I'm starting to rethink my strategy after reading up more about alternatives. There is definitely an advantage keeping the warranty intact, and a jwc kit would be a good match for my factory jcw appearance package.

The rated hp figures on the mini site for the tuning kit sound very low for a 2013 model year. Does anyone have the power rating for the kit when installed on recent model years?

 

This is from a totally different perspective...

I thought about the MCS vs the JCW and decided against the JCW because if a car is all about the image of the person, then a JCW is actually very much a boy's car. I bought the MCS vs the regular Mini because my previous car, a 97 4-cylinder Z3 that I loved (but only had 2 seats; I needed 4), had no real power even with all the Dinan performance mods. I didn't want the 6-cyl models because they looked like they geared it to guys.

So, I kind of see the MCS as being both a boy or a girl's car. If I upgrade it with the JCW kit, it's still less masculine looking than the JCW. I'm curious...how many women actually own a stock JCW?

 

Good info! I was wnating to look into this for my 2013 R55. Nearly $4k is way too much for the relatively small performance gain. Kinda wished I would have gone with the factory install when I ordered for $2500 Oh well, at the time I was trying to stay within a budget on the build.

 

SYCD: the Tuning Kit bumps the S from 181hp to 197hp. Regardless of numbers on paper, the difference over the S is pretty impressive.

Also, the quoted price I'm seeing of $4k seems high

 

Just thought I let those know who might be looking at getting the 2013 JCW Tuning Kit installed on their 2013 MCS's.
After I had abandoned the plan to get it done earlier (due to the price), I got that 250 Dollar prepaid card this week, which Xfinity hadn't sent out in time. So, with that extra cash I looked at it and made the ad-hoc decision to 'subsidize' the horrendous cost for getting the kit installed.
I will pay now 3,850 USD for the Tuning Kit on my 2013 MCS, will get installed this Wednesday/Thursday.
This is a 400 Dollar discount they claim to have given me already.
I'll keep you folks posted on the technical result and the experience with it.
And yes, I DO KNOW this is a rip-off and yes, I DO KNOW that the next generation's engine will be having as many horses as my 2013 with the Kit installed, but I am still going for it.
Financially it makes anyway no sense driving a Mini, that's one reason why Mini Drivers are different ; )

 

Got the 2013 JCW Tuning Kit finally installed on my 2013 MCS this Wednesday!
Dropped the car at 7:30 in the morning and they had finished the job by 4 pm.
Again, I paid ridiculous 3,800 USD for it, but I have no regrets at all!
For sure you get more for your buck if you go for the Factory JCW model, but for all those who:
a) 'only' went for the Cooper S and ...
b) are willing to spend the money
... I can only say, that the whole car feels now even much more like a 'package'. I did order the Sport Suspension factory installed by the way.
The exhaust sound is now absolutely great and probably the thing I enjoy most.
I had loved the pop and burble before, but what I did not like with the Cooper S exhaust was that the pop sometimes sounded light a tinny bang. Now it is just music to my ears, gone is the tinny bang, which made the pedestrians turn their heads, what I hear now is a low grumble, pop and burble. Catch myself often with the windows down and the moonroof open just to hear the music from the exhaust ... : )
The gain of 16 bhp, bringing it to 197 bhp (or 200 hp) is clearly(!) noticeable, but interestingly I only really started enjoying that once I had driven a few dozen miles.
The only one big thing I am probably unhappy about now is the all-season Runflats on my car, but I don't want to spend the money for another set of wheels and I don't know whether the tires are so bad because of them being runflats or all-season, probably the combination of both.
For sure, with my next car I will go for the next generation JCW model straight from the factory, but for those who don't want to swap their cars against a JCW model, the upgrade is worth a serious thought, I do not regret it at all and would defintely do it again. Love my Mini now even more than before (putting now even more miles on it just for fun, e.g. getting the bread, the oats and the bananas in individual shopping runs).
By the way, despite claims the dealership had installed 2013 JCW upgrade kits before, mine was in fact the first they did and they had quite some research to be done to identify the right kit, as Mini internally had not updated the system, probably the reason why you still get the 'old' performance specs listed when you go to the Mini US website and look up the JCW Tuning Kit for the 2013 model.
Oh, one more note, if you use Mini Connected, the Sport Instruments will actually show the higher bhp and torque of the upgrade kit in the display. I had read previously that this will still show the Cooper S values. Not that it would matter much, but for those who are interested ...

 

Can I put the JCW intake on the n18 engine? I saw one available in OutMotoring... Anyone do it?

 

Good info. I was thinking about it , but now for sure!

 

Way Motor Works told me its the same airbox as the "S" just with a JCW logo and a dry filter. Kind of a bummer.

 

Locate an n14 air box and just use the bottom half....then purchase the stage 1 JCW intake( the one with the cone filter) and you have a bonified CAI!

 

after your jcw tuning how is the burbble and pops? does it get louder?

 

Never got the JCW tune. Too expensive.......I am now interested in the new to come out soon BMS JB+ tune.....only $300 for same performance. I got quoted over $4k for the JCW tune. Check out the JB+ no warrentee w/ it but it removes from your car in 10 seconds w/ your eyes closed.

 

I wish that I'd have originally purchased a '13 JCW, only because it is tunable. Other than the brakes, I'd would've still heavily modified the JCW. I have a '13 MCS, and at this point, I can only hope that someone will break the code, so that anyone who owns a 2011 R56N or newer, can have the option, of doing with their mini, what they bloody well please. As far as using a JCW tune... Why should I replace A DOS CIA, and a DOS W2A IC, to purchase their tune? Besides with a JCW tune, I'd want to make a few significant engine upgrades... MCS and JCW are simply apples and oranges - there are significant differences.

 

I'm not sure what way was talking about, but my kit included an airbox with a cylindrical paper filter like this:
http://www.ecstuning.com/ES35340/

I'm a different person, but I've had a JCW tuning kit on my '13 MCS since day one. Burbles and pops may be a bit more plentiful than stock, but it's hard to say that's not related to the generally louder exhaust (which, in my case, is still a bit quieter than the kit that is sold in the R56 kit).

--Matt

 

Maybe its because I'm a car guy and do my own wrenching and such but WOW..... $3,000 fpr 17 horsepower. To justify that with all the aftermarket options that provide better number is just asinine. "But its made specifically for the car"? You mean all these sponsor sites and vendors don't do any r&d? Their parts don't bolt onto my car? I can pull my exhaust off and put it on another make/model? No... just like every other dealer-available upgrade that is supposed to come on a higher model, its priced insanely.high to justify just buying the higher model. $3,000 for a filter box that takes 10 minutes to swap, half and exhaust system that might take 30-60 minutes to swap, and a tune(which is where 95% of the power comes from, not those menial parts), is just absurd.

 

I agree that its crazy but..many people cant or dont wrench or consider there are other options..

It sells because for a guy who wants to keep his full warranty without potential issues and doesnt wrench its perfect

 

I agree that its crazy but..many people cant or dont wrench or consider there are other options..

It sells because for a guy who wants to keep his full warranty without potential issues and doesnt wrench its perfect

 

I don't wrench, but I work a lot of OT. I don't mind spending $$$ on my car, But I don't want to willing waste my hard earned cash. At 3 grand, it works out to $176. per HP, and that's a little rich for my blood. In retrospect, I should have bought an R53, and completely rebuilt it... It would have been cheaper in the long run.

 

You should take your airbox out and check. The 2011+ kit does NOT have the round air filter. The JCW stage one kit 2007-2010 N14 kit does have the round filters. For some reason when they went to the N18 JCW stage one kit they made the JCW airbox with just a flat K&N filter in it.

 

At my current rate of adding miles, I will be out of warranty in a year or less, and the Burger Motorsports N18 JB+ looks like a no brainer to me vs the JCW tune. I figure by the time I am out of warranty, it will be out a few months and most of the bugs, if any, will be worked out by then. That along with with some suspension mods, and I should be good to go.

 

I'm assuming that the 181hp is for 2009 model and newer, what would the increase in hp be if your 2007 MCS came with 172hp? Would it go to 182hp or 197hp?

 

2011+ gets 181hp.