Down to the final days. Going to place an order this weekend and I am torn between two options:

- F56 JCW or
- F55 w/JCW Tuning Kit and JCW Brakes

My first choice is the F56 JCW, which I have lusted after for quite a while; however, the practicality of the F55 is very attractive. I plan to order the car with Dynamic Damper Control, so that eliminates any suspension differences. Both cars price out very closely with the same options.

Appreciate your thoughts ... order goes in this weekend.

 

Who will be riding in back? We have 55 & 56. The doors and rear seats don't do much for you unless you have little people in back. I like both cars, hard to choose.

 

I have little people, so the 3 seats will be useful in the back. If the extra seats are not needed go with a true JCW. I have an F55 with Jcw pro upgrades. I feel that it drives pretty nice. The cost does add up with all the Jcw pro options. I do like surprising people since I have the 4 door yet handle like it's a coupe.

Final thought.
You can always upgrade to JCW parts to some extent.
You really can't add 2 doors to a JCW.

 

If we had young children and the car was a primary driver it's a no brainer...we'd go for the F55. But, if this wasn't the case there's no way I'd opt for the F55 unless I already had the 3 Dr JCW! LOL! The wheelbase is longer on the F55 so If ride quality matters that much I'd check the box for the 55. My JCW has the sport suspension & no DDC & I absolutely love it!

So, your decision needs to be based on what your heart desires along with what your head tells you based on your lifestyle.

Good luck,

John

 

First of all if I had to depend on only one car it wouldn't be a Mini. I love mine, but I'm a little skittish about it's long term dependability. That's just my opinion though, and everybody's got one.
I'm partial to the F56 myself. Plenty of room in the back of mine, but I don't think they make a child's seat that'll bolt up to a roll bar.
I'll concur with 02. Especially if you have to use car/booster seats. My grandkids didn't have a problem climbing in and out of mr R56 or F56 for several years. After they got too big I just removed the back seat since it was wasted weight and taking up space. If I need more seating I take the Suburban. Plenty of room in that and it's my fallback vehicle when the F56 is down for maintenance or mods or inclement weather.
Good luck with which ever model you decide on. I'm sure you'll love it.

 

Final specification as ordered:

2017 John Cooper Works Hardtop 2 Door

Color
C19 John Cooper Works Rebel Green Body Color

Packages
ZCW Cold Weather Package
ZTP Technology Package
5DP Parking Assistant

Options
223 Dynamic Damper Control
2HY 17" Black John Cooper Works Track Spoke
322 Comfort Access System
327 White Bonnet Stripes
382 White Roof/Mirrors
481 Sport Seats
493 Storage Package
4BD Piano Black Interior Surface
5A4 LED Headlights with Cornering Lights
5AA Rear Fog Light
655 SiriusXM Satellite Radio
6AD MINI Head-up Display
TYE1 MINI Yours Lounge Leather: Carbon Black

 

Rebel green. Nice.

 

Sounds like a nice one.

 

Vetsvette did you hear the JCW team might be switching to a different NM wheel? I almost got the Rse5 like yours but I wanted white. Plus, found a deal I couldn't walk away from. Jcw Pro with less than 100 miles for super great deal. Anywho, happy motoring everyone!

 

Haven't heard that. NM also has wheels in different colors available. I believe they are for the VW, but the sizes and offsets are pretty much identical. They just machine the inside bore to match the Mini specs. I believe Pedro with Super Mini has a set of red ones he got from NM. Not sure about white, but might be worth a phone call.

 

Nice Car

I'd have mentioned if you looked into the JCW Clubman as an option. Obviously too late now, but next go-round, I'm likely to go that route rather than the F56 JCW. No kids, but a little more room and easier access to the front seat than I experienced w/ the F55 (kept whacking my shoulder every time I got into it).

JCW Clubman will have the most torque offered in any Mini, by a substantial amount. My experience has been torque is where the fun is in normal driving. More power quicker.

Of course, the Clubman come w/ a premium price too. Close to $45K w/ most of the boxes checked. We are now into BMW M240i territory (or an extremely well optioned BMW 230).

 

Smart move, nice car. The fJCW model is better than the MCS with tune and Brembos. You get the body kit thrown in for about the same price as the add-ons. I've yet to see Rebel Green in person. They didn't have any JCW models in Scottsdale when I was down there recently.