I am now going to put on a JCW Kit on my Cooper S. Recently I read a motortrend article about the new Cooper S and how the 0-60 mph time was considerably less than that of the '02-'04 Cooper S (nearly one second) . Since the JCW kit of the '02-'04 Ss' brought down their 0-60 times can I expect the new kit to do the same, and if so where abouts will it be?? Also anyone with a JCW Suspension kit?? How much better is the handling than that of a stock Cooper S with SS+??

 

I believe I'm starting to hear crickets in this thread...
chirp, chirp, chirp...

 

I have a 05 MCS with the JCW kit on it and it's great! The car pulls very strong, is super smooth, and is a real blast to drive. The only real problem with the car is that it seriously needs a LSD (our 05 was a September 2004 build MCS and so the LSD wasn't an option at the time we ordered it) because with the JCW kit on the car it has so much low end power that it simply spins its wheels all the way through 4th gear when the DSC is switched off (making it a real challenge to drive).

However, the car turned out to be a lemon and had to be bought back by MINI (which had nothing to do with the JCW kit BTW). For the replacement 05 MCS (which has an LSD this time around ) I've decided not to replace the JCW kit. While I really liked the other car with the kit on it, I think that it was way over priced for what you get (i.e. for your $6,000 plus tax). For less than a third of the price of the JCW kit installed, you can make the car just as fast (or even faster) with aftermarket mods such as a pulley, ECU upgrade, CAI, and exhaust (although you will lose the factory warranty for the relevant parts of course).

Just my $0.02...

 

You don't need no stinking badges!

 

Actually, I still happen to have the badges from my first car as I didn't want them installed.

 

hahahhahahahhahaahhahaah rofl classic classic .

 

Me too. Then I get assigned a license plate wth JCW ###!!! sweet

 

I have an '05 JCW and yes it is faster than an '04 JCW. You will probably get a lot of guff for hgetting a JCW kit from the people on this forum. You may have better luck on Mini2. Most people on NAM are only interested in the most performance per price, of which the JCW doesn't fit into.

 

No fear Chili, I have an '03 with JCW and just ignore anyone who complains about JCW and its price. Fact is it is a superb upgrade, regardless of its price. Very good power, very refined. After two years though I am finding myself wanting even MORE power, and am looking into a variety of options to add that power. The same could possibly happen to you too down the road. Consider yourself forwarned!

 

Yes, but that's the whole problem right there... You spent 6K on the JCW kit and yet you're still longing for more power from the car. You paid those big bucks for the JCW kit just to retain your factory warranty (or for the prestige, etc.) and now you're going to ruin it all by adding aftermarket performance parts onto the car. Believe me when I say that I'm not a JCW hater/basher (as I owned one and really liked the way that it drove, etc.), but why bother with it if you think that you'll just be left wanting more afterwards? For less money you can have a faster car with aftermarket parts. No?

 

"Ruin it all"? Isn't that a bit hyperbolic? If SCA has the jack and wants to crank up the hp, then more power to him/her, so to speak. For all you know SCA drops $6k a week on dry cleaning alone.

 

We have an '05 with JCW tuning package and love it

 

Chili, we got our '05 MCS/JCW on Friday and we're having a ball. LSD is highly recommended. Can't imagine how this car could put the power down without it. Tiptoeing through the break-in period is almost as tortuous as waiting for the car to be built. The 7K redline is such a tease!

Have fun, Dave

 

Dave,

Let me live through you! My 05 MCS/JCW (with LSD) won't arrive until May 1st. Someone, anyone, how do you survive the wait? I can't take it much longer. Good thing for the Mini dealer is 45 min away, or I'd be there all day, tapping my fingers in inpatience.

Nozz

 

I tried one at the dealer, I did not think it was that much more powerfull, well, mostly I noticed it in the lower RPM range, but the car did seem to want to GO more. I can not say I cared for the torque steer. I guess DCS/ASC where on, because the tires did not spin at all...

Doug

 

My MCS got to the dealer last Friday and it has been sitting there waiting for the JCW to get installed which keeps getting bumped back. This part has by far been the worst part of the wait as I know that I could be driving Bruno around, but I have to wait for the mechanics to get around to work on him. My dealer did give me the key though so I can go visit him whenever I want :smile:

Edit: I just talked to my MA and she promises I will have it by Friday, so I will get the 3 day weekend to work off all those pesky breakin miles!

 

Must not have had the LSD ... ours doesn't have noticable torque steer???

BTW, I noticed a big difference between driving a MCS w/o the JCW tuning kit and ours. I'll have to try and get it on a dyno this summer and see what it's got.