I have 71,000 miles on my 03'-R53, and was looking at some brake work soon. At the onset of purchasing my MINI I decided to purchase upgraded equipment as OEM stuff wore out. Especially the expensive stuff.

I looked at some BBK's, and Upgrade Rotor/Pad/SS Line kits. BBK's are selling for $1,200.00 and up JUST for the kits......and upgraded rotor/pad/line kits for the R53 run from 400 to 500 dollars.

Then I looked up the JCW Sport Brake Kits. Morristown Mini are selling them at cost for $578.00 + 40.00 shipping ! It includes upgraded liners for the rear brakes as well.

I called my parts gal at my MINI Dealer in Rhode Island, Inskip MINI. Janine had the kit as well but not selling at cost. It was a little more, but after club member discount it brought it to within 20-30 dollars of Morristown MINI's delivered price. Inskip had the kit in just a few days and unlike most MINI dealerships, INSKIP gives you a loaner car charging you just .15 cents per mile, and you don't have to fill the gas tank before returning them either............

Installation took 3.7 book hrs to install. AND that Includes flushing brake system and a warranty for brake system parts because they used a new brake fluid from a company which provids replacement brake parts warranty....The total cost for the JCW Sport Brake kit installed was little over $1,000.00 !

My Mini tracks better and braking is smooth like butter. And....the disks don't rust like the OEM one's either.....

I have been going to Inskip now for about 1 year. They installed my B&M SSK, swapped out my SC Belt, and Janine the Parts Manager helped me with obtaining the proper clips needed to attach my Aero kit in December.
Bottom line is that INSKIP is an awesome place to get your MINI serviced and if you are thinking of upgrading your brakes, now is the time, and JCW's are on sale now !

Here are some pics of the brake kit installed.

 

G-Rav,

I did similar and installed a set on my '03 when the original pads and rotors wore out a couple of years ago. Been to the track and all with 'em. My take on the JCW upgrade is: very nice street set up, and adequate for driving schools, but not competition.

MGC

p.s112K on my '03. JCW kit has 30k+ no problems.

 

No offense, thinking as a prospective buyer of a MINI, and considering our present economy, IMO the cost difference offsets any performance gains, and I would NOT buy a pre owned MINI with a hint of any MODS which are due to competition related driving.......These really are not in the same catagory as a CAI, or USB which can be easily swapped out or removed before trading in/selling.

 

JCW brake upgrade is very economical when compared to the likes of Brembo Wilwood and TechStop, but it is still just a single piston system. That said it is also a boon to street driving. As to potential buyers, I don't make any of my decisions on modifications to please others, just myself. My resale value may indeed be compromised, but I could care less.

 

Gray Raven--Love the look of your car!! Especially the combination of those rims and the JCW brakes.

Just wanted to say that.

 

Thanks Wandrur.

They way I saw it. OEM R53 Rotors/Pads/Caliper(s)-poss frozen piston) and a brake fluid flush would have been same book hours, and cost about 800 bucks out the door.

Few hundred dollars more ...........and I drove out with these !

 

3.7 book hours is about twice what it took me to do it in my garage, including the flush (which takes longer than swapping the parts on).

 

I know PGT,that is why they call them "book hours"...lol. Most cases book hours are about twice as long as it really takes to perform a task as short cuts and genius know how are not factored in. And.....these books are printed by the manufacturer.

 

Reminds me of when my brother-in-law was a mechanic at a Dodge/Chrysler/Jeep dealership. He said that the only job that he couldn't do in less time than "the book" allotted was the fuel pump replacement on one particular Jeep model. He's pretty sure that it was a mistake in the book, because it only allotted something like 30 minutes, but on this particular model, you had to start off by draining and removing the gas tank to even get to the pump.

 

I'm still waiting for a nice cheap set of R56 brakes to pop up....

 

I found a nice pair, but the seller wanted $500.00 for them. And that didn't include pads or the upgraded liners for the rear either.....When considering the price of this new kit and what it comes with, a used set off an R56 should be priced at around $200.00-300.00 range.

Here's another good one for ya Henry.

The JCW Exhausts for an R53 are selling in ebay auctions for $900.00-$1,500.00....I can buy it from Inskip for $754.37 !!!!!!!!!!! Are these people on ebay whom are bidding on these out of their mind ?

Here it is in their web site:

John Cooper Works Exhaust MINI Cooper S
The John Cooper Works sport exhaust is the same parallel flow unit, which is included in the John Cooper Works Tuning Kit. The stainless steel exhaust provides a distinctive, very sporty exterior sound and the John Cooper Works branded exhaust tips add a racing look to the car. Price does not include installation.

Item # JCW Exhaust








I can get a full system FROM my dealer for $754.37 !

 

Sweet set up, G-Raven.

And why anybody buys parts from any dealership other than Morristown NJ is beyond me.

 

so, dealer techs aren't geniuses and don't know short cuts? they should be both, relative to the car they're working on. I'm just a guy who has tools and likes to turn wrenches....I'm far from being a 'skilled mechanic'

if you're being billed for install, I'd expect the cost to match the work. 3.7hrs x $125/hr = robbery for the JCW kit. My local dealer wanted $2200/installed on the kit so there's lots of robbery going around these days (MINI of Sterling).

 

Got a simular deal here at our Mini dealer and installed them myself!!! After messing around with different brake pads and still burning them up on track days, I went for the JCW kit. Problem solved and I give the upgrade 5 !

 

Even dealers order from Morristown mini. i was a crevier last week in the will call picking up parts for my buddys E36 (Fuel Pump Fail) and their were boxed parts from morristown....
Kinda comical if you ask me.

 

Dealer techs know the shortcuts to be sure, but the dealer is restricted to mostly follow book hours for labor charges. And don't sell yourself so short either PGT, in some places you may have more skills in areas where a full time wrench turner may not.

Not sure when you got your quote for the JCW Kit, but the kits alone were about $1,200.00 not long ago.........which was inpart, the point of this thread.

 

Damn, if I knew the JCW brakes were that cheap about 2 months ago I would have went that route. I did a full replacement on front and rear pads, discs and fluid change for about the price of the JCW brakes. blast.

 

I'd have liked a set of JCW brakes, but then I couldn't run my 15" holies or steels.

 

Iv got new cross driled and slotted, cryogenically sealed, zinc plated rotors, front and rear for 200$. Then im putting on mintex brake pads off of outmotoring.com 65$ for each front and back. So thts like 340ish. I found stainless lines for like 120. so like 460 total. Do you think the jcw brake kit is better than that? price or performance

 

Yep.

 

As good of a set up as you have for OEM brakes. A larger set of brakes will give you a much different result in sensitivity and stopping power. It's not really a good comparison.

 

Does the JCW brake kit include stainless steel lines? Both front and rear rotors?

 

no lines. front rotors only.

 

JCW kit consist of the two larger calipers, 2 larger front rotors and the JCW front and rear pads (which are much better than OEM).

 

brackets? I don't recall brackets on my kit