop the hood.

No problems to date with driving in the rain here in OR/WA

[tru-boost]

it not lazy if you are driving in the rain and suck up too much water and hydo lock !! i would not buy this for the simple reason of where the filter is placed .

[Hirudin]

Do y'all think there would be any head soak issues with the air intake on top of the engine like that? It would kind of be the anti-cold air intake at that point right?

A FMIC will virtually eliminate heat soak right? Wont this change alone make the car more consistent? I think I'd prefer consistent lag over inconsistent cooling.

[maestro]

it not lazy if you are driving in the rain and suck up too much water and hydo lock !! i would not buy this for the simple reason of where the filter is placed .

The lazy comment was included for the car wash scenario as that is the only time I have gotten anything more than a mist in the ducts. Who would suggest pulling over to wipe water from the intake repeatedly while driving? (screwy). My sarcasm is not a personal attack.

Personally I can't imagine a scenario in which I hydro lock my car with this set up unless I do it purposely. The FMIC has been on for 5 months now. Maybe Illinois has bigger rain than we do, I don't know. It reminds me of the threads about hydro lock with the various intakes on other cars and I have yet to hear it happened.

Each his own though. You and Bobby have your prerogative.
cheers.

[p5sundevil]

as has been stated many times, heat soak with teh tmic only occurs with high boost/high hp applications as our top mount handles the stock and mildly modded setups just fine. the water hitting an intercooler cant cause hydrolock, thats what happens when your air intake sucks in water and it gets In the engine.

water hitting the IC is actually good in some cases, look at the home built intercooler sprayers out there, what do you think they are doing but spraying water infront of the IC. yah its usually a fine mist but it still hits the IC.

The Only thing I would worry about is rust and Im sure the TMIC material has been treated for that.

I repeat you dont "suck up" water through your IC, just your airfilter/intake.

[laloosh]

as has been stated many times, heat soak with teh tmic only occurs with high boost/high hp applications as our top mount handles the stock and mildly modded setups just fine. the water hitting an intercooler cant cause hydrolock, thats what happens when your air intake sucks in water and it gets In the engine.

water hitting the IC is actually good in some cases, look at the home built intercooler sprayers out there, what do you think they are doing but spraying water infront of the IC. yah its usually a fine mist but it still hits the IC.

The Only thing I would worry about is rust and Im sure the TMIC material has been treated for that.

I repeat you dont "suck up" water through your IC, just your airfilter/intake.

being that the air filter is now where the ic use to be....it gets wet just like the ic use to...the filter now sucks up water. Thats the whole point people are trying to make.

[chacon101]

I think it looks great but if you live in a place like Florida where it pours, this setup isn't a good idea.

I personally don't think it's ok to use that top mounted air filter anywhere..no?

[Dr. D]

i have the FMIC and i wouldn't trade it for anyother intercooler out there. piping is high quality as well as the whole system. they say on their website you can expect 30 hp and 40 tg and all i gotta say is that they are spot-on.

[Dr. D]

I think it looks great but if you live in a place like Florida where it pours, this setup isn't a good idea.

I personally don't think it's ok to use that top mounted air filter anywhere..no?

no problem with rain. i live near west palm and it pours here and no problems

[subparpunk03]

hydrolock occurs when the filter is essentially IMMERSED in water and the intake can't suck up air.

I don't think the ram air system would suck up enough water to cause hydrolock, you might pull a little water through the filter... but what do you think a water injection system does? At worst this might screw up your MAF.

[Dr. D]

well put. i don't think it should have any effect on the maf though...?

[desperado-c]

hydrolock occurs when the filter is essentially IMMERSED in water and the intake can't suck up air.

I don't think the ram air system would suck up enough water to cause hydrolock, you might pull a little water through the filter... but what do you think a water injection system does? At worst this might screw up your MAF.

At last, a rational response. Seems like you might have to change your filter more often, but the fear of hydrolock borders on hysteria.

I take it most of the claimed power increase comes from the freer-flowing intake?

[Sierra117]

We have 82% humidity right now...will this cause hydrolock?

[chacon101]

You guys been to Florida for longer than spring break and during the rainy season?

I can only speak for myself but the rain is insane here sometimes. In a matter of minutes, it can rain so much that a car get stuck in the water where it pools. I have seen it many times and I have lived here in Tampa three and a half years.

Sure, there are a lot of people that are afriad of hydrolock and maybe unnecessarily so but still, if it's an engine killer, it's worthy of some concern. Just because you might not live in a place that rains alot doesn't mean it's not a real problem or a myth.

I have seen people post on here talking about how it's a myth...uhm, right. My brother works at the dealership for Mazda in Philly and he said that three people had brought in their cars with hydrolock...and it was recent.

I went ahead and got the MS CAI anyways but the simple truth is you just have to try and be careful and not nail large/deep puddles. If the air filter is placed on top of the engine and there is a nice tunnel going to that filter at the front of the car with no shield, it's easy for anyone to be weary of getting hydrolock.

Thanks for the info doc.

[Sierra117]

I used to live in Florida over the summers at the Flora/Bama line. With the violence of rain (that I have expierienced) you speak of, usually hydrolock is the least of your worries with the car.

[Dr. D]

so more pics

120743 120744

[bacarl]

as has been stated many times, heat soak with the tmic only occurs with high boost/high hp applications as our top mount handles the stock and mildly modded setups just fine...

The Only thing I would worry about is rust and Im sure the TMIC material has been treated for that.
Heat soak can (and will) be a problem for any car when the car is stationary or moving slowly, hence no cool air flow is reaching the IC fins through our hood ducting. That's why it's called heat soak: as the engine components sit there soaking in the hot, without any cool air coming into the engine bay, their temps rise, and so does the temp of the air passing through them. Anyone with a TMIC (or even a short flow intake on a non-turbo/non-intercooled car) who's been stuck in traffic on a hot day can probably attest to the fact that their car feels like a dog -- I know I can. That's because the IC is soaked with heat, not doing its job, and the engine is seeing a hot charge. A bigger TMIC core or CAI can only have limited effects on this. A good way is to locate the IC away from most heat sources, out in front of the vehicle. Even when there's no cool air moving over the fins (in traffic, or revved up waiting for the hole shot), the air charge stays cooler.

As for the ICs rusting: that's why they're made out of aluminum...

I'm sure most people know all this, and p5 you have obviously been around this board longer than I have, but it seems that people don't understand how heatsoak can affect a TMIC-equipped vehicle. If anyone knows better than I, please correct me if I'm wrong.

Also I posted this in a related thread before I found this one: I don't believe ram-air is necessary or useful for boosted applications. (right?) Granted the Corksport set-up will intake cold air when the car is moving, but it will allow the filter to get wet too (yes water can damage/ruin/eff-up your MAFs). I don't immediately see any advantages to this set-up over a normal SF intake + FMIC combo. Not to mention, with the latter your filter will stay dry.

[desperado-c]

You guys been to Florida for longer than spring break and during the rainy season?
....

Sure, there are a lot of people that are afriad of hydrolock and maybe unnecessarily so but still, if it's an engine killer, it's worthy of some concern. Just because you might not live in a place that rains alot doesn't mean it's not a real problem or a myth.
....

If the air filter is placed on top of the engine and there is a nice tunnel going to that filter at the front of the car with no shield, it's easy for anyone to be weary of getting hydrolock.

Thanks for the info doc.

Other places besides FL have been known to get heavy rains and flash floods. In fact, I'm reminded of this ad nauseum every time I have to get rid of a ticket by taking the driver's safety course.

Fear of hydrolock is rational . . . when you have a low hanging intake and several inches of water. But, fear of the hypothetical possibility of rain water going UPHILL through the ducts in a volume and at a rate sufficient to: 1) saturate the filter, and 2) FILL the bottom of the airbox with enough water to cause hydrolock, that's hysteria.

Corksport followed through on a cool concept. Anyone interested in this setup, no matter how wary or weary of hydrolock they happen to be, should be able to easily dispatch that fear.

That said, it's noteworthy that Mazda puts a deflector in front of the air inlet on the stock box. So, it seems likely that any substantial amount of rainwater being sucked directly into the airbox may be less than optimal. Maybe for the reasons Bacarl suggests about it possibly screwing up the MAF. There's also the question of whether it's in the long term interest of the engine to use a free-flowing filter like the K&N drop-in. But these are just concerns, not deal breakers like hydrolock.

[bacarl]

Other places besides FL have been known to get heavy rains and flash floods. In fact, I'm reminded of this ad nauseum every time I have to get rid of a ticket by taking the driver's safety course.
Good grief man, how many times have you been thru the course? :)


Corksport followed through on a cool concept. Anyone interested in this setup, no matter how wary or weary of hydrolock they happen to be, should be able to easily dispatch their fear.
(lol2)

[Hirudin]

...
Also I posted this in a related thread before I found this one:
...

I'm no turbo car expert (only driven turbos for 4-5 months...) but isn't ram-air completely unnecessary in boosted applications??

I'm pretty sure this'd be a waste on money. Unless the goal was to get colder air without a fender-located filter. But you'd still have the heat soak issues of a short-ram/short-flow intake. Then again those should be negated by the FMIC cooling the charge.

I don't see any advantages of this over a normal SF intake and FMIC combo. But props to CS for utilizing the factory ducting for something productive
Seems to make sense that if the air going into the compressor is slightly compressed already the air will have higher compression after...

[desperado-c]

Good grief man, how many times have you been thru the course? :)

I know, you think I'd learn the 1st/2nd/3rd time, but I expect I'll be taking these courses until the day I'm limited to rolling around the nursing home in my wheel chair.

[Mocoso]

So how much does all this extra tubing and intercooler weight?

[subparpunk03]

CS claims the ram air system can add a few pounds of boost

"The kit has undergone extensive testing in the shop and on the street You can expect the following from installing the kit,



* Peak power gains of around 30 horsepower and 40 ft-lbs of torque.
* Intake boost increases 1-4 psi over the operating range of the turbocharger compared to stock.
* AFR is safe to support the increase in boost from the more efficient intercooler."

Beleive what you want to beleive. Corksport has been around a while and specializes in mazdas... and they thoroughly test their products. They are a reputable company.

I was originally going to wait for the cobb FMIC and turbo back, but the more I read about this corksport stuff, they seem like they REALLY know what they are doing.

Maybe the TMAIF (Thats top mount air filter for those of you acronymically challenged) isn't right for all situations, i.e. during a monsoon or when driving through a lake. I won't argue there.

But damn this thing looks like a great idea. I want one.

[speed3shon]

dude, kurt why arent you online?!

[tru-boost]

you will gain whatever is lost due to pressure loss in the stock IC, thats all.
an IC cant add boost. boost is ecu/wastegate controlled. you may see 1-2 psi though. from what i have seenm the stock IC has about 3psi of pressure loss. if the new one has only 1psi of loss you will see an increas of 2 psi.
but at the same time the lower the pressure drop across a core the less efficient it is at cooling. it is a trade off.

[chacon101]

[QUOTE=subparpunk03;3533060]

Maybe the TMAIF (Thats top mount air filter for those of you acronymically challenged) isn't right for all situations, i.e. during a monsoon or when driving through a lake. QUOTE]

TMAIF

don't know where the I came from but I thought this was Top Mount Air Filter I'd like to...

[fourthmeal]

Hey, if my old 97 Trans-Am Ram-Air can do it without Hydrolock, why the hell can't an MS3/MS6? Get real, they are doing the exact same thing (and I had my hood modified for more flow in the T/A, with zero issues.)

Other then the mass of piping, I think it is a great idea. Even then, I would love to see what the change in response would be, if any.

[Haltech]

Hey, if my old 97 Trans-Am Ram-Air can do it without Hydrolock, why the hell can't an MS3/MS6? Get real, they are doing the exact same thing (and I had my hood modified for more flow in the T/A, with zero issues.)

Other then the mass of piping, I think it is a great idea. Even then, I would love to see what the change in response would be, if any.

Thats how it is in the import scene, everyone thinks hydrolock for whatever reason. I think they need to increase the surface area of the filter to really make it an effective mod though.

[Craighjr]

Ya know what not so much hydro locking the motor with a FMIC because there alot of piping. ...But what about that tube making a short shot for cold water (or any water) hitting the compressor wheel?

[Hirudin]

ProtegeGarage has it now...
$989
http://mazda3online.web.aplus.net/images/MS3FMICCS.jpg (http://mazda3online.web.aplus.net/product_info.php?products_id=1309)

[subparpunk03]

yeah I think it came out last night.

Just a quick observation... does it look like the MS3 version of the CS FMIC is slightly smaller than the speed6 version? Or maybe the ms3 one is just longer?

[Sierra117]

I was about to say, the intercooler itself seems a bit small...

But then again, I usually find myself hanging out with Supra and FD guys, and know a few turbo'd FBodies in the area, so I think my perception on what constitutes a good turbo system, and what is a decent sized intercooler may be biased and off jsut a bit.

[subparpunk03]

According to corksports website:

MS3 IC Core dimensions: 24 in x 6 in x 3.6 in
MS6 IC Core dimensions: 21 in x 10 in x 3 in

Surface area of MS3 IC: 144 in^2
Surface area of MS6 IC: 210 in^2

Volume of MS3 IC: 518.4
Volume of MS6 IC: 630

Seems like the IC core CS chose for the ms3 is a LOT smaller than the MS6. I wonder why? maybe I'll email 'em or something.

[maestro]

I took some pics of the ducts and intake last night after a 30 minute drive in the rain (less than a down pour but more than a moderate rain). I made sure to include a stretch of HWY at 65mph.
The water did not make it past the ducting in the grill. Again the most water I have gotten up into the TMCAI (?) is during a car wash.

I'll post the pics if anyone wants them when I get my computer back, later this week.

I have had no problems with the FMIC kit (final production kit installed end of May 07), DP or CBE from Corksport, but that is just my experience.

[Craighjr]

Hello, I just got the new Speed 3 Turbo XS FMIC. Figured I would post it in here as well so people know there quite a few out now. The core is 31"x7.5"x3", piping is 2.25" id. Holy $H!T the core weighs a ton! 17lbs?!?! Are all the other FMIC cores so hefty?
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a194/craighjr/p1010002.jpg

[Hirudin]

Hello I just got the new Turbo XS FMIC. Figured I would post it in here as well so people know there quite a few out now. Core is 31x7.5x3 piping is 2.25 id.
Wow, that radiator is quite a bit bigger (http://www.google.com/search?q=31*7.5*3) and it looks like there is far less piping as well...


I've been wondering: Does the FMIC piping generally interfere with a CAI?

[Craighjr]

Wow, that radiator is quite a bit bigger (http://www.google.com/search?q=31*7.5*3) and it looks like there is far less piping as well...


I've been wondering: Does the FMIC piping generally interfere with a CAI?

Turbo XS said they hadn't tested the fit of a CAI and *gave* me a SRI if you believe that. The pipes do look a good bit shorter. I can't wait to put it on but its 20 degrees out now so I'm stuck waiting for now.

[bacarl]

... it looks like there is far less piping as well...
That's got to be because of the air induction system incorporated into the CS kit

[Craighjr]

That's got to be because of the air induction system incorporated into the CS kit

The air induction should only be one more pipe. There are quite a few pipes there.

[CorkSport]

There is 1 piece missing out of the product picture posted above. The MAF pipe from the airbox to the turbo. I forgot to put it in the picture when i was shooting the parts. I will work on getting a revised picture up on the webpage soon.

Derrick

[Craighjr]

There is 1 piece missing out of the product picture posted above. The MAF pipe from the airbox to the turbo. I forgot to put it in the picture when i was shooting the parts. I will work on getting a revised picture up on the webpage soon.

Derrick

What is the black on the end of the air box? Would your top mount air box be avalible alone? I already have a FMIC.

[CorkSport]

The black "end" is where piping connects to the MAF pipe for the ram air box.

The airbox is not available by itself.

[Craighjr]

The black "end" is where piping connects to the MAF pipe for the ram air box.

The airbox is not available by itself.

Is it plastic?

[Dr. D]

its heat wrapped thats why it looks to different colors. and for all thopse thinking that there is too much piping in the CS and turbo lag could be an issue just gimme a call and i will take you for a ride and tell me whether or not you can feel any kind of lag b/c i really don't feel it.

[Craighjr]

its heat wrapped thats why it looks to different colors. and for all thopse thinking that there is too much piping in the CS and turbo lag could be an issue just gimme a call and i will take you for a ride and tell me whether or not you can feel any kind of lag b/c i really don't feel it.

So the heat wrap is in the filter housing too? Thats a good idea then.

[Dr. D]

ya dude