I'm sorry, but you have to be kidding me. I went to R Speed this morning to buy the JCW they just got in and Joe opened the box while I was there. The best thing about it was the engraved logo....other than that it is poor quality. (IMO) The welds are second class....not polished, cleaned up or ground... lousy beads....they did not clean the welds before or after polish/plate,... just poor craftsmanship. Contrast that with the PROMINI that they had in stock and it was night and day. First, the PROMINI was lighter even though it looks much heavier. The quality was top knotch and I would have bought it if the brackets would fit over my Unichip harness. This is a perfect example of selling on name and not merit...... Oh yes, the JCW costs more

 

I guess my question is, who makes a bar that is top guality that would fit over a Unichip if it sits on top or next to the ECU. I would have the same problem. I was thinking about the JCW, BUt if it's low quality who would want it. Any one have any pics or feelings about their brace?

 

Bob:

You are forgetting the basic advantages of anything JCW:

1. It is refined. I repeat - refined.

2. Your resale value will be maintained.

3. It is backed up by 100,000 miles of rigorous testing in the Gobi Desert, Atlantis and Antarctica.

4. When your wiring harness fails, BMW NA cannot blame it on rogue radio signals transmitted from the non-BMW approved alloys in your less refined aftermarket strut bar.

5. It has the JCW logo on it.

Hope that helps.

 

The only one that I know clears everything right now is the M7 Strut Tower Brace. Link It clears the stock Airbox and ECU cover.

 

MDSBRAIN

Thanks for the info. Looking at the picture I'm not sure that would work. The brace has an area next to the ECU where the Unichip lays but the brace seems to have an area where the brace comes down before the mounting area of the cross brace mount. May have to call M7 and ask them. Thanks

 

Calling M7 (Peter and Randy) is the best way to know.

 

AND it has pedigree!

 

FWIW; I checked with them as I have the same set-up and we assumed it would be a really tight fit so I bailed on getting their brace. Later I discovered that the cables of the Unichip do allow it to be moved forward so the brace might clear it just fine.

 

one off the most poorly built units indeed, i saw one and was totaly amazed by how poor the welds R.

jus goes to show that its not all about ""DEEE NAME"" thin' anymore!!!!!

i myself will invest in a 'M7' unit b4 that 'JCW'

but then again there arent to many out there that do the job right so not much out there to compare w/

********M7's bar is cherry!!*************

 

There is Nothing, I repeat Nothing "refined" about the unit I saw....and went to R Speed to buy. I believe that the original prototypes made in house in England are probably very nice and the design is probably a very good one....however, the box that it is shipped in looks "pacific rim" and not a good "house" at that. I sell thousands of "off shore" goods and I can tell you that you get the quality you pay for. Some of the "off tool" products I have seen from China etc have been beautifully made and some are "junk." This is much closer to the later. Yes, the design is refined but the materials and implementation leave a lot to be desired.

One more thing I don't need (on this subject) "help."

Seriously, if you were to see the PROMINI and the JCW side by side there is NO, I repeat NO comparison in "build quality." THe JCW is "p poor.' and they should be ashamed to pawn this crap off with the JCW logo. I will give them the benefit of the doubt, it is possible that this one snuck through QC andis not indcative off their quality....maybe they will see this and call Joe to get this one back to show to their OEM.

 

Um...he was kidding, man...it was a sarcastic post that you obviously missed - badly! LOL

 

Main Entry: sar·casm
Pronunciation: 'sär-"ka-z&m
Function: noun
Etymology: French or Late Latin; French sarcasme, from Late Latin sarcasmos, from Greek sarkasmos, from sarkazein to tear flesh, bite the lips in rage, sneer, from sark-, sarx flesh; probably akin to Avestan thwar&s- to cut
1 : a sharp and often satirical or ironic utterance designed to cut or give pain <tired of continual sarcasms>
2 a : a mode of satirical wit depending for its effect on bitter, caustic, and often ironic language that is usually directed against an individual b : the use or language of sarcasm <this is no time to indulge in sarcasm>
synonym see [size=-1]WIT[/size]

 

So does my neighbor's displastic German Shepherd!

 

I am so sorry........I acted like a total jerk.....I sincerely apologize. After my re-read of your post.......I ....uhh.....like uhhh ....um.... get it.

I've had a bad week and my sense of humor has suffered.

Bob

 

OOOPS.......read sincere apology

 

I'd only buy the ones that offer a measurable improvement over stock ...

 

No offense taken :smile: .

 

Unlike my previous car (e30 bmw) where I had front and rear strut bars, my understanding is that there is no real reason for a strut bar.... as the body of the MINI is very stiff from the factory (excluding the convertible maybe) .... whatever the logo, isn't the strut bar really for bling? Even if it is light, it still adds weight to the front of the car which is bad... and if you get hit by a another car hard enough on one side of the strut bar then it will push out the other strut... Does anyone have data supporting the benefit of this item functionally?

 

Andy,


How are you able to meter the measurable improvement for this? I think your car is maxxed out on guages.. Is this a product you could test and verify the sub-par welds, and lower build quality? Do we need a SBGS Mod (Strut Brace Gain System)?

 

Ha! The only actual test I have ever seen of strut flex was on a different car and it showed negligible movement:

http://groups.google.com/group/rec.a...e49899fc4eda2/

I plan to manufacture a product called a Front Stress Brace that looks like a "strut brace" but isn't actually attached to the strut towers. It will, however, clear the airbox and will be very, very, shiny. The working title is the FSB 6000 Xtreme 2.0

 

I am a dealer and after reading your post I pulled some from stock and inspected them. I found no bad welds or poor polishing and I looked four of them. I can post pictures to see what you think. If they are sub standard I don't want to sell them. I do know a little about welding by the way I used to be a welder.

 

All talk and no show.....

 

No, all show and no go!

 

I suggest that someone at BMW/JCW/MINI contact Joe at RSpeed and get that one from him....I did say I would give the benefit of the doubt that a bad one got through. This is one very sloppy unit....posting pictures would be a good idea

 

Thankfully, our MINI's have such a rigid frame design that they really do not need reinforcement in this area.