JCW Sport Brake Kit in Detail

Sections: DIY | JCW | R50 (Coupe) | R53 (Coupe) Feb 26th, 2005 43 Comments

mini

Now that the JCW Brake Kit is readily available at dealers (and even on MINIUSA), let’s take an closer look at some of the specs (From MINIUSA):

Aftersales is pleased to announce the release of the new John Cooper Works Sport Brake Kit.

The John Cooper Works Sport Brake Kit can be installed on all MINI Cooper and Cooper S hardtop and Convertible. The Brake kit was designed and developed by John Cooper Works in conjunction with the BMW Group brake specialists and has been tested and approved on the basis of the BMW/MINI requirements.

The John Cooper Works front axle sport brake has an improved thermal capacity, due to the larger internally ventilated rotors. Enlarged front axle brake pistons and sport brake pads on the front and rear axle enhance the performance of the brake. The JCW Brake Kit provides considerably more bite and gives the driver a more direct pedal response. Compared to the standard brake, a greater deceleration can be achieved with the same pedal force. To distinguish the JCW Sport Brake from a standard brake, the brake calibers come with a powder-coated red finish and a large visible John Cooper Works logo. The JCW Brake Kit includes:
Two internally ventilated brake rotors 294mm x 22 mm for the front axle

Two coated red floating brake calipers with the John Cooper Works logo for the front axle (improved caliper construction in comparison to standard brake)

Brake pads integrated in the front calipers with enlarged brake pad surface area and enhanced performance

Rear axle brake pads with enhanced performance

Hardware required for installation

Customer information with permitted wheel dimensions

Information sticker that the car has been retrofitted with the JCW Brakes
The JCW Sport Brake has been developed together with the BMW Group brake specialists. This combines the racing experience of John Cooper Works with the high quality and safety requirements of a large premium car manufacturer. Therefore the JCW Sport Brake kit provides sportier braking, but still harmonizes with all the MINI safety features like ABS, ASC and DCS and meets the long term usage requirements. And of course, as all other JCW products, does not void the limited MINI New vehicle warranty. The JCW Sport Brake provides the sportier driver additional safety, particulary when the brake is subjected to high thermal stress. The sporting properties do not result in any reduction in comfort, increased noise, more difficult control or extended wear compared to the standard brake. The John Cooper Works Brake kit can only be installed with the following wheels on a MINI Cooper or Cooper S. Please check the EPC for an updated wheel list, before you install the kit:
R85 17″ S-Lite Wheel

R87 16″ Double Spoke Wheel

R90 17″ Two Piece Cross Spoke Wheel

R91 17″ 5-Star Bullet Wheel

R95 18″ John Cooper Works Wheel

R98 17″ Web Spoke Wheel

R99 17″ Double Spoke Wheel
The car must be run-in carefully for the first 200 miles before the sport brake will be fully effective. Please ensure that you pass this information on to the customer. Suggested installation time: 3.5 hrs Parts Information: 34 11 0 393 455 = $ 1,065.00

Written By: Gabe

indimini

Nice… Looks like yet another item to add to my growing list of “must have” mods.

Am I missing something or is this actually a competitively priced offering from JCW?
Siddhartha

I can’t decide whether to retrofit Sad Arthur or just plunk for a new 05 with the suspension, brakes and LSD. Worry worry worry.

Note: Correspondance on this point with the Chief Engineer at JCW yieled the information that fitting the 18″ wheels requires a steering stop to keep the wheels from rubbing. This results in a small (3 degree) reduction in the steering arc.
Charlie

According to a reliable source (BMW’s parts computer, as of yesterday there is only one JCW Brake kit in the US and 63 in Munich,Germany Go figure………..
http://o allan MICHAEL

A competitively priced JCW item, oh my God! Now, this i may get…. so….. Let the testing begin!

PS Sid– get the ’05, brakes and the LSD!
RB

That’s much not more than the $500.00 I just paid for all new pads and 2 new front rotors. I wonder if it’s that much better?
///ACS330Ci

Too bad it wasn’t this JCW brake kit on offer – http://www.damajoo.org/phpBB2/albumpic.php?picid=1282
///ACS330Ci

Sorry link = http://www.damajoo.org/phpBB2/albumpic.php?picid=1282
///ACS330Ci

Don’t know why, but the board keeps deleting the underscores between “album” and “pic” and between “pic” and “id”
http://www.motoringfile.com/ MF Staff

Fixed – sorry about that.
Alfred

I checked with my dealer about purchase of rotors for the JCW brake kit and there was no number listed nor any available. With the stock front rotors retailing for about $65 each, I’m wondering what it will cost to replace the JCW rotors……..
Rossii

There are several kits in Mt View however I am not sure if they have been spoken for.
Robert

Now, about that JCW suspension for pre-05 MCSs…
dgszweda

I am not sure why they didn’t think about changing the brake lines. The cost is quite minimal, and the installation wouldn’t be that much different. It would sure add a little better feel to the brakes.
http://www.vancouverminicooperclub.com Rahoul

Had the kit installed last week and had my rear calipers painted to match the front ones … and steel braided brake lines of course. They look really sweet on a pure silver with JCW 18″ wheels.

Haven’t done the 200 miles yet, but do notice better braking already.
Edge

Same here, Rahoul – my dealer had put me on the waiting list for it in December when I ordered the car… the parts arrived last week… and it’s installed already! I don’t know why the BMW parts system told Charlie, otherwise, but there’s definitely more than one USA JCW Brake Kit so far. Hadn’t thought about the brake lines, but I’ll have to see if they can do that, along with the blue ignition wires (hey, my car is ALL blue, so it makes sense).

I am not due to take delivery of the car until Monday afternoon… VERY excited!
EBMCS03

Ahhhhhhhhhhh I want!!!! But dang!!! $1000 plus installiation? :(
GBMiniGirl

Does anyone know the braking numbers on these? What yardage (feetage?) is it braking at now?
Siddhartha

Now, about that JCW suspension for pre-05 MCSs…

Copy of correspondance with Tony Franks, Chief Engineer, JCW UK: (as always, read from the bottom up)

Jerry Bradbury jerry_bradbury@yahoo.com wrote: Date: Fri, 25 Feb 2005 09:34:16 -0800 (PST) From: Jerry Bradbury Subject: Re: suspension To: Tony Franks

Thanks for taking the time to help me, Tony. This is good news indeed, which I will take to my dealer. I do find it strange that BMW is losing these potential sales though.

Jerry

Tony Franks tf@johncooper.co.uk wrote: hello jerry both the suspension and brakes will fit your car without any modification, it’s just that bmw only have it listed from July 04.

they will just need the spec of the car to work out what springs you need.

the steering limiter is only to stop the 18″ wheels rubbing, it only changes the turning by 3 degrees.

Regards

Tony Franks Chief Engineer John Cooper Works http://www.johncooper.co.uk

Jerry Bradbury wrote:

WMWRE33454TD74603, JCW Kit # S2211

Build date JUL 03

Can you advise me? My MINI dealer told me that BMW lists the JCW suspension and brakes as fittable to JUL 04 builds and later. Does that mean thay will not fit on my car? If not, what are the differences in configuration that prevent their installation?

I also found out that a steering stop is required when installing the 18″ JCW wheels. How much does this decrease the turning radius?

Thanks,

Jerry
http://www.jwardell.com/mini/ Josh Wardell

I love that photo of the glowing brakes…do you have a higher resolution version?
http://motoringfile.com Gabe

Unfortuntely no. It came from the MINIUSA bulletin and is probably 300px wide (72dpi) at best.
http://www.alldigitalnyc.com drew
oh man – gotta have this one for sure ; )
- drew
Allan

And it all comes down to $$$……

darn, I want it so badly..
KevinR

I find it odd that the wheel that comes standard on the MCS (R84, 16″ X-lite) is not on the list of wheels that will work with this kit.

Let’s see: my car has X-lites, so no brake kit. My car is 11/03 build, so no suspension kit. MINI continues to make it easy for me to not buy any JCW parts…
minicoopermike

Yeah, me too as I have 16″ R90s which are not on the list GRRRR and I can’t buy the suspension kit because my car is an ’03 GRRR again
http://www.vancouverminicooperclub.com Rahoul

Here in Canada I have a 2002 Cooper … with the JCW brake kit. I will also be getting the JCW suspension, which is a little more expensive as Coopers don’t come with the rear sway bar like Ss. But my MINI mechanic has told me there is not an issue with putting the suspension on my car … it’s all a matter of time and $$$$
http://www.vancouverminicooperclub.com Rahoul

PS: as to the limiters on the JCW 18″ wheels … I did not have them installed. My MINI has been at the track several times and I have not had any rubbing issues. I have been told the only way there might be an issue is if you are turning at slow speed with your wheel cranked as far as it will go … doesn’t happen too often with the MINIs incredible turning radius
Allan

Whats the dfference between 16″ double spoke and 16″ x-lite, that you can’t put the brake kit on the x-lite but on the double spoke?
Robert

Now about that JCW suspension for pre-05 MCSs…

Siddhartha,

I’ve been following developments on the JCW suspension and I’m getting conflicting reports. MINIUSA and the dealers have no news about when and if the JCW suspension will even be made available to us. I’ve also had contact with JCG and they did confirm the compatibility of the JCW setup with 04 and earlier cars.

I don’t know what to make of this. In any event, I can’t order the setup for my car and going through other channels will mean “hasta la vista” to my warranty.

I hope MINIUSA gets this issue sorted and gets the JCW suspension homologated for US use on the full range of MCS models.
Edge

Rahoul – you’re in Canada? Well, maybe Charlie’s information was right, and I’m the first in the USA with the JCW brakes… heh.

Allan – I suspect that there is a very small but important difference in the internal radius of the double spokes and the x-lite… just enough to allow the fit.

I’m just plain shocked that ANY 16″ wheel will fit with the JCW brakes!
Scott

Can anyone tell me how much bigger the JCW front brake setup is versus stock?

Guess it’s time to call my dealer and find out if they have one for me…
minicoopermike

The rotors are roughly 3/4 of an inch bigger in diameter than stock. The calipers are bigger and more powerful. Plus they throw in different pads.
Tom

Hello People can you say BREMBO?
meanboy

I recognize some of the user names and I think they have read/know about the other available brakes but they only are interested in brakes offered from the factory and specifically JCW components.

I could be wrong.

Todd puts together several different bbk, and offers the wilwood kit close to the JCW price. Brembo and Stoptech are quite a bit more.
http://www.iinet.net.au/~sun/dlhome/ JB

Now i’m thoroughly confused:

I have this direct from JCW, which i took to mean ANY 16″ wheels, which are a standard mini combination…..

On Saturday, November 13, 2004, at 08:25 PM, john cooper works wrote:

The JCW Brakes will fit any standard MINI combination

Regards

Richard de Jong General Manager John Cooper Works North Lane, East Preston West Sussex, BN16 1BN, UK Tel: +44 (0)1903 784784 http://www.johncooper.co.uk

—– Original Message —– From: “Marcus Wilson” jb@designlab.cx To: “john cooper works” info@johncooper.co.uk Sent: Saturday, November 13, 2004 12:02 PM Subject: Re: Updated JCW KIT

Dear Richard,

I am looking for info regarding the brake clearance for your JCW brakes package with the standard Cooper S wheels (non Chilli pack) 16″.

Are there any known clearance issues that would affect my ability to use the wheels i have please?
http://motoringfile.com Gabe

Maybe they were referrig to the what’s typically standard on the MCS?
matt

Any information about if the brakes will work with x-lites using a spacer???
matt

Does anyone know if there are any race compound brake pads available for this caliper? If so, are the pads available through MINI or where? The main reason I see the need for larger brakes on the MINI is for track work only, as standard brakes work fine on the street. Thanks, 2005 MINI with LSD, JCW suspension and Works Tuning :)
Brian

This kit looks good! I’d like to know if the caliper used for it is unique, or if it is an off-the-shelf (BMW) part adapted to this application.

It will be interesting to see if the JCW pads generate as much dust as the stockers do. If they do get the wheels dirty really fast, that might be a concern to users who are buying the kit for street use. Unless JCW/MINI sell enough brake kits to make it worthwhile for aftermarket suppliers to develop pads to fit the JCW calipers, purchasers of this kit might be locked in to purchasing replacement pads from MINI.

Do any aftermarket brake component manufacturers offer relining of disc pads? This is the only work-around I can think of for someone who wants an alternative to the original JCW compound in the immediate future. Of course, if the JCW pads perform well, dust is cleanable…

=)
caminifan

Does anyone know if JCW publish a fit template for the Sport Brake kit? With a fit template, it would be possible to check if the kit is compatible with any number of aftermarket wheels.

I have e-mailed info@johncooper.co.uk and so far, the silence has been deafening. I hope I don’t lose my hearing as a result.
http://www.vancouverminicooperclub.com Rahoul

As an update

1) Yes the JCW brake kit pads produce less dust

2) Now that I’ve finished the breaking in period (pun intended) I have to say I do notice a huge difference in the MINI braking power …
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