My question is this..

The Mini Dealer did their own JCW upgrades to Mini's prior to 2005 and also part of 2005. Then they slapped "JCW" badges on it so they can sell the car for a ton of more money. There are numerous packages. Some have just JCW body kits. Some have no body kit but do have JCW intake and exhaust. And some do come with the whole shebang. Head modifications, intake, exhaust, ecu tune, pully upgrade, Brake upgrades, etc. There are so many different ones out there. Which ones do really deserve to be labeled JCW? I would imagine just having a JCW exhaust and intake is not enough to call your car a jcw and then all of a sudden the value of your car is higher. So what makes your car JCW and not a replica JCW?

example: You cant buy a standard mustang and then add on a saleen body kit and then all of a sudden your car is a "saleen". You cant just buy an integra LS and then do a light conversion and then all of a sudden you have a type r integra.

Where is the line drawn?

 

In my opinion, it has to have every JCW option that has to do with performance. That means engine, exhaust, brakes, suspension, limited slip, etc. Anything less than all the options means it's only partially JCW. No points deducted for not having the JCW suspension on the cabriolet as it wasn't available. Points deducted for automatic. Bonus points for all the JCW bling.

Based on those definitions, I have a full JCW car with extra points for bling.

( I will now sit back and enjoy my smugness, thank you very much. )

 

I have a 2011 MCS with JCW Stage one tune kit. I consider it a half assed JCW.

 

For Generation 1 cars only:

The early 200 hp dealer installed JCW Tuning Kits came with a Certificate of Authenticity with a Tuning Kit number.
The JCW Sport Brakes were not part of the kit.

The later factory installed, late 2005 availability, 210 hp JCW Tuning Kit (factory option 3AL) included the JCW Sport Brakes as well as the LSD.
This also came with a Certificate of Authenticity and Tuning Kit number.

The factory also made available an upgrade kit for the older JCW cars to bring them up to 210 hp.

The JCW Sport Suspension (option ZSP) was a VDC (port of entry) pre-delivery install or a post-delivery (sold as an accessory) dealer install.
The sport package was not available on the Cabriolet.

As 'martib' has said the JCW wheels or carbon fiber parts are bling.
Also the body kits (areo kit) are not JCW parts on gen 1 cars.

So the answer to your question is:
A numbered Tuning Kit makes your car a true JCW car and the other cars have accessories and or bling available to all Mini owners.

Hope this helps...

 

There were actually several tuning kits. There was what I think is called a sound package" which was the exhaust, intake and I think tuning. That also had the badge number on the valve cover. Does that then not count?

I think the different kits are
1) apearance package
2) sound package
3) performance package(head, ecu tune, upgraded supercharger, etc)

Can someone help me clarify? I am not sure what the wording is on them. But the appearance did not come with a serialized plate. Only the performance and the sound had that.


Then on top of that there was the upgraded brakes, supsension, carbon fiber pieces, wheels etc.

so out of all these packages the only one that can be called a true JCW is the performance package?

sorry not sure what the exact terms are.

 

Perfect answer!!
should actually be posted as a gen1 jcw sticky!!
Might help out lots of folks that think they got a jcw cause it has red brakes and exaust tips....

 

True. But it should be noted, for those less familar with all the ins and outs of JCW cars, not all JCW cars are equal. (As stated above.)

 

Say you bought your "jcw" 2nd or 3rd hand and dont have certificate. How can one find out what stage they have by there tuning kit number?

I have a 03 that i can tell has jcw exhaust, intake, and intercooler, but was bought from a used car lot. the person who traded it in was the second owner.

 

To answer your question, this applies to gen 1 only:

1) There was no JCW appearance package
2) The numbered sound package was on R-50 cars only
3) The numbered performance package was on R-53 cars only

The upgraded brakes, suspension, carbon fiber pieces, wheels etc. were accessories.
The only exception to that was the JCW Sport Brake kit that became a requirement on the 210 hp JCW Tuning Kits installed at the factory.

So out of all these packages and accessories the cars that can be called a true JCW car are those with the numbered JCW Tuning Kit,
factory or dealer installed, on the R-53 or the numbered JCW Sound Package on the R-50.

So the shorthand version is:
The normaly accepted definition of a 'true JCW car' is a R-53 with a numbered Tuning Kit with or without other JCW accessories.

This is not meant to insult owners of R-50's with the numbered JCW Sound Kit, sold as a 'Sound Kit' not a 'Tuning Kit',
but they were few and far between and not normally what one calls a 'true JCW' car.

Hope this helps...

 

A dealer may be able to tell from the number but some older JCW Tuning Kits
have been upgraded with an air box, 380 injectors (blue in color) and an ECU re-flash.

If the air box has the JCW logo on it and your injectors are blue you most likely have the 210 hp kit.

Hope this helps...

 

ill have to take a look in the am with sun light :D

 

The heart of the jcw kit is performance....
Thais is why to be a jcw car you must have the engine kit..
even if you add the compotents to a non jcw car, the outcome is different ...
The head is mildly ported and the tune is different.
Canyou get BETTER THAN JCW performance on a S for less $$? the answer is yes....and many folk took tjis route. Consider the jcw to be a premodded factory car with a warrenty...
now that the warrenty is over...
The differance is real performance and added bling vs the quality of the aftermakets mods...
JCW cars are less common due to the high inital $$, but too common to be much of a collotor car imo. Also the jcw bits were pretty common. They do hower look nice, perform reasonably nice, and do have a bit of a ohwow factor...that is why so many jcws are sold to unsuspecting folks as true fakes....

 

And a warning....
just adding jcw injectors without the proper tune or flash can REDUCE performance...
The jcw injectirs are a small enough increase to not throw a code, but the car will run rich enough with a 15% pullie to loose power....better with a 17% imo, i did it, but nothing compared to tge correct tune.
In this day and age so many folks want to think their car is a hidden jewel, a great buy, etc...
Remember, it is a car, goes down in value...butit is fun to drive, and a great hobby.
On a non jcw it comes down to quality and performance....does all the parts work well together, and does does it do what YOU want.