I am on the verge of dumping my new Smart and getting an MCS instead. Thing is, I refuse to pay sticker (and certainly not over sticker).

As such, I've been looking at the possibility of buying a slightly preowned R56 "S" model to save a few bones.

I'm the type of person who only buys fully optioned cars, but it seems most Minis are not ordered with a lot of options. I have yet to see a car that has both the JCW package and Navigation for example.

Anyhoo, is it worth getting the JCW upgrade for the paltry power increase, or am I better off using an aftermarket tuner?

Is there any dealer in the US that's discounting on new S models or ordered cars?

 

i really liked my JCW kit on the supercharged previous MCS. the kit also improved my MPG big time as well, surprising i know. before the kit i got about 25mpg. after i got about 33mpg. worth the money imo.

 

wow arling...that says it all i guess.

the dealer is really pushing me to do JCW also since it's warranty & possibly adds to the resale value (most aftermarket mods don't).

 

u might want to check if that's still true for the new turbocharged car. it was a big improvement on the old. regardless i think it's worth the money if u want some additional power from stock.

 

Arling,

I don't know how you got 33mpg with the JCW kit... I'm getting 24mpg overall in mine; the best gas mileage I extracted was a 3 hour drive from the Bay Area to Fresno, and it was still only 31mpg while keeping the speed at 75.

I'm envious :-) !

John

 

i tried.