... the JCW Kit at any time during the initial 4yr./50k mi. warranty period and it is fully covered by and under the auspice of that warranty for the remainder of that warranty. One can get the extended warranty and the JCW will be covered along with the car for the full term.

This is the word from BMW/Mini N.A.

Enjoy your JCW !

 

... you are going to have a blast... and preserve the collectability (and driveability) of your MCS.

DIY mods are great... and can indeed yield wonderful & rewarding results, but if you do not turn your own wrenches, or know of a super-competent shop to do your work, IMHO JCW is the only way to go.

I am jealous of the other JCW bits you are getting... wish it were me !

 

Good review.

 

If I'm going to do it over again I would get JCW and add aftermarket parts on top of it. I just want the JCW badge...actually.

 

I have a similar pricing experience. Though I wasn't implicitly sworn to secrecy, I was given a great deal, that worked out to 10% off labor, 20% off the 05 JCW kit, and a Z4 loaner for 3 days at a shop with an already rock-bottom labor rate in a neighboring state (90 miles away) with only 5% sales tax... A $30 fee for antifreeze reclaimation was passed on to me, and my INSTALLED, out the door price was $5211.82.

The work performed was top-notch, and the dealership had installed 8 other 05 JCW kits since December.

Feel free to PM me to learn more...

 

I think they artificially inflated the price to give you the discount. I paid $5400 out the door for my JCW 210bhp kit from Classic Mini with no markdowns or anything.

 

I have been very happy with my JCW kit. I am one of the very few who had an aftermarket MCS and then purchased a new '05 JCW, so I have some insight into the two different routes that a lot of people don't. If you are only looking at performance aspects of the car, the aftermarket route is a good way to go. Any factory car is going to have compromises. The JCW was not made for one market. It has to withstand very hot and very cold climates without wavering in it's reliability. Someone like Franz doesn't invest millions into research, have to carry heavy liability research and is not legally bound to correct all warranty repairs. This is something BMW has to contend with. Therefore aftermarket is able to push the boundaries more and offer better performance at a reasonable price. It just so happens that the MCS is a fairly resilient car and is able to handle the modifications that most tuners are putting together fairly well. On the flipside if BMW offered a modification that failed at 50,000 or 75,000 miles, they could be held liable not only for the issues surrounding their upgrade, but it could have a spill over affect onto their other product lines. BMW has to ensure that their upgrades last the expected lifetime of the car. Aftermarket tuners do not drive their cars for 140,000 miles on the race track, then take them to Dubai to do 20,000 more miles of testing, and then go to the Arctic circle to do another 20,000 miles of testing. With this view you can see 1) why it costs more to go factory route, and 2)why the factory tuned kits are typically more conservative.

This is not to degrade the aftermarket tuners. They offer some great kits and very good prices and at this point, the vast majority appear to be very reliable. Some have proven to be junk, but most of those get weeded out pretty well on this board. I had the typical aftermarket mods and the car performed well. My dealer was fairly ok with the mods, but they became a slight issue a few times during servicing. All in all it was a great way to go at about half the price. Some people say you can get the same performance for $400, but I don't believe that to be true. While peak hp numbers may be better, performance is not just on peak hp numbers. No one I know drives their car at 7,000 rpm all day long. With that said, $400 does not get you better driveability. By the time you add an intake, exhaust, chip, pulley, and some kind of aftermarket head, you are looking at $2500-$2600. So you still save a lot, but you are not saving $5000.

My second car was a JCW, the new 210bhp kit on a brand new '05. I was looking for two things. First, was that I wanted the exclusivity of a factory tuned car. It seems weird, but I think it is a lot of the same reason a lot of people purchase an M3. Not because it is the most bang for the buck, because it isn't even close. Second, I wanted a lot of reliability. I had a few problems with my aftermarket mods before. They were small, but it got me to thinking. I wanted to keep my car for 150,000 miles or more, and I knew with a fairly high level of confidence that the JCW kit would give me just as much reliability as the stock MCS. I also new that if I had any problems the dealership would pay every penny for it. It is my daily driver and I needed something reliable without the worries of problems. I didn't want to deal with what SpiderX is dealing with right now. I don't have the time for it, and that time and worrying was worth some set amount of money to me. I had no guarantee that someone like Randy isn't gone tomorrow, or someone like Franz with MTH would be here in two years. Some people are okay with that, but I wasn't. I know that BMW will be here for the next 5 year, 10 years or more, and I will be able to purchase parts from them for the lifetime of my car. I didn't have the same confidence from the aftermarket crowd. Nothing stops a tuner from having personal issues that requires them to close up shop.

With that said the car is great. In real world driving, I find the car quicker. It feels faster than my '03 modded car. I drove that for 40,000 miles so I feel fairly confident I got a good feel for the aftermarket route. The JCW is very smooth, has great mid-range torque and sounds great. It gives that perfect balance of street racer and civility that I was looking for. The problem with aftermarket is that most mods are not tuned to work together in the same way. So it was aggravating for me. Especially for things that such as exhaust. While I would find a good priced one, I would find out that it droned, or was too boomy at a certain rpm range.... None of the chips were tuned to my exact mods, the intakes wouldn't allow a front strut bar..... While the performance was cutting edge, it didn't give me the overall feel I was looking for. The JCW did that. It really feels factory. It is a lot of fun, I know that I will not have to spend one second even arguing with my dealership over warranty, I have confidence it will last, and if I have to sell it, I didn't blow the $5000 out the window. This kit really has a lot of pros for me personally, and I haven't regretted paying the extra money for one second.

 

Very well put dgszweda1. Preparing to get an MCS, that makes me lean more toward the JCW, then to go aftermarket.

Paul B

 

I had my upgrade kit fitted in Honolulu in January for $686.00. Works great and I still have my factory warranty !

Aloha!

JCW04

 

All this talk is making me anxious!!

DID IT: HYPER BLUE S CONVERT
Black top
Black leatherette
Sport pkg w/ web spokes & run flat perf, black stripes
LSD
MFS/cruise
body color interior
chrome exterior
Chrome interior
Chrono pkg.
HK sound

AND THE JCW PKG. !!!!!!!

I am dealing with Benn at Mini of Towson. Great guy who actually faxed me all the options and aftermarket pkgs. they can do. MANY performance options--DEALER INSTALLED. BTW--JCW was $5995 installed.

I am looking forward to the performance, exclusivity and RELIABILTY of a factory set-up. I tried to stay light on the options but bought what I thought was necessary for the complete look. I had second thoughts about the JCW but didn't want to regret not having it once car arrived. It's nice to be added in to the finance cost. It's the first time I've purchased a vehicle without negotiating or getting any discount or free items. I hope to get a few upon signing on the dotted line.

Where can I get painted side aero kit skirts? I was told they are no longer factory available. Any photos of convert. S with kits?

Thanks and MOTOR ON!!!

 

... much truth in those words ! You have captured the rest of the essence of what I would have liked to have said !

 

... knowing (from the forums) what a stickler for fact and the truth you are, I consider your approval to be a very high compliment...:smile:

 

I picked up my Mini in November and have been very happy with it. However, I wish I had waited for the LSD. I am a factory guy and I am not really interested in going aftermarket for the LSD (even though I realize the quality and performance are as good as if not better that the factory).

My questions is if the non-LSD car can handle the performance of the JCW to the fullest. Would I just be spinning my wheels with the JCW minus the LSD?

Thanks,

PS This is my first post so please be kind.

 

OR...you can add an intake, exhaust, 19% pulley and ECU/Injectors for only $2k and get 35+ lbs of torque instead of 22lbs (JCW). But we had that conversation already. :smile: And with the 19%/GIAC combo we have a testimonial from a JCW owner that the GIAC is even smoother!

 

... gone b*lls to the walls in the car yet... but I have "tested" the driveability insomuch as "will she break loose", and I have to tell you, I do not notice any so-called "non-LSD" car instability... even while pulling some serious G's on some curvy curves...

We had some serious rain here after my install and still not a hint of breaking loose. Of course I have not hit the track... nor is it likely that I will. My baby is for the street... not the track. I might be persuaded to autocross at some point in the future though...

The kit is tame... yet it is at the same time fierce.

I will know all there is to know about it ...in the fullness of time. :smile:

PS... IMHO, Quaife is sweet... and equal to or better that the factory LSD... it may be one of the only "non-factory" mods I might consider in the not to distant future.