bsteimel

This is a review for the james barone racing rear motor mount for a 2010+ Mazdaspeed3.

Problem and Solution:
I hope most of you know but the mazdaspeed3 has always had a long history with wheel hop when launching hard. This is related to a large amount of play involved in the rear motor mount. The OEM rear motor mount is a bit soft because of the harshness of the rest of the car, it tries to create a more comfortable driving experience. This comes with 1 downside, movement of the transmission and engine while under stress. I noticed this while autocrossing or even while merging in low traction conditions, the rain. I corrected this problem by installing a rear motor mount.

Information on james barone:
I went with james barone racing because his prices are competitive, the installation instructions are very complete and he was very responsive to communication. He has a couple other items that I have or will be purchasing. Short shifter, oil catch can, heavier shifter ****. He also offers rear camber adjustments that might serve me down the road.

Pictures:
Here are some pictures of the motor mount and from the installation.
From jbarone's website

Pic of installation


Thoughts:
This stiffer motor mount has lessened the problem of wheel hop considerably. I also notice smoother shifting. There is definitely an uptick in engine noise as well as vibration inside the cabin. The noise and vibration is not excessive and very livable. This is coming from a mazdaspeed3 which when stock has a considerable road noise and vibration. If coming from a mazda3 it might be more noticeable, although I would imagine slightly more livable. I highly recommend it if you have a manual shift as well as do any sort of autoX or hard launches.

Cost $125

Other options:

They also have a 80 Durometer mount as well as a full Chrome molley mount. I would not recommend the chrome molley if you do any large amount of every day driving. This provides no protection from noise and vibration. The 80 Durometer mount would be good for someone looking for a little more support then a first step. I daily drive my car so a "stage 1" sort of thing was all i was looking for. He also offers transmission mounts, and passenger mount, and these are highly recommended.

Also note that I am not affiliated with jamesbaroneracing, just a happy customer trying to add information to the community.