Lol, just returned from Mexico a few days ago. Taking JCW in for 12 month service Monday am.

 

Somebody here order a large with pepperoni and mushroom ?

No ? Nobody ? I'll try another thread.

 

No idea what has happened to this site?

 

Hey, SG ! How was your trip ? Didn't drink the water, did you ?

Sorry about my absence... only excuse, working long hours and very tired. Not much of excuse, but that's pretty much all I got.

My JCW has 3,100 miles on it now. Only mods I've done are two stone chips on one of my bonnet stripes. Dammit... should have gone with my first instinct and put them under the clear bra.

 

Hard to be on the interwebs from behind the wheel! All hail the R60!

 

e01, did you ever get all your lime green bits and pieces installed ?

 

Great trip. Funnest part was jumping waves and chasing little sharks with a wave runner . I have two stone chips on my bonnet stripe too. Thinking about just taking a black sharpie and dabbing on the little white spot.

 

I bet the trip was awesome. I've taken a lot of trips in my life but can't say I ever took a 30-day vacation. Color me green with envy !

Yeah, I think with black stripes, a sharpie might be your best bet. Can't use touch up paint, completely different shade and finish, would stick out worse than the chip. For me, can't use a sharpie either, trying to match up the shade of red would be impossible. I have a feeling I'll be replacing stripes every year or so.

 

I finally got the GP2 front undertray and rear diffuser installed, so my bottom is smooth from front to back. I also had the NM Engineering (Neuspeed) 22-mm rear sway bar installed. The transformation in handling is incredible - the car stays flat, and 99% of the understeer is gone. Before installing the bar, I'd be sawing away at the wheel and hanging on at 45 mph on one of my favorite freeway ramps; the first time I tried the ramp with the bar, I hit 53 without even trying. The ride is only slightly stiffer on rough roads, the car feels much more planted at "highway" speeds and body roll is practically nonexistent everywhere.

Originally, I had no problem finding the limits of the car and in fact was pretty disappointed with the overall handling. In some situations now, I'm at the point of butt-pucker while the car just stays flat and tracks around the curves. For the moment the car is faster than I am, which certainly wasn't the case with the stock setup. Now I have to be careful not to back the car off the road in the middle of a turn instead of driving straight off it. (Bubba says, "Tight in, tight in the middle and loose out." I'm still working on the loose out part.)

Why the NM bar? Quality workmanship, adjustable, no welded ends and really cool billet mounts (instead of cheesy brackets) with outboard-facing zerks for easy lubing.

YMMV, but this is the best under-$300 investment I've ever made for a car. Buy one now!

 

After the holidays.

A. Rear diffuser
B. Beefy rear sway bar
C. We'll see

 

Yup Spa, I have the same bar. Best mod for under $300 IMO. Should be the first mod on everyone's list!! It's that dramatic.

 

It really is. It's hard to describe - sort of like your second [fill in the blank]. (The first one never lasts long enough!)

 

From the current issue of Modern MINI magazine; it's a diesel!

 

Did get some stripes installed about 2 weeks ago and despite ordering the color I wanted, still didn't turn out quite right: looks good in some light, not quite so much in others. Cr is dirty but I'll try to take some pictures (didn't want to until I got it straightened out, but oh well). I'm working with a guy that does stripes at a MINI dealer in Illinois (thanks EBay) whom has been extremely helpful.

At 8700 miles, I really think the engine is finally opened up. Lots more popping, even in 6th gear!

After hearing all the buzz about the NM sway bar, I'm seeing that in my near future as well as a sprint booster to get rid of the low end lag.

 

WOW that sounds to good to be true haha.I have the same car so thank u for posting this mod!!! def gonna order one tomorrow.did u install it yourself?and is there a base setup with the sway bar or do u just install and go hit the streets. cheers

 

I installed the GP2 front undertray in my garage, but when the wind chill got down to 10 degrees, any thoughts of laying on my back under the car to install the rear sway bay and the GP2 rear diffuser went away. The dealer charged me around 2.5 hours for everything (oil and filter change, reinstalling front undertray, installing rear sway bar and rear diffuser) which is probably a couple of hours less than it would have taken me.

IIRC, there are 5 settings. I went with the softest, especially for winter when the tires will never heat up - but I doubt I'd ever got more than one step harder. YMMV, but I prefer to not take a chance on backing the car off the road.

 

Three settings on mine. I have on softest. I paid $135 for install. Took mechanic about 70 minutes.

 

A clarification: There are 4 settings on the bar; the "fifth" setting goes back to my ice racing days - full loose, with the end links disconnected. If you're going to have a dealer do it, negotiate a package deal - i did an oil and filter (which required reinstalling the front undertray), rear swaybar install and rear diffuser install - plus I had a dealer coupon. (Check the dealer's website before you go!)

 

My 05 Justa is getting some winter shoes today so my JCW can stay warm and cozy in the garage on the nasty winter days. Went with Blizzak WS70s in 195/55/16.

 

I hear ya. Supposed to be 83 here today. Damn winter :(

 

I was in your area last week. I don't know how you stand it - warm during the day, cool at night, mountain roads, minimal rainfall, cars that don't rust. You need to experience the joys of having your car buried under 2 feet of snow ... -20 wind chills ... so much salt on the roads that you can hear it munching on your fenders ... and endless prairies that don't block the view of the mountains. That's real living!

 

yeah, yeah, SG... I know... poor, poor, pitiful you.

But hey, not sure I could stand the 118 degree days in the summer. Humidity or none, that's damn hot.

If I didn't have family here and could move anywhere I wanted, give me San Diego. Moderate temps year round, nice breezes, low humidity. Now that would be the life.

 

If I could afford to live in SD I would!!

 

summers suck but winters make it worth it. Shorts on just back from dog park :P

 

Come on now... a few less options on your JCW, three week vacations instead of four weeks, two butlers and one maid instead of three of each... you could live anywhere you want !