Finally went over to Minis of Bedford as I have been meaning to do all week. They have a JCW on the lot and I wanted to at the very least check it out and see how it looks. It was still covered in plastic, but I did get a good look and got to take it for a nice ride. Even better, the dealer did not insist on going with me.

Looks:
While still not a huge fan of the huge tail lights and the front bumper, the car does look really nice, especially with the red roof. The interior is very nice and refined and is the best looking interior I have seen on a mini to date. Very refined, yet still very Mini. The car also did not sound like it was going to rattle apart on bumps.

Sound:
The exhaust has a nice deep growl, much better than in the JCW ad with Tony Hawk, and sounds brilliant while in the car. I walked away from it while it was running and it sounds pretty good outside too. The burble is easy to get going and it really just sounds incredible. I also drove it on the highway, and there was no droning or annoying (long term) noise.

Driving:
Almost gave myself whiplash coming out of the lot when I first got to really hit the gas. This car is really quick. The power delivery was incredibly smooth and there was no lag or anything. The body roll in corners was almost non-existent and the car just felt more poised the faster I drove it. I got it out on the highway and after a few seconds looked down and I was doing 95 without even trying. I was a good boy and slowed it down to more acceptable limits

One thing I was a little worried about was the ride comfort with the sport suspension. I am no longer worried. The JCW with run flats and 17 inch wheels actually went over the broken pavement and potholes smoother than my R56 S with standard suspension and non-run flat 16 wheels. At the same time, turn in was awesome and the handling around corners was sublime.

While I have a manual on order, the automatic transmission is pretty nice. It shifts fast and seems to pair well. I hate driving an automatic, so not my cup of tea, but if I was forced into one that would not be such a bad thing.

Overall:
Holy crap. I definitely made the right decision to get one of these. Now I have to wait 3-4 months knowing what I will be getting and I think that is going to make it more difficult.

While the ride is not as visceral as the R53 and R56 JCWs were, this new one feels a lot quicker and just as much fun without the harshness. This is good for me since I am getting a bit older and while I still like to have fun, it is nice to do it a little more comfortably.

If you have any questions, please shoot them my way. I will post some pictures of the one I drove when I am typing from a computer and not my IPad.

 

It sounds awesome, thanks for sharing. It makes me more excited to get mine!

 

Good review! Have you driven an F56 mcs for comparison? Do you know if the car has ASD? Did it have ddc if so did switching the damper control change the stiffness much? I believe you can get it with the sport suspension on the jcw.
Thanks for taking the time to post your impressions.

 

The JCW offers the sports suspension at no additional cost or DDC for $500. If you go for the DDC, it doesn't combine the SS so it's really the regular suspension + DDC which gives you the +10 or -10 but not the +30 of the SS all the time. I ordered mine with SS so I could get max go-kart feeling!

 

Where are the pictures?????

 

Interesting you say that. My dealer is of the opinion that the DDC system is not the same. In fact I questioned him and spoke to the manager and confirmed that the DDC on the JCW is stiffer than on the "S". He may be wrong but they are a big dealership.

 

I have driven the f56 MCS although a while ago. This car is so much quicker and stiffer as far as body roll.

Not sure what ASD is. Is that the Active Sound thing? If so, not sure if it has it. I drove with the windows up and down and the car sounded amazing both ways.

No DDC, just the sport suspension.

Will pull them off of my phone a little later this morning and post them. I am at work so need to find a strategic time to do so.

 

Makes me excited for the 4 door.

 

Thanks for the write-up. I'm excited to test drive one.

 

 

Thanks for the mini-MINI review.

It's a relief to hear it's sounds great, handles great, and rides great too. I'm not surprised it's quick; it should be for all that torque area-under-the-curve.

That White Silver looks great when in the sunshine. I'm also fairly glad I didn't choose the Race spoke wheels; the're not my favorite of the 4 choices.

-->Questions:
*How was the throttle response? Lazy, average, aggressive?
*What is your impression of the steering feel versus the R53? Road feel, "chattiness", on-center strength?
*How does the brake pedal feel? Firm, squishy, short or long pedal travel?

Thanks!

 

I only drove it in sport mode (of course) and the throttle response seemed to be very immeidate. Unlike my 11 R56 S where I have to blip the throttle before taking off, there was really no delay at all. Felt like a car with a sprint booster.

Steering feel vs R53 is a tough one as it has been several years since I drove one. I again have to use the word immediate because there was no dead space and the feedback was good without ripping the wheel out of your hands. Turns were smooth and direct and very easy to just point the car to where you want it with no chattiness that I could detect in my limited drive. On center strength was great, and the wheel is easy on the hands and arms so good for keeping centered.

The brake pedal was again, immediate. A little on the squishy side, but good feel without being difficult. The travel was relatively short, and I will say that those brake blow away the ones in my R56 S.

I actually like the race spokes a little bit less now that I have seen them in person, but still don't dislike them. I think they will look good on my car.

One other thing I forgot to mention, and I am surprise it has not come up, is the new seats. This had the leatherette version of the new JCW seats, while I have the cloth coming in mine. Let me just say that the seats are the best I have ever sat in for any car minus recaros. They were soft, yet firm. Bolstered in all the right places so you do not feel like you will slide around. Good lumbar support. Best of all for an aging guy like me, really comfortable. I could see long road trips being a lot easier with those seats.

 

Thanks for the feedback. All sounds wonderful. Also great to hear the seats fit you very well. Just as a reference point, what is your height & weight?

Much appreciated,
Ryan

 

5 foot 10 and around 180, but I could see them being good north of that. Really large people may have an issue.

 

Hey hows it going! I took a test drive over at Mini of Boston in ordered a Thunder Grey JCW w/ a red roof of course. Thank you for posting the pic of the white one they have up in NH. Did it have the HUD display?

 

Did you get a Picture of the Thunder Grey and Red Roof?

 

No.. matter of fact I haven't found anywhere there is one however I have the pics of the Thunder Grey JCW ( and the new JCW w/ black and red roof) I test drove in Boston to give you a idea. Let me just figure out how to post pics on here lol.

 

Awesome review! Thank you!

 

 

 

AWESOME color for the JCW - I think it would look pretty sweet with the chili red roof/mirrors.

Cool thing I found out about the HUD in the JCW = it has a rev counter/gear indicator!

 

Very cool I ordered my
w/ Automatic trans w/ black 17 spokes w/
the nav Xl w/ HUD - wired package / heated seats / Sat radio and the cornering Leds w/ the sun roof

 

Yes the one I drove had the HUD.

I am also doing thunder gray with red roof and trying to get some custom stripes for it. Mine is a manual so will be a while until I get it.

 

Yea I think the thunder grey should look good w/ the red roof. I have a $650 accessories criedt that I worked in my deal w/ Mini of Boston so among other things I might add the black Union Jack sunroof graphic ..might look good w/ the grey and red theme. I'm glad you were able to take it out on the highway.. My test drive was limited to under 4k RPMs and on the streets of Boston lol.

 

Thanks for your pictures.

Considering the cost of one of these with decent options being in the 40K range, I don't foresee another Mini in my future if there is even a Coupe to come back.

There are so much better cars in this price range with more reliability records and far better performance.

The front end of this new JCW is simply ugly and the rear tail lights oversized from other pictures I saw. The overall design is missing in putting together something attractive.

Of course, this is just my opinion.