Db is still in Canada so nothing can stop Gabe and Todd from discussing more JCW topics including the R56 JCW Stage 1. Todd has an R56 JCW car for review and he gives first impressions. Gabe talks of driving the R56 JCW and highly modded R53 back to back.
We’ll be back after taking a break next week for Thanksgiving. Have a safe and happy weekend next week everyone.
Woofcast #203:
Download | 17.1MB | 37:10 | WRR @ iTunes
Wow – you guys are living in two different realities…
BTW someone should get fired for that JCW badge placement in the photo above.
No I’m pretty sure it’s just Todd 🙂
You’ll have to wait for my full review. My opinion softened – a lot – once I got back in the GP – meaning I liked the R56 JCW quite a bit more after switching back to the GP after three days. Go figure. 😉
I hope to have my review up next week of the modded R53 vs the JCW R56. Comments should be interesting…
FYI, the R56 JCW dyno you mentioned showed 204.9 bhp at the crank and 189.4 at the wheels. Max torque was 206.6 lb/ft @ 4566 rpm… but in reality, the dyno graph shows the car climbing rapidly to 200 lb/ft at about 2700 RPM and leveling off from there. Torque tapes off around 5500 rpm while horsepower continues to climb ’till 6500 rpm.
The biggest difference between the turbo and the supercharged cars is power delivery. Though the numbers might seem weighted in the JCW210 or GP’s favor on paper (more bhp and equal torque with the GP)… the power produced by the R56 (S or JCW) is just so immediate. Throttle response (on mine at least) is spot-on, too IMO. The only thing I ever noticed that could resemble turbo lag was the dip in power around 3000 rpm (now gone with the JCW ECU). There have been two cases I know of where the ECU reprogramming didn’t “take” on the first shot. It could account for Todd’s account that the service guys “didn’t notice any difference”. If you’ve had the opportunity to really drive the R56 JCW… you would notice a difference.
Lastly, I suspect that MINI has changed how they were measuring and advertising the bhp figures for these cars. Stating crank numbers for the 1st gen and wheel numbers for 2nd gen. Something has got to account for these cars being so much better than there specs would suggest. But I suppose most MINIs have exceeded expectations. That’s why they’re so fun, right?
I totally agree with Gabe on this one – One of the most frustrating things about my old ’05 JCW R53 was the “wind-up” needed before you got to the power-band. The R56 is almost instentaneous in comparison, if not quite as good as the best naturally aspirated motors (in this respect).