My wife and I are considering buying a 2018 Mini Countryman JCW with a standard transmission. The dealer did not have a Countryman (much less a Countryman JCW) with a standard transmission, so he had me test drive a Hard top JCW. I didn't think that the shift lever moved as smoothly as I expected, and it seemed to be very spring loaded to 3rd and 4th. I have a VW TDI 6 sp manual so I'm used to a 6 sp and having it spring loaded towards 3rd and 4th, but not with this much emphasis. Does anyone else find the shifting a little awkward, or is it something that you get used to quickly? Or could it be that this gear shift linkage might have needed adjusting or just needs to be worn in? Since I'll have to order a vehicle to get just what I want I'd like to make sure that the transmission works the way you'd expect and is not a problem.

Any comments on experience with these manual transmissions in a JCW would be appreciated.

Stan