Mazdaspeed 3 functional ram air hood

Here's my opinion:

I completely understand the functionality of the scoop design. I actually applaud the acutal thought that went into it...it's not high up on the hood, it draws air from the nose, where air is actually flowing. It uses a very effective naca duct to flow air to the intercooler. If someone was competitively racing their car in a hot climate, i think this would be a very good, functional design for them. So kudos on coming up with a good race-functional body part.

However...

The majority..like 95%...of MS3 buyers didnt buy their Speed3's to race competitively. They no doubt like the way their car looks, and would like to improve the look of their car, as well as get a little functionality out of each mod. So therein lies the rub. This hood has the functionality, but it's just plain ugly. The scoop is off center, has hard edges (while the 3 has very soft lines), and doesnt flow with the streamlined look of the front at all.

What i'm saying is, is that people looking for a hood want looks and functionality at the same time. Not one or the other. This hood provides the functionality....if you were racing your car. But if you just want a slick hood to go on your daily driver, this isnt it.

That's just my 2cents anyway...i still applaud you (or whatever the company is...you didnt give any info) for working on parts for the Speed3. How about some more info on the hood's origin?
 
I chopped it to color match.

mazda3-redhood.jpg
 
I think it looks good, but like people have said, the sharp edges could look better.

Please forgive my ignorance, what would the roof-scoop be for? Is it a vent or something?
 
Rear Diffuser

The roof scoop is not a production piece - for show / looks purposes only!!!

Here is a piece that will fit onto your rear bumper with a few simple mods

<a href="http://photobucket.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y198/integ_girl/mazdaspeedrear.jpg" border="0" alt="Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket"></a>
 
As for the hard edges, this is a fuctional part (Not for looks)!!! TRUE NACA DUCT DESIGN... NACA duct design specs:
Optimum NACA submerged inlet duct design should employ curved diverging ramp walls with a width to depth ratio between 3 and 5, and a ramp angle of between 5 and 7 degrees. The entrance lip at the rear of the duct should be a blunt airfoil leading edge shape; however, the edge formed by the duct and the surface elsewhere should remain crisp. The thicker the surface boundary layer in the area of the duct is, the less efficiently the duct will work. This means that if the surface boundary layer begins to detach from the fairing surface before it gets to the duct, you won't get as good ventilation as you would if the aerodynamics of your fairing were better in front of the duct.

So as you can see there is a reason for the clean sharp edges!!!
 
I like that rear splitter...very nice piece.

Are you going to tell us anymore about the company producing these pieces, or just post pics?
 
I actually like the off center look AND I like the hard edges as well. My only questions is how heavy is it? And does it really flow more air to the IC than the stck setup?
 
Young Roids said:
I actually like the off center look AND I like the hard edges as well. My only questions is how heavy is it? And does it really flow more air to the IC than the stck setup?
Click to expand...

Better then if you didn't have a hood on your car!!! ha ha, it's just ramming the air straight into the intercooler! Like I said not just for looks this is a fully functional ram air hood with true naca duct race car design scoop!

And I'm not sure of the weight.....
 
hmmmmmmmmmmm something different, i likeeeeey, ummmm i dont mind the sharp edges but would it make a difference in function if the edges would line up with bulge of the hood ???
 
I think it's wrong to state a fact of "the hood is ugly"
That's not a fact, more of a matter of opinion.
State your opinion if you want, just remember, that's all it is.
Different people have their different tastes.

I honestly wish i had a MS3 becuase I think think the hood looks sexy as hell.

like I said, IMO
 
The hood however,needs to let air in but not water,so what do you intend to do about that.Put in some sort of membrane:-)Here in Florida with all the rain and a hood like that would take us straight to the repair shop for a new engine:-)
 
speedym3 said:
The roof scoop is not a production piece - for show / looks purposes only!!!

Here is a piece that will fit onto your rear bumper with a few simple mods

<a href="http://photobucket.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y198/integ_girl/mazdaspeedrear.jpg" border="0" alt="Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket"></a>
Click to expand...

Omg i want this right now....how much...ill paypall it....(omg)(omg)(omg)(omg)
what company is making these???Need more info.....The hood is nice when colored matched like ag did....But i wouldnt need that hood since im going FMIC......
 
funkyman said:
The hood however,needs to let air in but not water,so what do you intend to do about that.Put in some sort of membrane:-)Here in Florida with all the rain and a hood like that would take us straight to the repair shop for a new engine:-)
Click to expand...

my friend has a mustang and we cut out the fake hood scoop and it hasa a opening now, he has a piece that blocks the entrance of the scoop and he can just put it on if its going to rain, same thing with this, we can have aq filter or something for when we see rain coming
 
funkyman said:
The hood however,needs to let air in but not water,so what do you intend to do about that.Put in some sort of membrane:-)Here in Florida with all the rain and a hood like that would take us straight to the repair shop for a new engine:-)
Click to expand...

why a new engine?

the scoop is for the TMIC...
 
Maybe not a new engine, but definitely a new set of coilpacks. The valve cover has a 2" deep trench where the coilpacks sit and it doesn't have a drain. If water gets in there, it doesn't leave. The next occurance will be a violent shaking on acceleration and a CEL...followed by a trip to the dealer. Some sort of water prevention is definitely needed with a scoop like this.
 
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