Hey. Just thought I'd give a shout out to all of the JCW sound kit owners with a reminder to CLEAN YOUR FILTERS. I've been neglecting mine for the longest time because I never knew that they were washable so was planning on buying another set. Well with the cost of them, thankfully they are washable. Remember that there are two BMC filters in the airbox. One large and one small. I bought the BMC detergent and oil localy for $15.00 and had at her.

Cleaning was easy and long overdue. I didn't realize that I had the sound kit installed for this long but checking my reciepts it looks like its been 50000km since installation. Yikes. Upon inspection they're doing their job. One side looks brand new and the other....well SCARY. Clogged with bugs feathers and dirt. The small one was especially dirty. I had to clean them both twice and they still weren't perfectly clean but hopefully next time. Well, that is if I make it more of a habbit to clean them every 25000km or so. I E-mailed BMC about oiling since I wasn't sure if they came that way orginally. They said that they use oil on all of their filters so I did that as well making sure not to over do it. A quick clean of the box and reinstalled everything.

WOW. I can hear it sucking in the air again. And another unexpected benefit was the hesitation at start up has disapeared. I'll never wait this long to clean them again. So sound kit owners. CLEAN YOUR FILTERS AND LET HER BREATHE AGAIN!!!

 

Good advice. I clean mine twice a year. Easy job and it keeps everything running (and sounding) great.

 

Yea just cleaned mine, first time , only have to soak in dish soap, the Porsche guys who have these GT3's moslty do the same.
Second time on, clean with BMC wash and oil.

They do get dirty, the small one does collect the dirt.

 

Hi Guys,
I was thinking of getting the sound kit for my 2004 Cooper.
Is it worth getting?
Does it make the car more fun to drive?
Any info would be really appreciated
Thanks,
Ade.

 

...that most people are keeping them clean. I originally thought that they were paper thus my thinking of replacement but it wasn't until I saw a photo of them brand new that I looked into it further. The BMC cleaner is so cheap that I'll just stick with it to be safe. Even if dish soap works just as well. And yeah that little filter really gets the worst of the dirt.

SpikeyAdrian, I'm a little biased as I like to keep things OEM but I do think that the JCW sound Kit is great. Especially if you're in the States they've had some great prices on the kit. I've seen it as low as $500 which I think is a great price for a catback exhaust / dual air intake / ECU flash / badging / warranty. It won't make you go faster but the sound makes you think you are. It's addictive so you'll love reving it. I also got better gas mileage and a more rev happy engine. Some other things to note are how well everything works. I have friends that have gone aftermarket and their exhausts and intakes are on all the time droaning on the highway and at low speeds. I find it hard to be in their cars because of this. On the other hand the sound kit gives a pleasing sound when driving regularly and only intrudes when you want it to by reving it up.

 

Thanks for that.
I'm in the UK and the kit costs about twice what you've quoted
to have it fitted, i'm gutted!!
Think i'm still going ahead with it though as i've had my mini 5 1/2 years
now and i need to get myself enthusiastic about it again!
Cheers guys,
Ade.

 

The Sound Kit makes a nice noise and should revive your enthusiasm. Here in the US, the Sound Kit is officially discontinued but dealers are selling the remaining stock for half the original price. I purchased mine in 2005 for $1100, before fitting.

 

I'm in Canada so I get jiped with pricing as well. At the time I payed around 1000 - 1500 installed. Can't remember but I still think that it was a good purchase. The US pricing usually stings because I think of what else I could have gotten at the same time . Oh well. Go for it!!!! Or find someone in the UK with it on their car. Local club etc. Shouldn't be hard, I think that UK probably has the majority of the kits.