Don’t check your calendars. DIY Friday is a day earlier this week due to the Thanksgiving holiday in the US. We’ll be back to the normal schedule next week.
One of the more improved accessories with the R56 has to be the JCW Shift Indicator lights. Where the previous version was big, bulky and rather out of place on the R53, it’s now subtle and integrated on the R56. It also makes a bit more sense on the R56 (rather than the R53) due to the quick revving nature of the engine.
The kit retails for $260 but can be had cheaper if you check with a few MotoringFile sponsors. And as pointed out in the comments, it has also been successfully retrofitted to the R53.
[ JCW Gear Shift Indicator Retrofit ] Official MINI PDF
There’s a thread somewhere too, where they were successfully installed to an R53 …
You can get instructions on the R56 retrofit to the R53 from <a href="http://www.northamericanmotoring.com/forums/showthread.php?t=115769" rel="nofollow">Alta.</a>
Here is a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dviQLTgqWSo" rel="nofollow">video</a>
From the first page:
“These installation instructions are primarily designed for use within the MINI dealership organisation and by
authorised BMW service companies.”
This is from the table on page 8
Switches 1 and 2 (engine type)
DIP Number of cylinders
4-cylinder
6-cylinder
8-cylinder
Test mode (for internal use only)
Does that mean the next JCW kit will add a few more cylinders?
Cheers,
Jack
No it does not mean that. It only means that the shifter is a generic one, and is usable in most cars. It’s just shaped to fit the R56, other than that, its just a generic rev counter. I believe that if someone tries hard enough, he can mount this shift light on any usual car.
Does this part do anything other than read RPM, or does it use throttle position info as well?