Hello all, I purchase my first r53 JCW spent few months going through all the maintenance fixing all the oil leaks, did a supercharger oil change new a/c system replaced the timing guides/tensioner tint and have barely started driving it! Love the feel especially coming from an Evo 8. Found the site looking for information about the best supercharger pulley and crank % setup. Unfortunately coming from the Evo world power is not where I would like it. Seen alot of threads where turbo conversion was a PITA. But still seems like a probability down the road for me.

 

Congrats and Welcome

 

Ah my absolute favorite year Mini!
The factory JCW started this year and it also has limited slip posi. It is the 210 HP factory JCW.
These are far from a hot rod powered car, but what they lack in horsepower, they have in handling the twisties. No sure what kinda roads you have in the flats, so make sure you find some twisties and you will be amazed! The JCW also came with a handling package and does it handle!
These engine are pretty robust and have forged crank, so if you feel the need for more power, there is room for it. You should exploit handling over power, as almost nothing can keep up with them in the twisties!
Congrats on you R53 JCW

 

I live in Arizona so we have a lil bit of everything Twisties and flats. And I agree the handling is awesome and is why I ended up keeping this car after I got rid of my Evo. I also drive a 17 focus St which is also a great car but with the mini I feel alot more connected to it. I am gonna follow some advice I was given by waymotorworks and hopefully get some more smiles per gallon. I also found an older jcw I might get solely for a motor swap but I have read some threads that are very discouraging.

 

You can definitely find more power. Though your factory JCW already has modified intake, exhaust, injectors, tune, and cylinder head. There are a few things you can still do, but it will soon reach the law of diminishing returns and each new hp gets more expensive than the last.

Header, larger injectors, and a tune will get you bit more power. Lighter wheels and a rear seat delete can help. Brakes and suspension would be another route.

You won’t reach the performance level of the Evo (unless you build a motor), but these are still immensely fun cars to drive.

 

nice mini bro and welcome! Im new here myself. hey how did you load pictures so fast? its taking so long for me for approval?

 

 

It's a blast to drive that's probably the only reason I actually kept it. I already started a list of parts but all of the ones you mentioned are on it besides the head which is inevitable. Back seats can't go yet. I have 2 little girls that love to enjoy the go cart like driving. They adored the Evo and still ask about it. But never reaching big power goals is discouraging, but there's another 04 Jcw local if I can pick it up pretty cheap I might try a standalone and a swap like the k24 mini on this site. Thanks again for the welcoming! Seems like a very tight community.

 

Quote: I live in Arizona so we have a lil bit of everything Twisties and flats. And I agree the handling is awesome and is why I ended up keeping this car after I got rid of my Evo. I also drive a 17 focus St which is also a great car but with the mini I feel alot more connected to it. I am gonna follow some advice I was given by waymotorworks and hopefully get some more smiles per gallon. I also found an older jcw I might get solely for a motor swap but I have read some threads that are very discouraging. : end quote

Sorry, When I said that, I confused you with another member. I used to live part time in Arizona, in Williams and Kingman I just wintered there and then slowly worked my way up to Idaho. for the summer, in the mountains.
There are some nice roads close to you, that are perfect Mini roads!
I have an 06 R53 JCW and I am getting 30.4 MPGs, but I live in the south western part of Oregon, with little traffic and few stop lights. I own two other Mini's now, but had 6 within a few months, then more then had to become a dealer to get rid of them, to people that loved them!
Here is my 06 JCW:

This is around number eight or ten! It is my daily keeper

It is a kick to drive in the twisties and they abound here

The brace is a must! The coolant tanks are plastic and always split, so many of us go to aluminum, that takes the factory cap.

The plates keep the towers from mushrooming also a must!

 

It has a supercharger on it and Spinning it much faster will not be a good thing in the high heat where you live. It is very hard with a supercharger to cool the air going into the engine and the factory intercooler and most others are all but impossible to cram in the engine bay. There is a larger supercharger out there, but the price is way up there too!
Drive it the way it is and make up your mind as you go.
Before modding for more power, you should catch up on maintenance. Make sure only to use full synthetic motor oil, replace the transmission oil with Redline MTL and only use premium 91+ gasoline. Change the plugs to NGK iridiums BKR6IEX, or one step cooler 7.
Keep on plugging away, as there are several improvements.