Nope, Tempe Arizona. Only got the deal because they had ordered it for someone and they backed out. It sat on the shelf forever, and they couldn't sell it, and couldn't return it to Mini, so they decided to knock $1000 off.

 

wow, you don't come across deals like that often, congrats!

 

Got my car back. I'd like to be very objective about the details of everything, however, all I can think right now is HOLY CRAP. This car is pure smile machine now.

Exhaust note - awesome.
Throttle response - much improved.
Acceleration - outstanding.

I would say that with sport off, feels similar to how the car felt in sport before. Sport on is like a smile switch!

I've spent the last decade racing sport bikes, and in terms of launch and 0-60, I'd like to see how they compare head to head.

Initial thoughts, more to come!

 

What was the final bill?

 

I don't understand why warranty is an issue.

For one, it's a MINI kit which is just the intake and exhaust for these N14 engines.

And secondly, no one else except the dealer can load the tuning data into the DME anyways......

 

They were saying if warranty wasn't important go after market. More performance for less money. Since warranty is important to me, this was a better choice.

Total bill was 17 and change with tax. Granted, I got a once-in-a-lifetime deal here, because they wanted to get rid of it.

They installed the kit in about 4 hours, but it took 2 days for BMW to generate the tuning codes. Apparently, each tune is specific to that VIN. Even got a certificate of authenticity signed by Michael Cooper.

2nd gear, 40 mph, in sport, dsc on. Punched it, lit the tires up, and dsc fought to get them hooked back up. I'm really impressed.

You guys driving the really heavily tuned cars... They are faster than this? Holy crap what's in my future?

 

17 what?


Faster? Sorry my friend but I am thinking yes with better lefts and rights... BUT... I've spent $15k.

 

17 hundred. $1,713.49 to be exact.

 

You have to be feeling pretty lucky. I was just quoted by a nearby Mini dealer.....$2200 for parts and $2900 to install. Total=$5100. I don't think they really want to do this mod for me.

 

I've been very happy with the tuning kit. It is very expensive due to manifold install for N18 cars, but my MCS is now giving me extra smiles like Kevlar7R said.

N18 kit gets you about 200 ponies and 200 boosted torque on paper, and I've read here that the rated hp # is rather conservative, and dyno showing closer to factory JCW. To be honest I think she has all power and responsiveness I wanted now so I don't care about the actual #s anymore. I now just wanna have a nice 22mm rear sway bar...

Again, it is expensive, and there are cheaper options from 3rd parties (guess not much for N18 engines yet), but I like that my less-than-2-years-old MCS is tuned as BMW/MINI intended, with the warranty fully intact.

 

I just got a brochure today in the mail from Mini Canada. The tuning kit MSRP is $3,530 and installation is extra !!

 

Coop-a-Loop,

Wow. I assume we are talking about the same N18 kit. I got mine under 4k including all parts, labor and tax. I negotiated the #s and they slashed the price both on labor and the kit for me though.

Still expensive I know, but I think I got a "better" deal for an N18 kit. Sounds like the typical price for N18 kit installed is about 5k + tax in the US.

Sounds like Kevlar7R's kit is for pre 2011 car, but that's still a crazy good deal he got. If it WAS for N18, then he got a deal of the century!!

 

Yea, my kit was for n14 car, not n18, so much cheaper.

I feel good. It was a very good deal, and I love how the car drives and sounds now. To have a car that drives like this, still under warranty and maintenance plan is amazing!

From doing some reading it sounds like the 2 day turn around on the codes is pretty common.

 

I paid around $1900 for my JCW kit and love it. I'd rather have a JCW, but the kit really does stuff for the S and wouldn't hesitate to do it again. '08 N14...

 

I was saying that if warranty is an issue(or concerning factor), then I would -maybe- choose to go with the JCW kit instead of aftermarket DIY. I still say maybe because for the $4k that some are quoting here, I might just flip the coin on things breaking down. Other factors come into play obviously, such as annual driving mileage(warranty gets used up pretty quickly for some people who drive 20-25k/yr) and if you can get a deal like the OP.

To the OP: Good job! I'm glad you like it. Nothing beats a mod that you can immediately tell the difference. And for your stolen price, I would definitely have done the same thing(not for the other 4k prices though :X). And to answer your question: There are fJCW putting out more power than that. It can be insane for sure. My last dyno run showed 255 hp at the wheels. Comparatively, yours has a claimed 200 hp at the cranks(although many report that the number is underreported and is really higher). Now go have fun and if you're really curious, toss it on a dyno to get exact whp!

 

I may have to have it dynoed at some point.

The readout on my butt-dyno is pegged on "FUN"

 

Post it on the 2nd gen dyno thread if you do! Oh and I forgot to add that I'm not sure more power is needed once you get to the 230-240 whp range. It was 40F the other morning and the roads were wet from an earlier rain. With Michelin Pilot Super Sports on(which didn't help in 40F weather), I had zero traction trying to go WOT from a stop sign. I was literally doing a burn out. :/

 

I think for $5K installed, I'd just sell my current MCS and order a JCW the way I wanted it. That way for an extra $1K over the JCW kit installed, you'd also have improved clutch, beefier engine and turbo and the Brembo brakes. You'd also have full warranty for 4 years or 50K miles and the 36K mile maintenance.

 

Was it measured here?

Butt Dyno

$529.95

Just install a great mod like a cold air intake? Electric supercharger? Big Muffler? Magnetic fuel line ionizer? Awesome wing? Are you getting no respect from your friends for your newly found power? As we all know, these are high end and sophisticated modifications. Some may be TOO sophisticated to actually show up on a traditional dyno. So here we have: The Butt Dyno. Simply place it in the seat, and drive fast, weaving in and out of traffic. (On a race course, of course.) Now you can tell your friends with confidence "That oil-saturated air filter gave me 20 horses!"

 

Absolutely where got my dyno! HaHa. Broke from all the modding! Who the heck can afford a dyno! I got this one for free!

 

Lol!

I wish I could post pictures from my phone, cause that should be followed up by my redneck torque wrench. The scale goes from loose, to snug, to tight, to really f***Ing tight, to broke.

 

Press the + button next to the send button to post pics if you are using the NAM app. :cheers:

 

I'm using the browser on my windows phone 7. I don't think they have the app for WP yet.

 

I have the Tuning Kit on my 2012 and totally love it. Some of the prices being quoted in this thread are crazy...i got both the Tuning Kit and JCW supension for less than some are quoting for just the Tuning Kit. The official book time for the install is only 4 hours, so those quoting around $5k are paying more than double the going rate...

 

Very curious. Do you know if you got manifold as well? I was told by the dealer as well as a few people (from posts) actually got the kit that you can opt out of manifold installing (dealer is allowed to install the tuning kit without stalling manifold I guess?), then 4 hours sounds right.


This is part of 2011+ JCW kit manifold.


This is the stock one came off of my 2011.

Likely this is not worth the extra cost anyway, but just curious why there are so huge price and labor hour difference people are getting. There was at least one case I read the dealer misquoted not knowing about the manifold and the dealer honored the original quote and redone the job.