Hey,
Im new to the Mini world and im loving it. I want to get some small mods for now and i was wondering if the JCW kit is worth it and does it void warranty? Its an 2008 Mini Cooper S do they have a JCW kit for it?



Thanks,
Pete

 

If you have the JCW kit installed at the dealer it will not void your warranty. As far as whether or not it is worth it, I am curious as well.

 

You might check out this site; www.dinancars.com/

It is an alternative to the JCW kit, and I understand that some dealers also not void your warrenty with it either. I have never seen one installed, but I have heard of people using these guy's parts in Road Racing Mini's

 

It all depends on what you want in your MINI, Bro!

What I mean is this:
Depending on what options are the most important to you, the JCW kit may be well worth it for you to get into the car before you decide on the other options you 'MAY' want.
You see, for myself, the number one thing I had to have on my MINI wasthat Turbo. The second most important thing for me to have was the JCW kit, because it is the 'ONLY' aftermarket kit that the factory warranty will cover. So with these two optional items you will have the fastest possible MINI right out of the factory (The JCW kits for the 2007 & up are installed at the dealer, unless we are talking about the 2008 Convertible, which are still done at the factory until the engine changes to the current model in 2009).

Now if you are talking straight out specs, then you are only going to get like 12 or so extra HP out of the current JCW kit (Unless it is the Convertible, which gets an extra 30 HP or so until the engine changes to the current one in 2009).

Either way it still comes down to how much money you have to spend on extras, and what is most important to get into the car first. You can start with interior and work your way outward. Or you can start in the engine compartment, and work your way inward.

Personally, I would go for what I call the "Super Cooper" (Turbo & JCW Kit).

Good luck, and Happy Motoring, Bro!

 

My concern about the JCW upgrades it the lack of HP. So far every review says that the cost/benefit is not worth it. I am curious to see what the performance numbers are however, last article I read said that the JCW kit did not make much difference.
If I come across the article I will post it up. However, that being said there are other benefits such as the nice body kit and of course added performance which I suspect help in terms of the qualify of the drive when it comes to response, power band, etc...

Also, it appears that the JCW kit is only available for the 6-speed manual. Although, looking at the numbers the auto is still slightly faster with recorded times of 0-60 in 6.2 and 1/4 mile of 14.77 @ 92.mph for the auto (reference: http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/...r_s/index.html)

Here are a few articles for reference:

http://www.autoblog.com/2007/08/28/u...jcw-treatment/

http://www.motoringfile.com/2007/08/...e-r56-jcw-kit/

 

I don't think it's worth the price.

 

I just picked up my JCW engie modified Cooper S.

The body kit comes with the JCW car.If you don't care for the more agressive look a quick calculation shows that the price per horsepower is lower for a Cooper S with the JCWengine modthan the JCW car.

One thing that I don't know (and I should as I just bought one) is how much do dealers charge for making the change? I know what my dealer charged and am trying to get an idea if I was taken for a ride.

I'd say there is some value to the JCW engine mod, but unless your willing to test the local officer's tolerance for"display of speed", I don't think it's worth it.

Does anyone know if there are ECU chipsfor the JCW engine mod?

Thanks,

John

 

I was gonna order the suspension but one of the sales guys said for daily use it was not a good Idea so I opted for the regular sport suspension, I ended up with an 09, and should be here this Dec.

 

I'm new to the Forum and I just purchased a 2009 red/black JCW. I will pick it up in a few days so I'll let you all know if I like it as much as the Corvette I sold to get it.
Ronnie

 

I wanted the JCW suspension but they quoted 16 hours of labor to drop the subframe and install that part of the kit. I decided just to order the sports suspension (maybe not worth it, don't know yet) and purchase the Bilstein coilover package for about $1900. That's about $1300 cheaper than the JCW dealer installation. Ordered red/black JCW car and gave them my Corvette (but I'll get another one down the line...had three already).