I came to Mini from the Japanese market, because there aren't any good hatches here in the states. Because of our badging Honda/Acura Toyota/Lexus etc. There are cars that would cut into the market of one company while under the badge of another. Ex: The Civic Type R cutting into the Acura RSX-S market. This led me to buy a MCS, which I am in love with each day more and more.

The great thing about the big Japanese companies is that they have sister (cousin?) aftermarket companies that get a look at the blueprints so their aftermarket parts are perfect compliments to the stock system. Honda/Mugen, Nissan/Nismo Mazda/Mazdaspeed, Mistubishi/Rally Art are all examples of this collaboration.

I'm new to the European market so I’m not sure if they have the equivalent, but it's obvious to me that while Mini has one of these companies (JCW) the only parts they allow outside of a 7K package is an intake, and a strut/spring suspension setup.

I'm trying to grasp why this seemingly perfect union is so one sided. When it comes to ordering from any of the Japanese companies (Mugen etc.) I can order any part that they produce for my make of car...Honda holds nothing back nor regulates the configuration in which Mugen must sell its products.

I understand that JCW and Mini have a partnership, and a deal must have been struck somewhere disallowing the sale of singular JCW parts to anyone in the US, but I can't put my finger on why Mini would attach this limitation to JCW.

 

You can get the head, injectors, wheels, etc. I dont know what you mean holding back...

 

As per the JCW website:
,and as per my local dealership (the only one in WI) I can only order the intake, and suspension. I've seen JCW injectors for sale on other websites, but nothing from JCW, or Mini.

 

The engine upgrade package is just that - a PACKAGE. The supercharger, cylinder head, exhaust and engine reprogramming are designed to work together so you can't get them on their own.

You can get the air intake on its own, because it can offer some standalone benefit.

But separate to all that JCW offers a suspension package, upgraded brakes, JCW 18" wheels, various carbon fiber bits (exterior & interior) and most recently, an ugly spoiler.
Your dealership should be able to source all these parts.

 

Coop,


The information you have posted from the JCW site is from their Motorsports division. This is mostly considered non street legal and is for the race series only. These are much harder to purchase from JCW because you have to purchase from their store front and have it installed at their store front in England.

With that said they have a number of things available from the dealership. The JCW setup is different from Mugen. JCW is the only third party performance supplier in the world that gets the backing of the full factory warranty from a car manufacturer. The kits and equipment are not made by Mini but can be serviced at any Mini dealership and are fully warrantied along with the factory warranty. This is what you can purchase from your dealership:

-JCW tuning kit - this is typically only purchased as a complete unit (i.e. head, supercharger, injectors, belt, spark plugs, injectors, ECU software, and intake). You have to purchase these all together because the warranty is for the complete kit. They don't believe the parts can hold up for as long by themselves without all the other pieces acting together. Remember JCW really tests these products. These haven't been track tested for 20,000 miles like many other vendors. These have been tested for 150,000+ miles. JCW has never had a kit returned, and they have tested these extensively from tracks in far Norther Sweden to Dubai.

-JCW upgrade kit - If you have purchased your tuning kit in '04 or before. Then this kit adds new ECU Software, injectors and intake, to add about 10hp more.

-JCW intake

-JCW Suspension - This kit comes with 4 struts and springs and is developed per your cars configuration. You must supply your VIN number to the dealership who then orders the kit based on the weight of your car from the other options that were ordered at the time of the build.

-JCW brakes - This kit comes with new calipers up front. Larger discs up front, upgraded brake pads front and back.

-JCW 18" Wheels

-JCW carbon fiber interior - high price, but excellent quality.

-JCW external carbon fiber pieces - boot handle, mirror caps, and intake scoop

-JCW door sill plates

-These parts are in the US distribution center but have not been released to the dealerships (JCW front strut bar, JCW rear wing).

-These parts are available from JCW but not in the US (JCW sport seats (Sparco Torinos with special coverings), and JCW rear sport seats).

- JCW injectors - These are not typically sold separately and some dealerships may not order these for you by themselves. With that said, you can find dealerships that will sell them for you such as Classic Mini, and there are a number of vendors on this site who will sell them as well


While the JCW kits are not wild, they are very well engineered. They give you the piece of mind not just with the warranty, but that the company will be around in 10-20 years and that the parts will hold up with the life of the car. They are very well integrated and they fit very well into the car. They are typically not the very best you can get, but are often a compromise between streetabilty with sportiness. The JCW are not designed to be the best track parts or always the best deal for the money. As you can tell by my handle on this board, I have a lot of JCW parts and I love them.

 

Well, mugen, nismo etc. aren't always the best parts on the market but I compare them to the JCW parts as far as quality and fitment. Mazdaspeed, Rally Art, and STi are all 3rd party factory warranty backed companies, STi being the most noteable. None of the aftermarket parts I put on my car are technically street legal as per the WI DoT regs, and I'm sure that applies to most states with any sort of emissions regs. Most aftermarket products are all listed as off road applications if you read the fine print.

I dont buy the whole "package" argument either, its not like any of those pieces wont improve the performance of the car on an individual basis. I have an intake, and pulley, and its not like the head, exhaust, ecu, or SC wouldnt improve my car if I put them on one at a time.

I just find it frustrating that the only company that has a direct connection between their parts, and the actual MCS design, is limited to, or limiting what they sell.

 

Coop,

A couple of comments. The JCW products are not off road applications. In fact they are street legal in almost every country in the world. Since the Mini is sold in about 100 countries all the parts have to be compatible to the regs of that country.

JCW doesn't limit what they are selling. Only the tuning kit is sold in one piece. I agree the parts by themselves would show improvement. But JCW doesn't want to warranty each part by itself, because the entire package also contributes to it's longevity. They are putting their name behind these for basically 100,000 miles or more.

Mazdaspeed, STI and Rally Art are not quite the same as JCW. They are close but not quite the same. For example, only the Mazdaspeed blue parts are warrantied for the full life of the factory warranty. But the blue parts only consist of such things as oil caps, license plate holders... When you jump up to something like an exhaust it jumps it to a green category which only has a limited warranty for one year.

JCW does limit their motorsport items, because these are truly race items. They are not street legal. They are only designed for those individuals who track their cars. If you want something more extreme, just go with aftermarket.

 

also... the jcw cylinder head alone... won't do much for you... they don't flow that much better than a factory head... They do flow better but not enough to justify the cost stand alone... now in conjunction with all of the other items in the package it makes a significance.

also... you CAN source these parts individually you just have to be in contact with a parts person at the MINI dealer who knows what they are doing... You can order replacement parts for just about anything... in other words if a head gasket fails on a JCW car and the cylinder head warps and the manufacturer is going to warranty it... they are not going to put an entire new JCW kit on the car... they are going to put just the JCW cylinder head on... also if the JCW Cars supercharger fails prematurely they are only going to replace the supercharger... JUST about everypart is available individually from the dealer

hope i shead some light on this topic

 

I'm refering to mainly a non-warrantied aftermarket for JCW parts. The same way you can put Sti parts on a WRX, but not have them warrantied. Even if its a JCW part # here in WI its not legal to swap any stock part for an non factory replacement part, ie: If I didnt buy the car with a JCW package putting any JCW parts on afterwords is considered non legal as per the WI DoT regs. This includes suspension, and in most counties wheels as well.

Carb legality and all the certification means nothing in my state, and I'd be willing to bet that if you looked through the entire DoT codebook from your state you would find the same thing.

That being said, I have yet to find a dealer that would be willing to sell me a JCW exhaust. If you find one let me know

And by the by...the OBX header I just bought is a "race only" application...doesn't seem to stop OBX from selling me that part.

No offense to those that have posted, but I still haven't heard a valid reason why JCW or Mini won't let me buy (edit: the majority of the JCW line which are) the only parts that are factory speced.

 

My local dealership will; but I am hoping to get the complete kit when it is eventually approved

 

Could you pass on their #?

 

MINI of Peabody: 978 536 0088; ask for Scott in parts. Tell him Ian (GBMINI) sent you

 

bmw/mini N. scottsdale in Scottsdale arizona will... contact amber or steve in parts at 480-538-3900


they have sold numerous jcw exhausts. Also... just so you know the JCW exhaust costs an arm and a leg! I would probably go with a borla street exhaust if you are looking for something quiet... you will probably save yourself close to 400 dollars and they sound very similar

 

Sterling probably will See http://forums1.roadfly.com/mini/foru...6475094-3.html

 

FYI:
Miltek exhaust looks better, sounds better and IS better than The JCW exhaust

 

Subjective.
Subjective.
Unsubstantiated.

 

"MINE IS THE BEST!"

aka whatever I got is the best!