Australian motoring site and friends of MotoringFile, Ausmotive.com, are reporting this morning that MOTOR Magazine has named the second generation JCW GP as the latest winner of their “Bang for your bucks” award. One judge called the GP the “best MINI I’ve ever driven, especially on a track.” We couldn’t agree more.
Head over to Ausmotive.com for their full take and some down under GP photos. You can also catch the full MINI Australia press release after the jump.
The official news from MINI Australia:
MINI wins MOTOR Magazine’s 2013 Bang for your Bucks Award
The limited edition MINI John Cooper Works GP has been hailed as the best performance car under $100,000 in MOTOR Magazine’s annual Bang for your Bucks awards.
The powerful pocket rocket proved its race track credibility and stole the BFYB crown from an impressive line-up of four-, six- and even eight-cylinder vehicles.
One BFYB judge described the JCW GP as the “most talented Bang winner in ages”, while another dubbed it the “best Mini I’ve ever driven, especially on a track”.
The MINI JCW GP arrived in Australia earlier this year and has received a red hot reception from the general public and motoring media alike, topped off by claiming the BFYB award.
The vehicle was designed to shine on a race track and is the fastest production MINI ever built.
And it’s not shy about stopping, either. A BFYB judge declared that “the GP aces the field on braking distance from 100km/h” – a result achieved thanks to an individual traction control system, bespoke racing suspension and exclusive 17-inch rims which house the high performance braking system including a six piston fixed front brake caliper.
BMW Group Australia managing director, Phil Horton, is thrilled with the JCW GP’s win.
“We’re absolutely delighted to win MOTOR Magazine’s 2013 BFYB award,” Horton said.
“Our entire MINI range – including the original hatch and the just released Paceman – are renowned for being tons of fun on the road, as well as on the race track.
“It’s great to see that Australia’s most popular performance magazine thinks so too.”
The 2013 Bang for your Bucks incorporated two full days of intensive track testing, conducted and judged by a group of some of the most experienced and knowledgeable road testers in Australia.
—
Special thanks to Liam over at Ausmotive for the info.
<p>HOURA :D</p>
<p>This new GP is a lot of things. “Bang for your buck” it is not. This is a sweet car with a lot of goodies for the “more dollars than sense” crowd.</p>
<p>I have driven the car a bunch and is the Best performance MINI ever so far great value for the Money if you ask me ~ once you get seat time you fall in love with the car…</p>
<p>Agreed 100% on best value for the buck. I have driven every MINI (including this) as well as many of the rivals the GP is pitted against, and ‘dollar per fun’ the MINI takes the cake. It is a great value (even at $40k) in the same way that a base MC is an awesome value for what it is/against it’s competitors. Value does not always mean numbers, and in this day and age with output/technology being as advanced as it is, number mean less now than ever before!</p>
<p>I was once an automotive journalist. I drove everything. When I first drove a Mini I stated that there’s no car under $75k I would rather be driving. I have now owned two Mini’s and will continue to own them until I can afford something over $75k or when Mini gets trumped. I think the GP2 is a bit of a disappointment, no matter how it drives, and it’s not so much that the GP2 is the best bang for the buck but that the Mini is the best bang for the buck.</p>
<p>Bang for your buck would be taking an early R53 and dumping $10k of wisdom into it. It’d smoke this GP on the track for half price.</p>
<p>Riiiiiight. You know, I still own an R53, and I swear, I don’t know what mythical car you guys are talking about half the time.</p>
<p>I’m trying to think what track-day toy I would rather have than a MINI GP2 for $40K. Maybe a used Cayman? I’m not sure how far $40K would go in that market, but if I were looking for something as entertaining as a MINI, but really had to have additional speed, there aren’t a lot of options at that price.</p>
<p>I would greatly your comments regarding my nearly finalized purchase of a 2006 JCW GP. The car has only 5k miles on the odo and appears to be impeccable inside and out. I am a bit reluctant to move forward with the purchase for a least two reasons:</p>
<p>I will be using it as a daily driver in New England. That will include winter driving. Please share your thoughts. I am also concerned about the annual maintenance costs.
I recognize that costs will vary as per the owner’s driving style and miles/year. I will not drive the car in a routinely aggressive manner. I will also not exceed 10k miles/year — likely far less than 10k, in fact.</p>
<p>I have read and heard that GPs are very costly to maintain properly given the cost of parts and $130 shop rate.</p>
<p>Bottom line: Do you think the car is suitable for my intended use; and is my trepidation justified regarding maintenance costs. Please provide a ballpark/average regarding the annual maintenance cost.</p>
<p>I greatly appreciate you comments.</p>
<p>Thank you,
Piper</p>
<p>You’ll have to figure out for yourself if the cost of ownership is too high, but the GP shouldn’t be any MORE expensive to own than any other MINI. Plus, you’ll get free scheduled maintenance for 3 years, 36,000 on the GP, just like any other MINI.</p>