I saw my first R56 JCW today, at MINI of Peabody. I was having my stupid ac/heat fan control unstuck (which took 3 hours) and was walking around the lot when I saw it: an AB/W JCW, complete w/ aero kit. Beautiful. Unfortunatley, the sticker tag was incorect, so I have no idea what it cost. They also had a GP (I think GP0317). I was in heaven. And of course, I was unable to test drive . It's for the better: I couldn't afford the Stage 1 until I get my tax return, no sense in teasing!

 

I would really like to see one in person, but I agree, it's probably better not to test drive one unless you're going to order it right away.

 

only 17 hp increase...Geez, guys. It won't feel like a twin turbo or anything.

 

No, but the parts guy (who is pretty chill) said it definitely makes for a noticably quicker car. I'm pretty much doing it for the ECU. I plan on adding the ALTA down pipe, boost tubes, and maybe replace the JCW airbox with the DDMWorks ram-air setup.
Also, check out the comparison to the R53 JCW: They both 0-60 in 6.5, but the R56 is quicker everywhere else. So, faster car for less than the old JCW, and with plenty of room for improvement!

 

Do you know if the extra increase in HP has much of a negative effect on the gas mileage?

 

supposedly not. Supposedly even though you're getting performance parts, they're also more efficient. Plus you have the ECU tuning.

 

My pure guess is... for 10% increase in power output there would be close to 10% loss (3.5mpg) in efficiency. But that would mean if you doubled the power, the engine would get 1mpg. I can't imagine the efficiency would stay the same at any rate.

 

There was a similar discussion on another thread about this subject: Depending on how efficient the new parts are, you could absolutly keep the same MPG. Of course, I wouldn't because of my right foot :P