Hi Everyone,

New to the forum and fairly new to MINI ownership had it for around 4 months.

I have a JCW 2005 Mini the previous owner loved the car to new found levels I believe he spent a fortune on extras and some aftermarket parts which pleased me when I convinced him to sell. Im also hugely impressed with the pace of the car and the grip I had a weekend trip away in the Cotswolds and I tested the car properly on the country roads :D. BMW also commented on it saying they haven’t heard one that sounds like this before which pleased me.

I just have some quick questions which I am hoping some of you can give me some guidance,

My radio can’t get an AM frequency for some reason FM works fine but if I switch to AM I get nothing, does any one know what may have caused this? I am not to clued up on the radio side of things and i would of assumed that if i had a problem it would affect both FM and AM.


Im also looking at getting the JCW brake upgrade pack as ive seen them for around £550 and as i need to replace my brake pads and discs i thought i may as well go the whole 9 yards. Now I know i need the pre 06/07 kit as I have a 2005 model I have 17inch wheels so I am guessing clearance wont be a problem. Do i need to do anything else other than the kit that i need.

I am also contemplating 18inch rims and adding the JCW sports seats? Does anyone have any opinions on the seats I spend a lot of time in the car so comfort is the most important for me (unless im honing around) , my concern with the 18inch rims is the ride quality, with the run flats I currently have it can be quite harsh.

Thanks ill try to get some photos up later :D

hello,
reagrding the 18" wheels, ive just took mine off my GP and downsized to 17s, the ride's instantly improved, as has acceleration. aesthetically the 18s fill the arches so much better. so i suppose it depends on whether you want performance or aesthetics. also, ditch the runflats! that was the fist mod i did to my mini and what a difference?!!!! the handling improves tenfold! just take some tyre-weld with you or buy the mini mobility kit and job's a good'un!
the jcw r56 seats are awesome! really comfortable, and look sweet. i dont think you can get the r53 jcw seats anymore from the dealers, so the r56 seats are probably the way foward. they need adapting base plates from what ive read. dont quote me on this though as it's from memory. im sure if you do some searches on here, you'll find more info.
and lastly the brakes... funnily enough i have my old set for sale on ebay at the mo; just do a search for 'jcw brakes' and you should find them if you want to have a look at the pictures. the setup includes; r53 jcw front calipers with mintex m1144 pads, r56 drilled/slotted discs with goodridge hoses and on the rear standard r53 callipers with jcw pads, brand new r53 discs and goodridge hoses. im after around £420 for the set. let me know if youre interested.

Hi,

Thanks for the reply,

Im not concerned enough about the aesthetics to consider ruining the ride comfort
and handling so i think ill rule the 18inch jobs out, will save me the tears as
well when they get curbed!

I shall also look into removing the run flat tyres im not a fan of them if im
honest ill wait until i have destroyed the set on the rims. But its a good idea
and one that i didnt think of.

I do really want the seats i love the look of them, i just worry about the look
of the interior after installing them, i have half leather/cloth so adding full
leather seats in the front may look a tad silly unless i get them retrimmed or
they came in the 50/50 variety.

Thanks for the offer on the brakes if the deal im looking at falls through ill
drop you a pm, ive decided i need uprated brakes due to the power the car has
compared to stock it has the 210bhp kit and a race manifold and ecu, plus that
im having a trip to the ring in october with a mate so id prefer to stay out of
the armco if possible.

Ive got the Recaro Works full leather seats in mine and they are fantastic, hold you well and look fantastic