New (to me) R56 Cooper S

[Drekly]

Hi, just thought I'd share a pic of my new R56, its a 2013 N18 Cooper S with the JCW kit on.
Have already binned the run flats for some 215/45 Hankooks and next plan is to get a stage 1 remap, which will probably then lead onto needing a brake upgrade.



Question - are there any decent forums out there? Looked at minitorque but it seems pretty dead, and some strange characters.

Anyway, loving the car so far, the goal being B road fun without having to massively break the speed limit to get a buzz. And it seems to deliver on that score.

[Drekly]

I can imagine the handling on coilovers must be amazing. But while the wheel arch gap could be less (each generation of mini seems to get worse) I need a certain level of ground clearance, so its not going to be dropped. The JCW front is so low anyway, you have to crawl over speed humps as it is.

Anyway, we had an R53 Cooper S a few years back, it was a minter but bog standard 163bhp. I liked it, although it needed more power and the brakes were pathetic.
While looking for a car this time, I tried a couple of N14 JCWs but the cars were a bit miley and not up to scratch condition wise. I then decided I wanted the more reliable N18 engine anyway. Try finding a JCW with one of them for sale, its likely to have to be a 2013 car and there is still quite a premium over the Cooper S for the same year and mileage, a few thousand extra which then takes you well into F56 budget territory...

So this car seemed to fit the bill in what I was looking for. I think a few light tweaks and with 220-230bhp it will be a hoot.
I have been looking at Lohen's website, and watched Petrol Peds youtube videos on some some of their performance packs. Shame they are a bit of a trek from me.

[Drekly]

Hi poosemon, getting on fine with the car, only covered a low mileage as its practically weekend only use. But the engine has not used any oil yet and - while it isn't a big consideration given my mileage - they are very good on fuel, a huge improvement over the R53.
I have been reading various forums and groups on facebook and really glad I didn't get an N14, the stories of horrific oil consumption and death rattle are never ending.

I've now had a stage 1 remap carried out by Celtic Tuning and its a useful increase in performance, smooth progressive power delivery (no clutch killing torque spikes), pulls harder (especially in the upper gears) and keeps stock throttle and steering sensitivity. It feels on a par with a fJCW now, maybe a bit more torque at 220lb/ft.
But a healthy N18 Cooper S should be putting out between 190-195bhp as standard anyway, so you might decide they are nippy enough depending on what you have now.
Pleased with the handling, very agile and lively feeling, it is properly at home on the B roads but can still cruise fine if you need to do longer journeys.
Ride can be a little busy, but ditching the run flats has helped. And I've still not got bored of the very childish exhaust pops and bangs with the sport button on.

I will probably upgrade the discs and pads next as I feel it could do with a little more stopping power. A fJCW wins out here with the Brembo set up.

Happy hunting, it goes without saying try and get a 2010-on LCI facelift. I personally think the Cooper S can look a bit too plain/understated without the JCW aerokit, but it's just cosmetic and if you don't need that then there is more choice and better value out there.