Well... just an update from my diary.

Yesterday, I went over the 900 miles mark on the odometer since new and I drove about 60 miles on the freeway to handle some business across town.

I have not been aggressive in driving. The car is very stable in curves at about 80 MPH and the overall comfort of the cabin is surprising. Just a low rumble from the exhaust, minimal tire noise, very well insulated engine bay and comfortable seats and driving position. The seats fabric is a bit sticky but leather or vinyl would be worse.

By the way, the JCW "leather" trim is really not leather but just vinyl or fake leather as far as steering wheel and other accessories to be so.

The A/C performance in desert climate is good with tinted windows and it is a must because the side glass is so thin.

Mileage is improving a bit....... 24/29. I don't expect it will go any better.

Overall......

Until now, I like this small Coupe. It is not perfect. Some body panels and assemblies are cheap and not fitting as they should.

Keep posted

 

This week I went over this milestone when the digits on the odometer change from three to four.

I drove a bit more this week for some appointments and encountered my first rock chip on the freeway. I can see that the paint job is very thin from the impact. I have the dent fixed but the touch up is in the process to be completed.

The temperature is down to the low 90F and the MPG is improving slowly. The average driving is about 25 in town. The engine seems to breath easier with the lower temperature but the fluctuating RPM problem is still present. I stopped by the dealer a few days ago and they are not aware of any TSBs on the problem. I confirmed it is always filled with Premium as recommended.

In same time from my visit to the dealer, I have been told the brake dust is a "curse" on this car and I have to live with it. I am just thinking about why we have red brake calipers if they are going mostly black with all this dust.

Road handling and body integrity are still the best assets to this day and the reason I love the Coupe. I would not have been a buyer for any other Mini model.

But, the JCW is a bit short on performance and power when needed mostly on the freeway. It is on short breath on acceleration at 80mph to pass on the left lane in steady uphill grade until you down grade to 5th or even 4th to bring some torque from the engine and you are already close to 5000rpm. Now, I never use the "sport" button to see if it make any difference in performance.

City driving is different. You have to be careful with the clutch and engine rpm because it easy to spin the front tires even in gears. Mine has Dunlop and the traction is poor and the front of the car is prone to bounce up and down from the power train.

Overall, the power/torque curve at low rpm (2000-4000) make this engine happy for daily city driving as well as the passengers.

The overall quality of the accessories and controls are below standards and not friendly user.

We are told it is supposed to be BMW standard and quality. Well it is definitely not.


Keep posted .......

 

Congrats on your new car. I've got 2300 on mine since 7/14.

A few points I'd like to address in your review.

The JCW can be ordered in "leatherette" so it depends on how u ordered it.
The JCW steering wheel is most def real leather.
Even ordering leather it's only the seating surfaces that are leather for instance the piece on the back of the seat on a leather seat is leatherette
The glass in my mini is 3.89mm. The glass in my X1 is 3.92 mm. Thin? Maybe because it has no door frame it appears thin but it is the same as a BMW.
trim is what you say. I already had to deal with an annoying buzz from the dome light area but it may have been self induced as I removed it twice 2 run my radar and also install led interior bulbs.
Cruising in 6th is overdrive their is no power in that gear. Hence the manual gear box. Down shift and accelerating is all part of the fun. 3k to 4.5k is the honey spot in this car. I find during normal cruising I leave it in 5th. I like the engine sound at slightly higher revs. Also 4th gear 75 -80 mph 4200 rpm is sweet sounding to me and leaves me options as I am in NY I AM FORCED TO DRIVE DEFENSIVELY.
You have to be accelerating quite hard to induce wheel spin in city driving. The only thing is if your accelerating and hit a bump enough to unweight the front end you may get it. Traction control intervenes quickly.
Sport mode gives you stiffer steering and pronounced pops and burbles from the exhaust in 1st and 2nd. I love it. I always drive in sport.
At 1200 miles I had a boost pressure sensor fail. Cel came on and reduced power. Car was still drive able once cleared. Dealer had part in a few days and all is good now.
Check your tire pressures. And adjust them up or down a pound or two too get the ride you like. It makes a difference.

The BMW part of minin is in the electronics /engine control and suspension design. I agree the interiors have something to be desired.

Keep your reviews coming as I am sure others search to find info and opinions as you supplied.

Happy motoring. .

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Drivehard, Thanks for your comments and opinions and enjoy your car.

 

I'll chime in on my 2014 JCW Coupe that I got off the lot in April (3500 miles). I have the AT and always drive in Sport mode. In 6th gear at 3000 RPM it's going about 82 mph. My 2007 MCS manual went 75 mph. I get 25 mpg town, 4 less than the 2007. Recaro seats are excellent mostly Alcantara (which isn't leather). My black roof stripes faded and were removed by dealer. Buzzing speaker also fixed. Stereo is pretty good, not excellent. The car handles and accelerates great at all speeds. Ride is not too harsh, helps to keep tires around 35 psi rather than 38. I have Sport Suspension. I still get people staring at the car and asking "is that a Mini?" The most unique looking Mini of all to be sure, and one of the rarest.
Edit: Drove a Countryman MCS loaner Saturday when in for service. Boy is that a totally different car to drive. Engine was good, softer ride and way more body roll. The back seat was roomy so I see why it's popular, but this car is heads above in handling.

 

Great review from both of you. Hope I can help with some things

Here we go.

1. "The JCW steering wheel is most def real leather. " Yep, it has the red stitching, if you want a thicker wheel and bettering feeling get the GP2 version and swap out the JCW regular wheel to retain the red stitching. Or JCW thicker wheel in leather and alcantara. You could have ordered this from the dealership also, most dealers dont know about all the JCW+ add on.

https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ith-a-r56.html



2. On the JCW interior you can get leather GP2 leather dash (seen above ) or even the Rolls Royce Black leather dash. Yes its a Rolls part for MINI. $$$$ . From the factory you could order the leather MINI Yours dash with the Alcantara inserts and matched them with the knee bolsters. For the JCW lounge leather or polar beige leather or toffee seat tops are real leather and sides are leatherette, just like most all BMW , only the individuals BMWs and some new 7ser/ 6ser get this stock .


3. The glass is about the same thickness unless comparing BMW sound insulation glass ( non bullteproof level 1) used on a 7 series models or some Mercs .

4. " and also install led interior bulbs. " Ziza kit right here helps those things . Check the Install PDF how to snap it back all the way. No buzzing for me Its in the instructions.

http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/R58R59LEDKT/




5. Keep the sport button on helps tighten the steering and you will increase the throttle responses and get more pop and gurgle from the exhaust on down shift. Time it right with the throttle and you can make it sound like a old spirtfire racecar.

6. Allot of the electronics are shared with BMW / MINI, amps wire harness, speakers and for that Rolls Royce also. Logic 7 RR ~ HK BMW ~ HK MINI , just a smaller version.

7. Keep in the torque level up when you shift and under boost, helps when accelerating .

 

Guess who I got the led lights from. Ok yes it was ECS . Thank you very much.
The instructions were great that come with the lights. Honestly I'm in the car biz and I know what it means to remove plastic panels. Like I said it was self induced. I have rolls of the BMW squeak and it worked fine once I zeroed in on the buzz. lol.

ECS. = great stuff.

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Again, Thanks for the very informative tips and comments. I am learning about my first Mini since the last two months of ownership.

 

Sorry about your stripes. Will they be replaced and how is your experience with your dealership?

 

Well, from my diary today, mostly 1200 miles......I can't believe it. I have to admit I drove about 80 miles of freeway during the weekend at a steady 80 mph cruising speed.

Here are my comments:

The Coupe is still growing on me for many reasons...... the cabin is roomy and my wife like the manual A/C for having only three settings for her comfort. For sure it is very basic but not as bad as I would imagine. The control are tricky and not easy to use.

I miss dash gauges for temperature and turbo boost pressure. They should be part of the basic package on a JCW Coupe. Even the Fiat that is a cheaper car has them. Owning a performance Mini as part of the BMW performance family doesn't seems to make sense.

I will need to have the rear brakes checked. Some noise is coming from when i back up from time to time.

The exhaust system breaths better and the engine runs cooler. we are now in the low 90F.

As for now, the body panels are very thigh and no flexing or cabin noise as the HT S I drove two months ago for about a week.

Keep posted.

 

I simply had the black roof/spoiler stripes removed. The all red roof/spoiler now looks better to me. The car is Eclipse Grey and the stripes were black. The weird thing is that this car sat on the Scottsdale Mini lot for 8-9 months before I bought it and the stripes were fine. I washed it once at home and once at a $6 car wash and they started to fade badly. Not the red stripes, and not the small ones on the spoiler, just the long ones on the roof. Go figure. The dealer was excellent, they did the stripes, the bad speaker, a piece of loose trim on Saturday in about 3-4 hours and gave me a loaner.

 

Funny you mention the time yours sat on the lot. Mine sat for 14 months!!!!! Produced 2/13 at dealer 5/13 retailed to me 7/14. I was lucky as it was never reported sold to mini so my warranty started on 7/2014. Pepper white with black roof Black stripes on body and white on roof and they all look great. It was such an odd car too them that it was on display inside more than it was outside.

It even got its yearly oil service while it was in their possession. With a few miles on it. After I got it. I drove it for 500 and did my own oil change with mobile 1 euro 0w40.

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When the car is new from the lot no matter it is a 2013 or 2014, it is sold as a new car with full warranty.

 

Technically yes. But not if the dealer paid the car off in full to manufacturer and " reported " it as a sold car so they get the " credit" for " selling" it Not used just retailed as a new car. It's a technicality to dealers and the manufacturer.

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I don't care about the dealer problems. I bought my car as new.

It's the contract with full warranty as a new car from the manufacturer.

Where is the problem?

 

Thanks we appreciate it and the ziza interior led really light up the interior, especially with MINI with only one overhead light.

 

Yeah mine said it was due for oil service about 3 months after I bought it, had like 2500 miles on it. I had 'em do it when they took off the stripes and replaced the speaker on Saturday. It looks way better without the roof stripes. That roof is pretty tiny as is the stripes were too busy looking back.

 

Dubs. Sorry didn't mean your case or mine for that matter. I was just adding to the review post as I thought it was odd the 2 of us in this thread had purchased cars that were in stock for a long time. As theses cars are "odd" in a good way I could see this occurring to others.

Your correct in your statement. You bought a new car. You should get your full warranty. 100 %. No problem at all.

Saying for others that goy one that was around for a while to call mini and check when the " in service date" is and that it should match when they signed the papers and took that puppy home.

It's all good.

Regards.

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Yes, you are right, they are "odd" and probably the reason they don't sell for a so long time. In three months of ownership, I have never seen another Coupe on the road.

It is supposed to be an economy car but when you add the JCW package and other options it become expensive.

 

I saw 1 on the highway to Atlantic city once but that's it. Yeah economy not so much lol.

As far as the review goes. I did notice in sport mode which I drive in almost always. That it doesn't pop pan burble when cold or at least before it warms up a bit. Only noticed this in the last couple of days as it started to be cold in the morning. Maybe it's just not in closed loop yet or the idle is a little higher for warm up. Not a problem or an issue just thought I throw it out there.

Also 2400 miles on mine. And I noticed that after coming home and pulling into my garage from work that the engine at idle is loud in the sense that you hear the injectors and other things clicking and clacking. When I pull in I let it idle a few moments to give a chance for the turbo too cool off and circulate water and oil with no load Once again ann observation not a problem. DI engines are notoriously loud as compared with non DI engines.

I was in a 2014 328 xi the other day and saw an oil temp gauge in the dash. Why couldn't MINI do that for us ? It's not like we don't have a dash big enough to fit one lol.

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"It is supposed to be an economy car but when you add the JCW package and other options it become expensive." They can get very expensive, $50,000 is not out of reach.. MINI yours ...etc. Back in 2006 I had seen a Loaded R52 Convertible JCW near that. Here is a 2009 R57 near that. http://www.caranddriver.com/mini/coo...vertible-s-jcw , R59 http://www.thegentlemanracer.com/201...-problems.html

After having one, I think its a sport car even at the Justa Cooper level with good gas mileage Economy cars are no frills A-B , the MINI is way more fun.


The R58 and R59 models are less known and usually have a a higher price then the R56 comparable model. Also MINI owners in general might not know or see one , so they tend to be more rare in the scene. Most people don't even know MINI comes in a two seater. After going on a MINI rally like MTTS , you will not see too many. And the JCW model makes it more rare. Like a BMW CSL status almost in the MINI world.

For the on lot thing , it might be the sales side that does not push people towards them maybe ?

Love the reviews and insight.

 

Yeah the sticker on mine was $41k so that's beyond many Mini budgets. But about $7k of that was the JCW package. I could have saved $5-6k and got a highly optioned F56. I tried to put a deposit down on one in transit to CA. Glad it didn't work out.

 

But..... for $50,000 you can have a far better sport car than a Mini. For sure, a Coupe in JCW trim is a rarity. It is the reason I bought mine no matter it is really basic with no options.

The Abarth was my first choice and was fully optioned at far less than I paid for the Mini but my wife said "NO"....." we have one and it is fine ".

She has been right and we are both happy.

If well maintained and not abused with proven OEM maintenance records, the JCW Coupe will keep its value no matter the sticker options.

 

Missed making a comment. The noise in reverse from the rear brakes is normal (odd but normal). It's caused by the rear pads sticking slightly to the rotor after driven and parked and then when you get in it the next day and reverse out of the spot the pads " pop" off the rotor. Also. BMW/MINI rotors are notorious to have slight surface corrosion even after only 1 or 2 days. You will also here the scrapping of the pads against the rotors for a few hundred feet and then it goes away. This is also normal. Agreed odd. But normal.

I hear you on the gauges. Absolutely silly they don't have them.

Motor on and enjoy !

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Realized that there is not one pic of a MINI R58/R59 in this whole thread. Soooooo.





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