Mini Clubman F54 JCW - what is ownership like?
Discussion
Hello all,
I've been a huge fan of Minis my whole life, my first car was a classic 1989 Mini, and that's saying something for someone who's 24. I've owned an R56 Cooper S and R55 Cooper S, I love the small nimble nature of the R series Mini but they are not the most comfortable on long journeys, despite having done many of miles in them and loving them despite their faults. I have always been keen on getting into the F series Minis, I've been on and off looking at challenge 210s, JCW hatch's and JCW clubmans, one thing I always come back to is ideally wanting a manual. I've driven autos, manuals etc I just find autos really boring to live with and yes driving is easier day to day. I just feel disconnected and I didn't enjoy the year I owned an auto, I feel the paddles are a gimmick as they make you think "oh cool I'll sure them" famous last words to never use them.
Anyway I digress, I'm interested in those that have owned an F54 Clubman JCW, what's it like to own one, bonus if you have owned a manual as this is ideally what I'm looking at! What the overall daily drive like on these, fuel economy (not that I care, it's just a curious question, before anyone says "don't by one if you're fuel conscious" one can be curious before conscious) what's the visibility like. Have you mapped it, what kinda power?! All the questions, I'd love to hear what ownership has been like.
Before anyone says "go and drive one, see how you like it" I did with my local Arnold Cark, the car had a suspension knock and clutch issue the test drive lasted a whopping 5 minutes, so I haven't had an opportunity to drive an F54 Clubman, they are especially hard to find in manual. I have driving a few F56 hatch's, but don't feel like these are a fair comparison in drive as they are might smaller.
I've been a huge fan of Minis my whole life, my first car was a classic 1989 Mini, and that's saying something for someone who's 24. I've owned an R56 Cooper S and R55 Cooper S, I love the small nimble nature of the R series Mini but they are not the most comfortable on long journeys, despite having done many of miles in them and loving them despite their faults. I have always been keen on getting into the F series Minis, I've been on and off looking at challenge 210s, JCW hatch's and JCW clubmans, one thing I always come back to is ideally wanting a manual. I've driven autos, manuals etc I just find autos really boring to live with and yes driving is easier day to day. I just feel disconnected and I didn't enjoy the year I owned an auto, I feel the paddles are a gimmick as they make you think "oh cool I'll sure them" famous last words to never use them.
Anyway I digress, I'm interested in those that have owned an F54 Clubman JCW, what's it like to own one, bonus if you have owned a manual as this is ideally what I'm looking at! What the overall daily drive like on these, fuel economy (not that I care, it's just a curious question, before anyone says "don't by one if you're fuel conscious" one can be curious before conscious) what's the visibility like. Have you mapped it, what kinda power?! All the questions, I'd love to hear what ownership has been like.
Before anyone says "go and drive one, see how you like it" I did with my local Arnold Cark, the car had a suspension knock and clutch issue the test drive lasted a whopping 5 minutes, so I haven't had an opportunity to drive an F54 Clubman, they are especially hard to find in manual. I have driving a few F56 hatch's, but don't feel like these are a fair comparison in drive as they are might smaller.
I have a 2017 manual gearbox pre-LCI F54 JCW Clubman All4 (231bhp). I’ve owned it since 2018, bought it with 7k miles as an ex demo and it now has 54k miles.
I was lucky to find a manual at the time as they weren’t that common. I came directly from a R53 Cooper S. I had driven a F56 JCW Auto hatch but I just wasn’t a fan of auto boxes in general hence why I went specially for a manual.
Anyway, it’s brilliant. I’ve loved ownership. Comfortable, well built and reliable. Performance is decent although a map would maybe make it more acceptable by modern standards. Gearbox is fine, although I’d prefer a shorter shift but it’s fine how it is. Fun to drive, great handing and plenty of traction. I believe the pre LCI sounds better with pops and bangs in sport mode as it doesn’t have a PPF.
I probably get 32mpg on average with mixed driving. I’ve never really found visibility an issue. Got rid of the run flats as I found the road noise loud and was a harsh ride. PS4s have sorted this.
Boot isn’t massive but is useable. I carry a spare so have lost the lower part of the rear boot space to that. They are quite robust and the interior wears its age well.
In terms of reliability….Ive had 1 set of discs all round. 2 sets of pads. Had to change the springs all round due to snapped coils but seems typical. Broken earth strap was a cheap fix but somewhat difficult to diagnose at first. I’ve heard issues with cracked wheels on the 19s but not had that problem. Wheel bearing was a couple of hundred quid but from the BMW parts bin so easy to get. Other than that, it’s just been regular servicing at the dealer.
I have roof bars in case I want to carry a bike or a roof box so plenty of practicality.
Hope that helps and good luck with your search. Its worth waiting on the right one.
I was lucky to find a manual at the time as they weren’t that common. I came directly from a R53 Cooper S. I had driven a F56 JCW Auto hatch but I just wasn’t a fan of auto boxes in general hence why I went specially for a manual.
Anyway, it’s brilliant. I’ve loved ownership. Comfortable, well built and reliable. Performance is decent although a map would maybe make it more acceptable by modern standards. Gearbox is fine, although I’d prefer a shorter shift but it’s fine how it is. Fun to drive, great handing and plenty of traction. I believe the pre LCI sounds better with pops and bangs in sport mode as it doesn’t have a PPF.
I probably get 32mpg on average with mixed driving. I’ve never really found visibility an issue. Got rid of the run flats as I found the road noise loud and was a harsh ride. PS4s have sorted this.
Boot isn’t massive but is useable. I carry a spare so have lost the lower part of the rear boot space to that. They are quite robust and the interior wears its age well.
In terms of reliability….Ive had 1 set of discs all round. 2 sets of pads. Had to change the springs all round due to snapped coils but seems typical. Broken earth strap was a cheap fix but somewhat difficult to diagnose at first. I’ve heard issues with cracked wheels on the 19s but not had that problem. Wheel bearing was a couple of hundred quid but from the BMW parts bin so easy to get. Other than that, it’s just been regular servicing at the dealer.
I have roof bars in case I want to carry a bike or a roof box so plenty of practicality.
Hope that helps and good luck with your search. Its worth waiting on the right one.
Really appreciate this, pretty much bang on what I'm looking for thank you!
I'm in no rush to get buy one, just exploring the option and you have given me lots to think about. Regularly keep my eye out on auto trader anyway, and regularly check for JCW clubbies.
Thankfully I have a reliable car at the moment, it's not fun or fast, does the job very well and have eaten a lot of miles just a 2011 Toyota RAV4, fun fact, I'm only the second owner thought that was pretty cool when I brought it.
A strange question, how bigs the fuel tank, I've owned an I30n and that thing was awesome but good lord the tank was a joke, it was so small.
I'm getting a roof tent and will be travelling a lot so would like a fun car that can travel well and you have certainly answered the fun part and roof bar part which I forgot to ask haha.
Sadly my partner and I of 5 years are splitting up, hurts more considering we brought a house 10 months ago and were considering getting married, that thought lasted long.
I'm in no rush to get buy one, just exploring the option and you have given me lots to think about. Regularly keep my eye out on auto trader anyway, and regularly check for JCW clubbies.
Thankfully I have a reliable car at the moment, it's not fun or fast, does the job very well and have eaten a lot of miles just a 2011 Toyota RAV4, fun fact, I'm only the second owner thought that was pretty cool when I brought it.
A strange question, how bigs the fuel tank, I've owned an I30n and that thing was awesome but good lord the tank was a joke, it was so small.
I'm getting a roof tent and will be travelling a lot so would like a fun car that can travel well and you have certainly answered the fun part and roof bar part which I forgot to ask haha.
Sadly my partner and I of 5 years are splitting up, hurts more considering we brought a house 10 months ago and were considering getting married, that thought lasted long.
Superdry said:
I have a 2017 manual gearbox pre-LCI F54 JCW Clubman All4 (231bhp). I’ve owned it since 2018, bought it with 7k miles as an ex demo and it now has 54k miles.
I was lucky to find a manual at the time as they weren’t that common. I came directly from a R53 Cooper S. I had driven a F56 JCW Auto hatch but I just wasn’t a fan of auto boxes in general hence why I went specially for a manual.
Anyway, it’s brilliant. I’ve loved ownership. Comfortable, well built and reliable. Performance is decent although a map would maybe make it more acceptable by modern standards. Gearbox is fine, although I’d prefer a shorter shift but it’s fine how it is. Fun to drive, great handing and plenty of traction. I believe the pre LCI sounds better with pops and bangs in sport mode as it doesn’t have a PPF.
I probably get 32mpg on average with mixed driving. I’ve never really found visibility an issue. Got rid of the run flats as I found the road noise loud and was a harsh ride. PS4s have sorted this.
Boot isn’t massive but is useable. I carry a spare so have lost the lower part of the rear boot space to that. They are quite robust and the interior wears its age well.
In terms of reliability….Ive had 1 set of discs all round. 2 sets of pads. Had to change the springs all round due to snapped coils but seems typical. Broken earth strap was a cheap fix but somewhat difficult to diagnose at first. I’ve heard issues with cracked wheels on the 19s but not had that problem. Wheel bearing was a couple of hundred quid but from the BMW parts bin so easy to get. Other than that, it’s just been regular servicing at the dealer.
I have roof bars in case I want to carry a bike or a roof box so plenty of practicality.
Hope that helps and good luck with your search. Its worth waiting on the right one.
Sorry forgot to quote your response haha. I was lucky to find a manual at the time as they weren’t that common. I came directly from a R53 Cooper S. I had driven a F56 JCW Auto hatch but I just wasn’t a fan of auto boxes in general hence why I went specially for a manual.
Anyway, it’s brilliant. I’ve loved ownership. Comfortable, well built and reliable. Performance is decent although a map would maybe make it more acceptable by modern standards. Gearbox is fine, although I’d prefer a shorter shift but it’s fine how it is. Fun to drive, great handing and plenty of traction. I believe the pre LCI sounds better with pops and bangs in sport mode as it doesn’t have a PPF.
I probably get 32mpg on average with mixed driving. I’ve never really found visibility an issue. Got rid of the run flats as I found the road noise loud and was a harsh ride. PS4s have sorted this.
Boot isn’t massive but is useable. I carry a spare so have lost the lower part of the rear boot space to that. They are quite robust and the interior wears its age well.
In terms of reliability….Ive had 1 set of discs all round. 2 sets of pads. Had to change the springs all round due to snapped coils but seems typical. Broken earth strap was a cheap fix but somewhat difficult to diagnose at first. I’ve heard issues with cracked wheels on the 19s but not had that problem. Wheel bearing was a couple of hundred quid but from the BMW parts bin so easy to get. Other than that, it’s just been regular servicing at the dealer.
I have roof bars in case I want to carry a bike or a roof box so plenty of practicality.
Hope that helps and good luck with your search. Its worth waiting on the right one.
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