I have been in email correspondence with John Cooper in the UK asking when the JCW seats will be available in the US. The reply was that they are available. I replied that my dealer said they could not order them. JC replied with US part numbers (LH & RH). So I'm getting in touch with my dealer to see if that's correct or not. I would think that if they are available for order through MINI then they should have the airbag right??
Keep you fingers crossed :smile: Will keep you posted.
Alan

An update of this thread following an email from John Cooper at JCW.
Quote
I can confirm that the JCW Sports Seats are not and will not be available in the USA. The reason for this is quite simply that the lack of an airbag means the seat will not pass homologation laws, so for BMW to sell these would be illegal. Unless the law in the US is relaxed there is no way around this. I apologize for the misinformation you have been fed and I will ensure that other members of JCW are reminded about this.
Unquote
Bummer - BIG time. Ah well Sparco USA here I come.
Alan

 

Did you ask JCW whether the US seats do indeed have the side air-bag ?

I hope that is so, if only to ensure that our insurance isn't invalidated in case of a major (air-bag deploying) accident

 

Will they be available heated?

 

I did ask if they had an airbag but am awaiting a reply. I would think that if they are offered through the MINI dealerships they would have to have an airbag unless they are for off road use only (unlikely). Will advise when I know more.

Alan

 

I'll keep my eye open on this thread for sure

I smell a group buy here maybe?? Airbag and heated would be great

 

They've only just recently become available here in Australia, and they DON'T have the side airbag.

Although you can order with heating, also include optional thigh support now.

They are also larger than the standard seats, therefore losing more space in the back (only a worry if you often carry rear passengers)

Good luck with availability in the US...

 

Apparently, these JCW seats are basically re-badged Sparco Milano Prestige seats, so until Sparco starts to engineer them with side air-bags I think we're out of luck in the US.

I'm sure you could fit these in the US for road use, but you will probably end up paying a hefty insurance premium increase for the privilege (and if you don't tell them you have them fitted then you're probably royally screwed if you're ever injured in a bad accident & need to make a claim).

 

The side airbag requirement is not a US requirement but a self imposed BMW requirement to maintain good crash test numbers. Many cars offer sport seats without airbags, in place of their standard seats with side airbags. The SRT-4 is one example.

 

"I'm sure you could fit these in the US for road use, but you will probably end up paying a hefty insurance premium increase for the privilege (and if you don't tell them you have them fitted then you're probably royally screwed if you're ever injured in a bad accident & need to make a claim)."

Sounds like speculation. Do you have documentation that shows insurance companies disallow injury claims based on an aftermarket seat fitment? The car still has 4 airbags. That's like saying replacing factory belts with aftermarket harnesses is a basis for denial of claim.

Can anyone shed some light on this?

 

Uh I read from somewhere (i think it was mini2) that if the seats where installed in the U.S. the warranty would be voided. Yikes, yeah I know. It has to do with the airbags, and the airbag indicators I believe. If the standard seats are taken out, then it would require a BMW technician to plug into the car and kill the sensor, which is against policy or something like this. All I know is it voids warranty. Wait 3 years, then put em in.

 

*sigh* When will people learn that an entire warranty can't be voided by a single part? It may in fact be that the warranty on the airbags or something would be questioned if you brought the car in with an airbag problem after installing seats that required tampering with the sensor. But there is no such thing as voiding an entire car's warranty, people! There is tons of documentation on this sort of thing throughout the forums, if you took the time to look before posting.

-mike

 

*Sigh* ok i will go and see where i read that. And yes, the warranty can be voided for a variety of stupid reasons. (such as autocrossing)

 

sigh-again-ok I cant find anywhere where it says the seats void warranty, although i swear I saw a thread somewhere. The only thing I see are oodles of reasons why the seats wont make it here. My solution is, wait three years to let all the BMW bs wind out, then throw em in. (but of course three years is very long and I dont know if I can wait that long.)

 

No, it can't. Don't believe everything you read, buddy.

Mitsubishi has attempted to avoid engine work to cars that have been in autocrosses. And they may have some legal grounding to stand on with that one, but they can't void the entire warranty, nor can MINI USA. If they can justifiably show that something you did with the car (modification, autocross, etc) caused a problem, then they can refuse to perform warranty service. It is, however, legally their burden of proof. Which is not to say unscrupulous dealers won't try their best to get out of it anyway.

Nonetheless, it is US law that an entire automobile warranty cannot be voided, because only specific portions of the warranty can be voided, for specific actions taken by the customer.

And like I said, it's entirely possible that installing the JCW seats in the US would void some portion of your warranty, like the airbags, or even potentially portions of the electrical system. But it would never, ever have any bearing on the rest of your warranty, such as your engine, etc.

If you want to avoid the seats because you think they won't fix a dash rattle in 2 years or something, be my guest, but you're wrong on that one. I'm tired of boneheads not seeing the distinction between voiding the warranty on a part, due to a specific cause and effect, and voiding the entire warranty of a car, which is not legal here.

-mike

 

I also read the same thread about these seats invalidating the warranty.....and yes, I'm perfectly aware that aftermarket parts only invalidate that specific part of the warranty, not the entire warranty.

My concern is that, in the eyes of the insurance company, you are theoretically making the car less safe by removing some of the standard safety equipment. If you were to be involved in a major side-impact collision and you were seriously injured because the side airbags had been removed (without telling the insurance company), then I wouldn't like to be paying the resulting medical bills.

Not sure about the way it works in the US, but insurance companies are not necessarily averse to you modding the car, but they usually increase your premiums if the mods significantly increase the value of the car (e.g. you fit several k worth of ICE), or make it (in their eyes) more likely to be involved in an accident (i.e. significant increase in peformance) or if the mods make the car less safe (e.g. removing ABS system or airbags).

I would love to fit the JCW seats, but would be loath to do so until they come equipped with airbags.

 

Indeed, this is another concern entirely, and insurance companies are mysterious beasts, so I'm not sure on that one.

-mike

 

Update Update Update
I received a reply from JCW to inform me that the seats do not have airbags and after installation the dealer will have to go into the computer to deactivate it. I called my dealer and the seats are listed in their computer but without prices. They have an all leather in black and a red/black in cloth/leather. The part number on the latter is 52 10 0 303 156 and 52 10 0 303 157 (presumably driver/passenger).
I guess we will have to keep checking. By the way they have just listed the JCW suspension kit and JCW wheels.
Alan

 

that is good that they also have a cloth seat. i wonder how much they will go for


keep us updated please

 

I recently spoke to someone at the Works factory about getting the JCW seats in the US. What I was informed was that US dealers could not order them. However, they clearly stated that there was no reason that they could not ship the seats directly to a customer (in the US or not) and if that customer decided to put them in, that was their decision. So, you can get them, just not through your dealer.

PS. Yes, the seats are available with seat heaters in them.

 

Oooooooooooo, I'll all over the red/black cloth/leather seats if they are truly available

 

The parts department guy at my dealer told me that by listing the seats without a price is usually the first step in availability. Otherwise they wouldn't even list them. The person I emailed at JC checked with his parts department and they said quite definitely that they are available in the US. I guess that BMW/MINI haven't yet updated their system. I guess we will have to wait. I have investigated getting some through Sparco and still may do so, but the idea of MINI offering them as an "approved" accessory certainly has its advantages from a "legal" and "warranty" point of view
Alan

 

Allright thats goodnews!! (both on the warranty and seats) I dont care if the seats dont have any airbags, they will go in my into my car. Also, The works seats being in the US computers are likley in there for a reason...

But if they arent available through US dealers, but are slated for US, what is the easiest what to get them, and have them installed?

 

The person who had his warranty denied is in arbitration at the moment. He posted that he has put a new engine in and has continued autocrossing the car and going to hpde or driving schools without any issues. It's believed that one of the dealers had abused the car before the owner received it and the offending dealer had the car warranty called into question to cover himself. Of course, that's speculation. And any future warranty claims had to be approved personally by the DM before being performed. I don't know what exactly which warranty claims..I can't remember right now.

It's all discussed in one of the evo forums by the owner who was denied the coverage. There are lots and lots of pages so forgive me if I forget some of the details.

http://forums.evolutionm.net/showthread.php?t=83525

 

This has nothing to do with my point. The point is that it's not legal, one way or the other. I'm really done trying to explain it now, believe what you all will, hehe.

-mike

 

I am merely discussing warranty denials. But I will give you a big fat dose of reality and that you are at the mercy of the dealer when it comes to accepting or denying your warranty claim. You may be right but you'll pay in terms of time and money proving that against the dealership or manufacturer.