Ok here's the deal. I'm going to be a new MINI clubman owner I have the option of getting a clubman s at a decent price now or i can wait 6 months or so and save to get a JCW. So my question is, is a JCW worth it or not?

 

Depends on maintenance and the quality of car you're buying. If you can get the S for a good price and it's in better shape than the JCW, then I would say go with the S vs the JCW or vice versa.

 

Depends on what you want. There is a big difference between the F56 S and JCW ... I assume that difference will carry over. That said, the Clubman is a bit more subdued that the F56 and it weighs quite a bit more. Unless the JCW has a lot more power, I'm not sure the case for the JCW Clubman is very good. Pending specs, if I was going for the Clubman, I'd opt for a well-equipped S ... it's a nice wagon with good performance.

 

JCW if you can find one. It will come with the engine, body kit, badges, wheels , big brakes, and has special interior options and a anthracite headliner, sign me up for one.

 

JCW and you'll never regret it.

 

OK here's another question I found a 2009 JCW clubman 85000 miles $7,334. the reason it has manufacturer buyback on the title. Would you buy it? [FONT=Arial]Mini Jcw Clubman.
[/FONT]click on the link to take you to the car desc.

 

I would wait and get a JCW instead of an S. I own one of each and the difference is night and day.

That's an interesting vehicle you linked to. 85,000 on a buyback vehicle is a little unusual, and the price is reflective of that.
If it ran afoul of lemon laws, and had to be bought back, it certainly has a lot of miles put on it outside of warranty, which is strange. I'll go out on a limb and suspect an intermittent electrical/ CanBus issue.
You would need to get the Fob to a Mini dealer and have it's service record extracted. You might be able to get it from CarFax, but the Fob will hopefully have the info on what has been done to it.
I personally wouldn't buy it unless I had enough experience to rip it apart and repair it, or had another Mini similar to it. As a principal daily driver? No.

 

well it's not going to be my daily driver, i have a company vehicle for that. The dealer told me it was for a recall that they didn't have a fix for at the time.

 

Ok I found another JCW the only thing is that it doesn't have sunroofs, http://www.discountautodepot.com/dis...ntucky_002.htm
It's listed at $8500 the guy will let me have it at 8000 right now. I was kinda looking for sunroofs but if they are a problem on mini's, I don't need them. any opinions?

 

Engine compartment rusty bolts are a turn off for me. Used car dealers and mini same issue.

 

Yeah thanks that's why I was asking for opinions, i didn't even catch those rusty bolts.

 

The last time I looked at Mini's own 0-60 times for a S and a JCW there was not a material difference. There was however a very material difference in price.

 

I recently (1 year ago) was trying to make the same decision. After driving a bunch of cars, I decided on the JCW. Here are my thoughts.

But first, I'll tell you that I took her home, and did a minor service (something I do to any used car I buy), including an Alta panel filter (I hate paper filters), a retune using an Access Port, and the Alta recirc valve.

These were my findings during my car hunt, and it could be different for each. The S cars seemed a bit less tq-y, and tended to have a variety of kit (factory or otherwise) that made them feel "pieced together." I've owned two Cooper S (R53) and did the same "piecing together" thing, making it mine. I found that with the JCW, a lot of that was done already, and done with JCW parts. The base-line seemed to be what others (and what I'd) were building towards.

As for the delta in price. I priced out upgrading parts vs JCW, and decided the JCW (used anyway) was a good deal. For a small delta, I could have the better suspension, stronger engine, and a nice interior, not to mention the sought after JCW badges when it comes to resell her.

Final thought.. Insist on a PPI (Pre-Purchase-Inspection). These cars are amazing, but can also go amazingly wrong. Read up on the common faults, learn how to get ahead of them, but get the used car inspected. Seller won't allow for inspection, no sale. I'd buy a clean S over a bad JCW, I just didn't find that to be the case when I as shopping.

 

Well said schreiber117...