Failed Corksport MS6 rear camber arm!

So, I've got a lot of CorkSport parts. Including the adjustable rear camber arms. Only have about 12,000 miles on them. Left one failed. I didn't even hit a pothole or anything. I was on the freeway. At first, I noticed it felt "funny". Then I heard something that sounded like rubbing in the rear. So, I figured I should slow down and exit the freeway. The exit was a bit away, I didn't really know how serious it was. But I figured it would make it to the exit. As I was going down the exit ramp, the rear tire blew-out. I exited and there was a business parking lot right by the exit that I parked in.

I had it towed to a general auto shop. It was installed by Kozmic Motorsports in Houston, so I would think it was installed correctly. But it usually takes days to weeks to get an appointment there. So, I figured a general auto shop could probably diagnose it and had it towed to one. The shop said that the broken camber arm caused the rear trailing arm to bend, so I need that replaced as well. The mud guard is scraped up, but probably can leave it. He said the axle and CV joint seem fine.

Now, I don't know if I should even go back with another CS camber arm or not. And whatever I do, I probably should replace both sides. If one broke, not sure I trust the other one. And I need new tire and the rear trailing arm.

So, here is the picture:

 

Most importantly, YOU are ok. That situation could have easily gone another way.

Thank you for sharing, and yes you should replace them as a pair.

 

What did they say when you contacted them?

 

Glad you are ok but that's not great

@CorkSport - Derrick

 

I posted here basically after I got home from the local shop. Which was about 6 PM central which I think is after they close. I'm going to send this same information via email. And then follow-up with a call Monday.

 

May want to post more pics, as itooks to be adjusted too far out. Take a look.

 

I can't tell if that sleeve is just pressed in, or if it's welded after assembly but damn - not good.

Don't let the shop throw away the parts. I'd check the sphericals to see if they are crusty and hard to move - those things don't last on street cars and need to be checked often. They can either get super loose and clunky, or seize in their sockets and wreak havoc on connected parts.

If you want an alternative, the SPC arms are rock solid. One end is a rubber bushing and the other is an extremely well sealed spherical joint that should last a very long time. I've had SPC's on the 6 for a very long time (and put my own sphericals in them in ~2019).

 

Definitely will get the parts back from the shop. I have not purchased from Edge Autosport before. But they sell SPC and they are a vendor here. So I will get them on order ASAP. Thanks for the recommendation.

As far as possibly being installed incorrectly, I would be surprised since they were installed by Kozmic in Houston. But I will get more pictures and ask CS their position on the matter.

 

I asked my shop to take a few more pictures, which I will post below. I sent the pictures to Corksport. They didn't say anything about any possible installation issue, per Raider's concern. While it is out of warranty period, they offered to replace it for free. But no, not going to do that. Going with SPC.

I actually drive my other vehicles more than my Speed. I've only put about 12,000 miles on it in the last 4 years or so. The car only has 72,000 original miles on it and I'm the original owner. I also had a CorkSport high pressure fuel line fail. Similarly, it was out of warranty period but only had limited miles of usage. And they did replace it for free despite being out of warranty. But I tend to think parts should last more than 12,000 miles even if they are several years old.

 

That's wild. It looks like it wasn't a press fit insert (no scraping of the built up corrosion as it pulled out), but if that's a weld joint between the tube and nut then there's very little reinforcement to it (and it failed).

 

So I just got my car back. And near as I can tell it’s just a press fit that worked loose. (EDIT: No, it was welded, just poorly.) I’m no engineer but the SPC design looks much better to me. It’s basically one fewer piece. On the SPC, the gizmo that screws to adjust the length screws directly into the arm. While the CS adjuster screws into another piece that is press fit into the arm.

Again, I am not an engineer, but given what it looks like to me, CS should recall these parts and pay for damage. I’m out a stack of cash. Of course CS says that they don’t cover for subsequent damage due to a failure of their parts. But if they put on the market poor design products, shouldn’t they be held accountable?

 

Didn't they offer a free replacement out of the warranty period? That's rare. Like taking a pc back to best buy after their 30 day or so warranties. But I get it, you didn't want another potential problem. I've not seen here or ok social media of any other failures so I'm not sure what happened.

And for clarification, they are welded in place. Not pressed.

 

Can you post pictures of the good arm for comparison?

 

I couldn't possibly care any less that they offered a replacement. It's a POS. What I want is $1700. The parts recalled. And pay everybody else who has these to put something else on.

Yes, turns out you are correct, they were welded. But it's basically tack-welded.

Okay, here are some more pictures. Below is the picture of the one that hasn't failed. Then what follows are close-ups of the failed weld. Basically, its tack welded.

 

Holy shit there is 0 penetration on that weld!!!

I would be curious to cut the other arm in half to see the weld penetration.

 

I'm not a welder either. But yeah, I kinda noticed that...

I might let someone else do that if they wanted to.

 

If its a safety issue (sure looks like it) I'd try to get the parts back to Corksport. Others using the same product might not be as fortunate when it fails.

 

I agree that it should get back to Corksport. But I am reluctant to part with the evidence before they reimburse me my $1700.

 

Do the balls in the sphericals move freely? It's been a while, but this isn't the first design/quality issue from Corksport we've seen.

 

Yes. That part is not an issue on mine.

I updated my signature to reflect recent changes to my equipment.