F56 JCW - Refinement
Discussion
Having driven about 250 miles on a mixture of roads in my F56 JCW at the weekend - does anyone else find the car is pretty damn poor in terms of refinement?
Issues are:
Poor ride - occurs on any kind of broken surface, and I have already swapped out all the crappy OEM runflats for Eagle F1 Asymmetrics (which did improve things)
Rattly cabin - again occurs on any kind of broken surface, from a variety of places if the cabin
Road and wind noise - noticeably poor
In all these respects it's miles behind my old Golf Mk7.5 GTI.
Mini really need to up their game with the next gen JCW.
Issues are:
Poor ride - occurs on any kind of broken surface, and I have already swapped out all the crappy OEM runflats for Eagle F1 Asymmetrics (which did improve things)
Rattly cabin - again occurs on any kind of broken surface, from a variety of places if the cabin
Road and wind noise - noticeably poor
In all these respects it's miles behind my old Golf Mk7.5 GTI.
Mini really need to up their game with the next gen JCW.
Is yours a pre LCi as I noticed these are more rattly when I test drove a few. My LCi has one squeak from the dash that I haven't looked at sorting yet but apart that it's pretty solid. It's not as quiet or refined as the Clubman but no complaints on longer trips I've done.
You should really be comparing a F56 JCW with a Polo GTi.
You should really be comparing a F56 JCW with a Polo GTi.
My 2017 JCW is rattle free but it has only covered 22k. The ride is slightly harsh even though I have lowered the official pressure by 10%. I would still not pick it for long trips but I would happily choose it for a fun drive. Or a track day.
I assume the Golf has a longer wheelbase, more wheel travel and softer suspension, and much better NVH.
The JCW should perhaps be compared to a Golf CS.
I don't really want the next gen to be much heavier than the current 1200kg DIN and I'll happily sacrifice comfort for turn in and response.
Are you on 17' or 18'?
I assume the Golf has a longer wheelbase, more wheel travel and softer suspension, and much better NVH.
The JCW should perhaps be compared to a Golf CS.
I don't really want the next gen to be much heavier than the current 1200kg DIN and I'll happily sacrifice comfort for turn in and response.
Are you on 17' or 18'?
Edited by nickfrog on Tuesday 2nd May 19:35
un1eash said:
Is yours a pre LCi as I noticed these are more rattly when I test drove a few. My LCi has one squeak from the dash that I haven't looked at sorting yet but apart that it's pretty solid. It's not as quiet or refined as the Clubman but no complaints on longer trips I've done.
Interesting that you say that - it's a pre-LCI. My other half has an LCI Cooper, and ignoring the differences in suspension it just seems better built across the board. Perhaps they made some under the skin NVH changes in the LCI or just built them better.Nickfrog - it's on the 18" cup spoke.
nickfrog said:
Perhaps the 17' would give you a better ride with more sidewall? I wonder if there is a place where people are desperate to "upgrade" to 18' and would swap with their 17's?
If I keep the car I might well have a look at the 17s.I've also been thinking of a new Golf Mk8 GTI Clubsport, but new car prices have went mental :/
I move from F57 to 7.5 GTi
The ride is harsh on the F57, especially on sport mode, and I use to run my FK2 daily
Mine are rattle free, but it was under 20k miles when I sold it
I do not notice any wind noise, the soft top isnt very good at noise insulation, the exhaust noise could easily drown out my radio
but I think Golf GTi and Mini are different category. The Golf is "one car to do it all", fast from A to B, comfortable but nothing dramatic, the Mini is more give up comfort, practicality and concentrate on the fun
The ride is harsh on the F57, especially on sport mode, and I use to run my FK2 daily
Mine are rattle free, but it was under 20k miles when I sold it
I do not notice any wind noise, the soft top isnt very good at noise insulation, the exhaust noise could easily drown out my radio
but I think Golf GTi and Mini are different category. The Golf is "one car to do it all", fast from A to B, comfortable but nothing dramatic, the Mini is more give up comfort, practicality and concentrate on the fun
As others have said, it's a very different car to the Golf so not really a fair comparison.
We had a 2021 F56 JCW, was on 17"s and felt more refined and settled than our 2019 Clubman Cooper S before that which (IIRC) was on 18"s. All our MINI's have felt well screwed together and generally rattle free.
But it's not really a car I'd expect to associate with huge levels of refinement. "Acceptable" for short/medium trips, but ultimately we needed something with more space and for longer journeys, so traded ours in recently for a Countryman which is miles ahead in terms of refinement (as you would expect).
We had a 2021 F56 JCW, was on 17"s and felt more refined and settled than our 2019 Clubman Cooper S before that which (IIRC) was on 18"s. All our MINI's have felt well screwed together and generally rattle free.
But it's not really a car I'd expect to associate with huge levels of refinement. "Acceptable" for short/medium trips, but ultimately we needed something with more space and for longer journeys, so traded ours in recently for a Countryman which is miles ahead in terms of refinement (as you would expect).
I've been running a new JCW hatch since November last year - on standard 17s with run flats. The other vehicle is an RRS SVR, and to be honest, each are equally fun in their own ways.
It's loads more refined than a previous R56 JCW on sport suspension (we had two), which was the most concern, as those crashed over everything, and would not have entertained another like it.
Interior cabin wise, on par with my mk7 golf (run for 22k miles), as fit and finish is excellent, and no rattles yet to speak of, but only covered 3k miles. Quite a few of which were a run to Euro Disney in December, the lounge leather seats proved to be really comfortable.
Will see how it ages.
It's loads more refined than a previous R56 JCW on sport suspension (we had two), which was the most concern, as those crashed over everything, and would not have entertained another like it.
Interior cabin wise, on par with my mk7 golf (run for 22k miles), as fit and finish is excellent, and no rattles yet to speak of, but only covered 3k miles. Quite a few of which were a run to Euro Disney in December, the lounge leather seats proved to be really comfortable.
Will see how it ages.
My 2016 F56 JCW has done 72k miles and not a single rattle from the inside. When I bought it second hand there was a rattle from the boot but adjusting the stops prevented anything further.
The wind noise I believe is mostly from the A pillar design from what I've read and I admit it's a bit loud, if it weren't for that the car would be very quiet at speed.
I don't find it crashy or particularly bad on poor surfaces. Even with the adaptive suspension on hard it's not too bad in my opinion with Michelin PS4 tyres and on the 17's but then I came from a lowered MK7.5 Fiesta ST180 which sounded like the top mounts were about to burst through the bonnet when hitting a little pot hole or drain cover. I guess it's all subjective to what you're used to and previously experienced.
The wind noise I believe is mostly from the A pillar design from what I've read and I admit it's a bit loud, if it weren't for that the car would be very quiet at speed.
I don't find it crashy or particularly bad on poor surfaces. Even with the adaptive suspension on hard it's not too bad in my opinion with Michelin PS4 tyres and on the 17's but then I came from a lowered MK7.5 Fiesta ST180 which sounded like the top mounts were about to burst through the bonnet when hitting a little pot hole or drain cover. I guess it's all subjective to what you're used to and previously experienced.
JSVWPH said:
My 2016 F56 JCW has done 72k miles and not a single rattle from the inside. When I bought it second hand there was a rattle from the boot but adjusting the stops prevented anything further.
Good to hear about the lack of rattles. I also had one from the boot and adjusted the hatch stops too. Except I went too far and ended up with a litre of rain water in the boot the next day!
Which is the main cause of boot water leaks I reckon whereas people think it's a poor weld or seal.
Given I started the thread, and having driven the car more:
The spring rate and damping on my pre LCI 2018 JCW isn't particularly compliant, but things have improved by ditching the OEM runflats for normal Eagle F1s.
I actually think the most annoying refinement related things on my car are now trim rattles. One from the plastic circular lit up media surround thingy, and the other from a rear door card. Go over a s
tty surface and these buzz like hell. Will try and look into removing/solving them if I get a chance.
The spring rate and damping on my pre LCI 2018 JCW isn't particularly compliant, but things have improved by ditching the OEM runflats for normal Eagle F1s.
I actually think the most annoying refinement related things on my car are now trim rattles. One from the plastic circular lit up media surround thingy, and the other from a rear door card. Go over a s
tty surface and these buzz like hell. Will try and look into removing/solving them if I get a chance.Gassing Station | New MINIs | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff