Today I went to the dealer ship (Knuaz in Lake Bluff, IL) to order my MCS, and to go for another test drive to get me pumped about the new car. I test drove both a JCW MCS and an Automatic (YIKES! It was the only non JCW S they had, and I really wanted to see ABOUT how fast my car was going to be, as I'm not getting the JCW). I had to say that I didn’t feel that the JCW was a lot faster... I'm looking for feedback from people who have driven both the standard S and the JCW S.... Lets here your stories and impressions...





Ryan

 

I'll say this. I have an MCSa. A friend of mine has a JCW MCS. Coming back from the track one day we pulled up to a streetlight while it was red. He revved, I revved.....we looked at each other..... we smiled.... eyebrows were raised..... a beautiful moment for all concerned.

So I put my MCSa into manual, turn off DSC, and we both take off full throttle at the green light. The next light was perhaps 1/2 a mile away or so. When we got there, he was _maybe_ a grand total of 1.5 to 2 car lengths (MINI car lengths that is) ahead of me.

Considering I was driving an auto, just a little out of the break-in period, going on big old 17" runflats, completely stock, I have to say that I was pretty surprised that my car kept up as good as it did. It was then that I decided that the JCW wasn't worth the $$$$$.

Flame aways JCW'ers, just my .02

-- Jay

 

Is there any data or does any one know if the Auto is faster than the manual... there is no reason it should be... but just wondering...



Ryan

 

I recall reading in the many reviews of the 05 models (many referred to on my website) that the auto is about 1 second slower over the quarter than the manual. I know there are lots of variables to consider, but the auto is heavier, and there are people who can shift a manual like greased lightening.
I also read somewhere that the paddle shifters are cool, and the writer claimed not much slower than a manual. I run a Logitech MOMO steering wheel on PodRacer and I'd love to have real sequential manual paddle shifters on my car (ceteris paribus.)

cheers,
philip

 

I seem to remember reading somewhere that the JCW kit reduced the 0-60 time something like 0.4 - 0.5 seconds. I could be wrong, but that's what I remember.

I have an MC-40 with the JCW kit that I bought from Knauz about a year ago. I haven't raced it but I'm satisifed with the performance.

I think I saw the two cars you mentioned last week when I was there. I think the auto version of the S was all black (body/top/mirrors). I kind of liked it.

 

have you been satisfied with Knauz? Have you had any service done... i want to get the extended waranty, but i got burned by honda on one and ended up returning it....

 

yup, the black on black auto ran real well, I'm a manual guy, but it was nice to get an idea of what the regular s could do....

 

The paddle shifters were a nice touch, but i cant get into the whole Tiptronic thing... i never know when i should or will be allowed to shift....

 

Motor Trend tested a '05 MCS doing 0-60 around 6.4, they recently tested a MCSa getting to 60 in about 7.7seconds, with a trap speed about 8 mph less than the manual. The writer said the auto only took alittle away from what he said was a great driving experience. Hope that helps


Cheers, Jonathan

 

I've been exploring the same issue of how much faster the JCW is off the line. There are threads posted on NAM, but not much of concrete answers. I can offer that the MCS is touted at 6.8 and the JCW site claims 6.2 sec. I have heard from others that the JCW beats 6 sec. My own JCW: I've not timed it or gone head to head with an MCS. I drove the MCS with the paddles and can tell you the JCW not only feels faster but has gobs more mid-range torque, which to my taste is a very important characteristic when it comes to passing the pokeys. Although 0-60 satisfies the muscle mania, it doesn't come into play much in day to day driving. Some days my JCW feels frighteningly fast, some days just awful quick. I can't tell if the difference is mechanical, environmental or just mental:impatient

 

OK, if you really want to be flamed I'll try but I'm not very good at it .

In a 1/4 mile a stock MCS can reach around 95mph. In a 1/2 mile I would think a JCW could hit 120mph maybe more. I say your friend was waiting for your slow butt to catch up!:smile:

 

I have an 04 mcs that became a JCW at 17,000 miles. What a difference since the JCW and My ALTA intake. Is it worth $7gs......no. I would rather have done the car aftermarket but I had to maintain my warranty so. I love the car anyway and yes it is quick. Many miles of smiles

 

The MCSA is 32 pounds heavier. The data I have is:

0-60 ... 7.7 sec
1/4 mile ... 15.7 sec
brake 60-0 ... 36.8 meters

You will thank later if you buy the manual transmission.

 

i felt that the JCW has better top-end, not to much off a difference off the line. not worth the extra money in my opinion.

 

I agree Konky... i could always buy a pully and intake set for a 4th of the price, but i dont want to mess with the waranty. ALSO, i think the MCS if sat enough stock, so i dont think i will be modding it at all....

 

I'd be willing to bet that you could get the same performance as the JCW by just going with lower profile non run flat tires on the lighter 16" wheels to improve the final drive ratio and the rotating weight.

 

Please elaborate, which brand of wheels, which tires, and how does this effect the final drive ratio (NOOB ALERT!) aka, what is the final drive ratio and what determs sed ratio....NOOB

 

I'm willing to bet not. The 2005 MCS gear ratios are lower than the earlier cars and lowering the final drive more would have diminishing returns IMHO. I will give you this, a lighter wheel tire combo would help acceleration, how much I don't know.

 

I would not recommend installing a tire wheel combo with a diameter much smaller than stock. This will change your final drive ratio which may help acceleration but your car will turn higher revs on the highway. Your speedometer will read faster than you are actually going and your odometer will record higher mileage than you have actually traveled.

 

the cooper is not meant to drag race.. and works package helps off the line, but the works i think is really about have a nice smooth flat torque curve...

I wonder why people like to flame about the works so much, its just another accessory like a big brake kit, etc.. which may or may not make sense to all either emotionally or financially.. Ya know, people could flame against the brembo bbk stating comparable braking can be had with a wilwood bbk or stop tech.. folks just like what they like....maybe like the people that buy very heavy big 17 or 18 inch wheels b/c they look good to them.. others may think the heavy wheel is a huge performance drawback ..... the only other thing I could of is that people would really like the works kits, but can't bring self to pay for it and thus the negativity... Its just a car....

 

I personally think the MCS and MINIs in general would greatly benefit from a 15" lightweight and non-runflat wheel tire combo.

I never understood the big deal about big wheels, other than, bling bling.

I have stock 16" runflats in my '05 MCS and driving both a '05 MCS 6MT with 16" runflats and 17" runflats there is a noticeable difference in acceleration.

 

Its your money spend it any way you like, as a proud owner of "THDUKE" which has the JCW package installed in 03 @ 18K miles and now reads 100485 mile on the odometer, which makes it 82485 miles of JCW bliss, tons of track days and no engine problems, is that if I had to do it over I would not change a thing.

 

dkstone-


So good to hear someone with over 80,000 trouble free miles on their JCW Kit. I have done the do-it-your self mods with after market parts and It can be very rewarding. It can also be frustrating when you can't solve a problem and don't know who to turn to. At this point in my life I have very little time to work on my cars yet I still desire to drive something with more power than the factory delivers, this is what sold me on the JCW.

 

congrats.......glad you went over the 100 k mark... my plan is to achieve the same deal-- hopefully many many trouble free track days....... with jcw grins......

I went for the lightweight wheels for longevity and performance and love the results... ... 15x7, forged, less than 11 pounds..........

 

Buying a JCW should be predicated on what you like to do with your car and what your priorites for it are. Just like any other mod.

Being .4 seconds quicker in a 0-60 is mearly meaningless in everyday driving, to me. But I like the way the car feels.

I've driven all the mini models except the MCSA Convertible.


I love the base cooper for sporty yet forgiving commuting, and cruising.

I love the cooper S for the off the shelf performance for the money.

I love the Cooper Works for the extra grunt in the mid to upper range.

I love the convertible for the fact that it offers a pure fun ride.

But I settled on a JCW because I wanted to maintain my warranty, and engine service agreement, and still mod the car. I could've bought an S and did a buncha aftermarket stuff to it, and voided the SC warranty, and potentially other elements of the drivetrain warranty, but my personal priority was to maintain it, while having a peppy, fun, quick little cooper.

Everybody is different.