2005 JCW Cooper S Kit Pricing

Andy Oct 14th, 2004 Link

Im sorry to be the first one to ask a stupid question, if i have a CVT and ouwld like to upgrade to JCW, could i do that.

Gabe Oct 14th, 2004 Link

All of these kits are for the MCS (MINI Cooper S).

dgszweda Oct 14th, 2004 Link

It appears right now that the kits are in the US, but have not been cleared through customs. The word is that it may be up to 3 weeks before they are released. It sound like they are waiting for the CARB paperwork. Might be something like paperwork similiar to the issues seen with the '05 MCS been held up for distribution.

dgszweda Oct 14th, 2004 Link

Gabe,

Any word on office performance numbers such as hp and 0-60. The only numbers we have seen are in bhp and 0-100km. With the earlier kits they came out with US numbers after the release.

Greg Oct 14th, 2004 Link

Does the $4,650.00 price tag assume the dealer retains the original removed equipment? Also, do you have an idea how many hours of labor is involved and what the average cost would be for that?

michael Boice Oct 14th, 2004 Link

$5,995.00 is the price I was charged for my 05 JCW kit installed - plus tax. The kit is still on back-order, however, as my Mini passes 3,000 miles.

Lee Langston Oct 14th, 2004 Link

Hah, do you think they will sell me 4 new injectors for $75.00 which is the difference between the cost fo the JCW Upgrade and the JCW air intake kit. ;-)

Josh Wardell Oct 14th, 2004 Link

The question is still the install fees on the upgrade…
…and when I will have saved up enough to pay for it :D

Aaron Oct 14th, 2004 Link

This is the math I've been wondering about…

Quoted install price: $5995
Cost of parts alone: $4650
Difference: $1345

Given than Est. install = 10 hours

$1345/10 = $134.50 per hour

Does anyone else think that this is OUTRAGEOUS?

I wonder what the posted hourly service rate is (service shops used to have to post it in large letters on the wall).

Spanky Oct 14th, 2004 Link

I'm in Houston. My dealer has quoted me $95 per hour/12 hours for install. The kit was quoted at $4650.

Gabe Oct 14th, 2004 Link

Most dealers I know charge right around $100 an hour for labor.

Patrick Oct 14th, 2004 Link

Just to add to what dgszweda was saying. I talked to a So Cal dealer's part manager on Tuesday 10/12. The first time I called he was on the phone with a MINI USA rep about this issue and I talked to him 30 min later. He said the kits were at the docks but MINI put a 3 week freeze on the kits awaiting “state approval or something.”

Being in CA and the smog laws here I'm guessing it's CARB certification that we are waiting on.

I sent an e-mail to Gabe and started a thread on NAM on Tues about it.

Patrick

Iain Oct 14th, 2004 Link

All I can say is that it is worth it. I have one of the last Indi Blue 04 MCS and had the JCW instaleld prior to delivery (after driving a friend's car). I LOVE it. It is smooth. It is fast. It screams. Yes, it is expensive, but should I ever be fool enough to sell my baby, I am confident of getting most of the money back.

Sell the house! Sell the kids! Just get the money to do it!!!

Johnny Oct 14th, 2004 Link

Has Mini released performance numbers for the stand alone JCW intake? At 10% the cost, it may be the steal for those of on a tighter budget. Thanks.

Josh Oct 14th, 2004 Link

Any timeline for the new MC JCW kit?

Allan Oct 14th, 2004 Link

Aaand it all comes down to money. I really wished I had the money to do this. Some numbers(0-60, 1/4, etc.) for the new upgrade kit would be nice..

DaveC Oct 14th, 2004 Link

Hmmmm….6 large is quite a chunk of $$ for the JCW kit, but tempting. Wondering how much improvement the new JCW Intake alone would provide? I had heard that there was a cowl flap that opened up after 4500 RPM (controlled by the engine computer?) and wondered if you got the Airbox alone if this feature would be present (or would they just rig it with the flap open all the time) since you don't have the JCW ECU mods/software as well.

Dave

lawrence::otoole Oct 15th, 2004 Link

Dave - the intake has a sep. controller unit that controls the position of said flap. It is independent of the ECU, and attaches somewhere to the engine to measure RPMs.

Any one know if the injectors are available a la carte as well?

Troy Oct 15th, 2004 Link

Let's see, a pretty loaded 05 MCS is @$24,000. $6,000 for an installed Works kit would increase the price by 25%. That's some heavy cash for 30 to 40 horse. It's also a 23% increase in horse power though. The power is cool, but the thing I like about the mini is how you can stay at the speed limit in a 90 degree turn without getting a ticket. That's motoring.

Philip Oct 15th, 2004 Link

$450 for the air box.
$525 for the air box + injectors.

Cheap injectors or hefty air box?????

I'd love to go for the air box as I can't effort a full JCW kit….but $450?? That's quite a lot!

Gabe Oct 15th, 2004 Link

Yes it is. That's the price of admission into the world of JCW… at least it's lower than $5500!

Frank Oct 17th, 2004 Link

I would love to add the 210hp JCW kit in my '04 MCS but the taught of spending $6000 on a performance upgrade gives me the chills.

I have no doubts about the superiority, reliability, exclusivity, warranty and resale value afforded by the JCW products but unfortunately BMW insists in pricing these kits just for the few that can realistically afford them excluding a big group of enthusiast owners.

While I believe the JCW product is better in many ways to what's available in the aftermarket world, the truth is that JCW upgrade kits are insanely expensive and very overpriced. BMW makes a killing with the added markup and dealer installation costs.

If I could ever get the JCW kit for $3500 installed,I would jump all over it but at nearly $6,000 it is a very hard to justify expense in these difficult financial times we currently live in.

I think BMW profits more than they should with each one of these kist sold.

Lower the price so you can better compete with the aftermarket world!!!!

Frank Oct 17th, 2004 Link

My '04 MCS is 100% stock and I love it. However if today for any given reason I wanted to increase the performance the only affordable options would be presented by the aftermarket world. But I don't want to put aftermarket parts in my car as I much prefer to keep my warranty intact and have the assurance that any upgrades I do are fully approved by BMW.

But BMW strongly believes that I have to pay 3 to 4 times as much to be able to increase the performance and yet retaining the warranty and reliability by picking their JCW upgrade kits.

Not fair IMO. For as long as BMW continues to price JCW kits out of the league of most normal folks with fixed incomes, the aftermarket world will continue to be the cheaper and more appealing alternative for those who want to take the car to the next level.

If JCW kits can be mass produced in greater quantities in comparison to “X” aftermarket companies with better quality why then these kits have to be priced exclusively for folks with Country Club memberships?

Sooner or later JCW and BMW need to awake to the fact that they are losing ground to the aftermarket world (Which is getting bigger and bigger support each passing day)because they insist that their products be priced 2 to 3 times above what aftermarket company “A” or “B” price thiers at.

I don't think BMW fully understands the performance upgrade market potential of the MINI if they were to lower their JCW kit prices and fiercely compete with the other guys. Buying a JCW kit over a Webb Motorsports kit then would not be a brainer!

The “country club” mentallity of BMW when it comes to JCW products is really bothersome and pretty unfortunate.

dgszweda Oct 17th, 2004 Link

I would agree with the fact that the JCW kits are expensive, but I don't agree with insanely expensive. If they sold these kits for $3500, it would be a steal. Let's break down the price to do what the JCW kit does with what I would consider the leading aftermarket pieces:

-Intake (Alta) $260
-ECU programming (average of Unichip-GIAC) $600
-Injectors (M7) $400
-Gas Flowed Head (Mini-Mania) $895
-Exhaust (Miltek) $700
- Spark Plugs (NGK - Colder) - $50
-Supercharger Pulley (Alta) $120
-Supercharger Belt (Alta) - $20
- Badging - $25

This is a total of $3045. Or about $35% more than going the aftermarket route for all these parts. We could argue all day on whether you can beat the JCW with just a pulley and an intake as many have, but to compare apples to apples, we should look at what is included in the kit.

Now what do you get for that 35% more. You get things such as warranty, exclusivity (only @2500 JCW a year), you get better resale value for your money spent (you have a greater chance of recovering some of the value of the JCW, in relation to the potential loss you can get going aftermarket), you are also guaranteed that the company will be around. It will be around not only to support what you have, but also to continue to build products that integrate with this kit. This is important. We have had problems with some suppliers such as powerchips. And lastly, you are getting a car that consistently beats other tuning packages that it is pit against in car test reviews. The JCW has been pitted against the likes of Hartge, GGR, BBrt, AmD… and always comes out on top for its phenomonal integration into the MCS and it inherent smoothness, and feeling of completness. You can even read about this on this site with Gabes review of the JCW.

One last advantage is the savings on installation. You say, What? Let's take for example a typical pulley party from Randy or anyone else. The typical charge for a pulley replacement is $450. This includes the $120 cost of the pulley. Randy routinely can perform these as fast as 50 minutes, but most often in 80 minutes, but yet you are getting charged $330 for the labor of the pulley. The JCW kit is routinely installed for right around $1000 (Classic Mini). Yet just the pulley aftermarket is around 1/3 of that install price, and the supercharger replacement is one of the smaller tasks on the JCW upgrade.

I think all of my arguments point to the fact that if you are looking for just pure performance numbers, you would probably find it cheaper aftermarket. But in no way is the JCW insanely expensive as mentioned by Frank in the post above.

Gabe Oct 17th, 2004 Link

dgszweda - completely agree. I think a potential JCW buyer is paying for more than just performance numbers and horsepower ratings. They're paying for performance, integration within the current car's abilities, exclusivity, peace of mind, and increased value (instead of possible loss in value with non-official mods).

However (and this is a great thing) it's all up to the individual owner. As I said in my review - there are no right answers here in aftermaket performance mods. The fact that there are so many great choices out there is one of the things about the current MINI market.

Howeird Oct 20th, 2004 Link

I still haven't seen an answer to whether or not you can get the injectors and ECU upgrade without buying the airbox. Also read somewhere that the plugs are changed out as well, think I saw that in the new JCW site. Anyone have a clue??

Taylor Feb 21st, 2005 Link

I’m getting ready to purchase a 2005 MCS with the JCW Kit. I will post the total installation cost when they quote it to me.

Here is a question for you: I am in the Chicagoland area - there are three Mini dealerships — do I need to worry the experience level of these three dealerships in installing the JCW kit?

Thanks.