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After a few years of watching for the right one, for the about right price, I finally dropped the hammer and got one. 14 JWC coupe, auto. Seems only options missing are the recaro seats and aux driving lights. Now looking to see what needs to be done to her to keep her safe for daily driving, and longevity. Not looking to make a racer, but looking for the items that are tried and true needed to be upgraded. Also note, I'm in Cali, so yea. smog testing soon. Also, a recommended place in San Diego area for the work if any known.
Congratulations, beautiful Coupe, as far as not making it a racer, you already have the fastest original equipped coupe made and since new ones are no longer available, I would keep it well maintained and enjoy it’s uniqueness and rarity ��, that’s what I have done with mine!
For daily drivers in CA - best things to take care of first are your diverter valve and intercooler (in my opinion).
*diverter valve stock is weak plastic..and hot temps and heat cycles + JCW boost pressure = leaks or it breaks overtime
*OEM intercooler is pretty small and while it works great .. there are better available. Dropping your intake air temps 30-40f in the summer time will keep your engine much happier; not to mention you run lower risk of knock issue from our **** gas + hot air temps.
Other than that - get a stage1 ECU flash or wait until you handle your upgrades for stage2 ! Its not just about making more power. You get:
*better linear throttle curve
*more MPG when not on boost (OEM runs waaaay too rich)
*~40f cooler engine due to reset thermostat point (~180f instead of OEM 230f)
*more power off boost (timing advance)
*more power on boost (few more PSI left on the table.. 21psi vs OEM ~19psi)
Most popular for ECU flashes are Manic or RPM. Manic has been around the longest.. RPM is a newer company (doing amazing stuff). You'll find reps for both on this forum and in your area.
Thanks, good to have found you all. Yea, she's in great shape, had only 22k on her. Have a Mil guy here, and has an S, w/ HK radio. He just did the Biosound speaker upgrade, and I can hear the differance. So ordered thier setup. Only other interior I will do is maybe an inline pwr sub unit. As for engine mods, will look at the needed, and think about/research the others. I don't want to do too much, and maybe have to hang onto parts if later on someone payes more for an original. I've found there doesn't seem to be very many paddle shift automatics listed as a 2015, so there could be a chance it can hold vaule better than others, being a very well equiped JCW.
Nice looking ride. Congratulations! There are tee shirts on sale in the lobby that read "No the top doesn't come off.". These can be a bit of a time saver lol. Best mods for longevity I would recommend are a larger intercooler and an oil catch can. The other best bit of advise for longevity would be to ignore what BMW says and schedule your oil and filter changes at 5,000 miles. Happy Motoring.
Thanks everyone, good to be here. She shows up Wednesday. People at work can't wait to see it. To let ya know why they can't wait, my current dailly driver is a 01 Eclipse F550. Bit of a size diff. ;}
Mine's the same year, Eclipse Grey with Recaros ($2700, heated). Only thing I did was the Manic Stage 1 ECU tune last year. Cost $1000. The car is plenty fast as it is, but this makes it probably faster accelerating than about any car on the road. Not that I use it a ton but it's fun. Gas mileage is the same. You're on the freeway going 65 and you want to pass somebody you almost think it's going to take off.
Mine's the same year, Eclipse Grey with Recaros ($2700, heated). Only thing I did was the Manic Stage 1 ECU tune last year. Cost $1000. The car is plenty fast as it is, but this makes it probably faster accelerating than about any car on the road. Not that I use it a ton but it's fun. Gas mileage is the same. You're on the freeway going 65 and you want to pass somebody you almost think it's going to take off.
How did you ended up with $1000 for a Manic Stage I ECU flash when everybody charge $500 ?
How did you ended up with $1000 for a Manic Stage I ECU flash when everybody charge $500 ?
You're right it was $500, not $1000. I remember it was a little more than the clip on box unit, but not double. The guy who did it said half his customers wanted to sell those units back.
