TRD's Mini John Cooper Works F56
Discussion
As much as I've enjoyed owning and using sports cars in recent years, I fancied a change. Most of my previous cars in the last 10 years or so have all been kind of similar in a way; naturally aspirated, revvy, and relatively raw in many cases. I really fancied a complete change and if I'm honest while I have really enjoyed driving the MX5, I have been thinking of something else for quite a while, something completely different. I also decided that it would be nice if I at least had the ability to transport a couple of extra passengers now and again, and had a modicum of refinement for those less fun drives which we all have to do now and again. I feel like the MX5 works great as a weekend only car, but not so great as an only, do-it-all car.
I started with the idea of a BMW 130i and even found a nice looking car (that was an ex-PHers car), and found one that looked really nice, birds suspension and all, but I just felt that maybe it would just be a little too old and high maintenance, even though it was clearly a very nice car, and to be honest, I've sort of done the BMW thing, so I felt I knew more or less what to expect, and so it would be just like going back to one of my previous BMWs in a way, they do have that 'feel' to them.
I then thought about a Jaguar XFR, and having started a thread on here about them, I eventually decided against, as they're not going to be cheap to run, and even though I wanted a change, the XFR is a pretty huge car, I really need something slightly more compact than that considering my parking arrangements and the use case of the car. Perhaps one day, but not at the moment.
In the end though, I always seem to end up buying fairly old cars that need regular maintenance, and it had become a bit wearing if I'm honest. Another thing was that I really fancied a car with some low down torque, as I've found my driving style these days plays to the strengths of cars that deliver power in this way rather than ones where you have to rev the b
ks off them. As I'd also never had a turbo hot hatch before that wasn't a diesel, it made sense to explore the possibility of buying one of the more recent petrol hot hatches.
Having looked at a variety of options, I narrowed down to a few choices:
That left the obvious choice of one of the hot Minis. I've always liked the JCW, and it's now possible to get one for about £12K, which seems excellent value for money for what you get compared to the competition. Having looked into the general reliability and running costs, it seems that running one is quite reasonable and they are robust and reliable cars.
One morning I spotted what appeared to be a very nice and good value car in one of my preferred colours near Troon in Scotland, and made some enquiries about it. I went up yesterday and the pictures didn't do it justice, it looks absolutely fantastic, it was one of those cars where you kind of knew you were going to buy it the second you saw it. The owner was a lovely guy and took time out of his day to show me all round the car and even filled the tank for me. One of the most pleasant buying experiences I've had (bar Storm Bellend nearly sticking a spanner in the works on the day). So we did a deal at just over £12K.
The guy has clearly looked after it really well and it shows. Even though it's got 84K on the clock, it comes with a full Mini dealer service history to back it up, and as these are clearly reliable and strong engines, used in many BMWs, this was not really a massive concern, particularly as I won't be adding huge amounts of miles to it going forward.
I absolutely love the damn thing. I've had a modded R53 before and that was fun, and was clearly more raw than this car, but at this point in my life, the F56 is a much better fit for me.
As well as the way it looks, it's such a nice car to drive either sedately, where it's a nice relaxing and comfortable with plenty of toys and creature comforts. Or you can stick it in sports mode, open the exhaust valves and it's happy to be a hooligan.
I'm really enjoying the gobfulls of torque this car has. Having come from a 200 bhp MX5, I'd say this definitely feels much faster than it's on paper 228 bhp would suggest. From just below 2,000 rpm this car just hauls, and definitely has a push back in the seat feeling that my previous cars have been lacking at times. Then you change up, the revs drop, and another big slug of torque pushes you along at a rate seemingly not much slower than the previous gear. It's quite addictive and I think it works well on the roads as you can just have a quick squirt of acceleration when you want it.
I haven't fully explored the handling capabilities yet, and I was concerned I might miss RWD a little, but to be honest I don't think it really matters too much most of the time. The car feels extremely grippy, as is typical for a hot Mini, feels very planted and solid, and seems to have very strong brakes.
I also love the way the car feels like two cars in one. It's like a small luxury car that can be chilled out one minute, and then a beast at the press of a button and opening those exhaust valves.
It feels really quite premium and well made too, a really nice place to sit.
Very happy with this, it looks and feels special, goes very well, loads of torque, a fruity engine note, and everyone who has seen it has been very impressed. I honestly think this is the best all-round car I've ever owned. It might not the best in any one area, but it's very good or great in pretty much all aspects.
Obviously being a modern car, and one with a turbo, it's not quite as analogue and responsive as the MX5, and the MX5 is always going to be a hard act to follow on a bendy country road, but the Mini is certainly still great fun, makes up for any perceived disadvantages by having impressive levels of thrust from low down and in any gear, as well as a rude engine note and the fact it just feels quite special. Also at least the fact mine has a rare pano-roof means that it retains at least a little of the whole open air motoring concept.
Plans for the future? Just look after it and enjoy it really. I guess I could remap it, but honestly, I'm not sure it really needs it, and I'm always wary of the fact you could be causing problems for yourself down the line on what would have been an otherwise reliable car. Maybe my concerns are not justified, but for now, I'll leave as is and enjoy as it is. Well, assuming I don't get it written off, or have the engine expire in an expensive fashion like my 2 Boxsters
I started with the idea of a BMW 130i and even found a nice looking car (that was an ex-PHers car), and found one that looked really nice, birds suspension and all, but I just felt that maybe it would just be a little too old and high maintenance, even though it was clearly a very nice car, and to be honest, I've sort of done the BMW thing, so I felt I knew more or less what to expect, and so it would be just like going back to one of my previous BMWs in a way, they do have that 'feel' to them.
I then thought about a Jaguar XFR, and having started a thread on here about them, I eventually decided against, as they're not going to be cheap to run, and even though I wanted a change, the XFR is a pretty huge car, I really need something slightly more compact than that considering my parking arrangements and the use case of the car. Perhaps one day, but not at the moment.
In the end though, I always seem to end up buying fairly old cars that need regular maintenance, and it had become a bit wearing if I'm honest. Another thing was that I really fancied a car with some low down torque, as I've found my driving style these days plays to the strengths of cars that deliver power in this way rather than ones where you have to rev the b
ks off them. As I'd also never had a turbo hot hatch before that wasn't a diesel, it made sense to explore the possibility of buying one of the more recent petrol hot hatches.Having looked at a variety of options, I narrowed down to a few choices:
- Renault Sport Megane: I really liked these, but had to be a Cup, and was put off by the reports of chocolate gearboxes.
- Fiesta ST: I really wanted the Mk8, and ideally, the Performance Edition, but spending £20k on one was hard to justify
- Peugeot 208 GTI PS: A bit more under the radar than the Fiesta, but having looked at one in person, it just didn't do it for me
- Civic Type R FK2: I was a little drawn to these, but a decent example was more than I wanted to spend, and I'd always want the FK8 instead
That left the obvious choice of one of the hot Minis. I've always liked the JCW, and it's now possible to get one for about £12K, which seems excellent value for money for what you get compared to the competition. Having looked into the general reliability and running costs, it seems that running one is quite reasonable and they are robust and reliable cars.
One morning I spotted what appeared to be a very nice and good value car in one of my preferred colours near Troon in Scotland, and made some enquiries about it. I went up yesterday and the pictures didn't do it justice, it looks absolutely fantastic, it was one of those cars where you kind of knew you were going to buy it the second you saw it. The owner was a lovely guy and took time out of his day to show me all round the car and even filled the tank for me. One of the most pleasant buying experiences I've had (bar Storm Bellend nearly sticking a spanner in the works on the day). So we did a deal at just over £12K.
The guy has clearly looked after it really well and it shows. Even though it's got 84K on the clock, it comes with a full Mini dealer service history to back it up, and as these are clearly reliable and strong engines, used in many BMWs, this was not really a massive concern, particularly as I won't be adding huge amounts of miles to it going forward.
I absolutely love the damn thing. I've had a modded R53 before and that was fun, and was clearly more raw than this car, but at this point in my life, the F56 is a much better fit for me.
As well as the way it looks, it's such a nice car to drive either sedately, where it's a nice relaxing and comfortable with plenty of toys and creature comforts. Or you can stick it in sports mode, open the exhaust valves and it's happy to be a hooligan.
I'm really enjoying the gobfulls of torque this car has. Having come from a 200 bhp MX5, I'd say this definitely feels much faster than it's on paper 228 bhp would suggest. From just below 2,000 rpm this car just hauls, and definitely has a push back in the seat feeling that my previous cars have been lacking at times. Then you change up, the revs drop, and another big slug of torque pushes you along at a rate seemingly not much slower than the previous gear. It's quite addictive and I think it works well on the roads as you can just have a quick squirt of acceleration when you want it.
I haven't fully explored the handling capabilities yet, and I was concerned I might miss RWD a little, but to be honest I don't think it really matters too much most of the time. The car feels extremely grippy, as is typical for a hot Mini, feels very planted and solid, and seems to have very strong brakes.
I also love the way the car feels like two cars in one. It's like a small luxury car that can be chilled out one minute, and then a beast at the press of a button and opening those exhaust valves.
It feels really quite premium and well made too, a really nice place to sit.
Very happy with this, it looks and feels special, goes very well, loads of torque, a fruity engine note, and everyone who has seen it has been very impressed. I honestly think this is the best all-round car I've ever owned. It might not the best in any one area, but it's very good or great in pretty much all aspects.
Obviously being a modern car, and one with a turbo, it's not quite as analogue and responsive as the MX5, and the MX5 is always going to be a hard act to follow on a bendy country road, but the Mini is certainly still great fun, makes up for any perceived disadvantages by having impressive levels of thrust from low down and in any gear, as well as a rude engine note and the fact it just feels quite special. Also at least the fact mine has a rare pano-roof means that it retains at least a little of the whole open air motoring concept.
Plans for the future? Just look after it and enjoy it really. I guess I could remap it, but honestly, I'm not sure it really needs it, and I'm always wary of the fact you could be causing problems for yourself down the line on what would have been an otherwise reliable car. Maybe my concerns are not justified, but for now, I'll leave as is and enjoy as it is. Well, assuming I don't get it written off, or have the engine expire in an expensive fashion like my 2 Boxsters
Court_S said:
Looks grand. The seats in these look really good.
The F56 is certainly a step up from the R53 in terms of quality. MINI’s always handle really well in my experience and are generally a lot of fun.
Thanks mate. The seats are really comfortable, and nice to the touch. Surprisingly little wear on the bolsters considering the age too which I was impressed about.The F56 is certainly a step up from the R53 in terms of quality. MINI’s always handle really well in my experience and are generally a lot of fun.
The upgrade in quality over the R53 is truly vast. The R53 wasn't bad for its age, but definitely pretty much of its age. The F56 is significantly more luxurious and more well made, no creaks, rattles or squeaks to speak of, which is a first for any of my cars
Everything just seems really high quality, and I like that about it. I know some may say I'm getting old / soft but I really like that about it. When you think about it, for most people, most drives are not particularly fun, and so having a nice place to sit on those occasions is very much welcomed
Lecket said:
Looks a great example, especially given the miles. I've just picked up a Dec 2017 model, and echo your comments about being two cars. Relaxing and a good cruiser on one hand, and then a fun sports car on the other. Are you based in Scotland?
Thanks mate, yeah that's exactly how it feels. Ideal as your only car for sure. I'm in Newcastle.CABC said:
Nice.
a good contrast to what you've had too.
It sure is hugely different to most I've had but gives me the attributes I wanted but still in a small and reasonably light package which is great a good contrast to what you've had too.
Om said:
Lovely. There is just something really fun about a proper little hot hatch. It doesn't matter if it is front wheel drive or turbocharged they are just a hoot to fling along country lanes! I hope this one treats you better than your Boxster!
Aye, you're not wrong there. I've generally always gravitated to sports cars, but as you say there's something about a good hot hatch, they're practical, usually relatively inexpensive to run and very silly and not at all serious (Porsche I'm looking at you). And yeah I'm crossing everything that it does treat me better than that car did. That was one car that for me was not only a disaster but to be honest I didn't feel it lived up to the hype anyway. I still look back now and wonder why I went in for another go when after my first one was written off, I then found the mx5 more fun.Nelka said:
Looks great, enjoy!
Alfahorn said:
18 months ago I fancied downsizing to a small nippy car, I chose an F55 Cooper S. I've covered 25,000 miles in it, the car has been almost faultless apart from a temperamental pad sensor. I've only had to service it, have 2 new front tyres and rear brake pads. Brilliant little cars.
The front & rear pad sensors on my daughter’s F56 Cooper both triggered ridiculously early. Something to keep an eye on then - although the pads appear to have lots of meat on them so hopefully they'll last a while
The only problem I've had so far is the passenger seat does not seem to move forward when trying to get someone / something in the back. A fairly common fault by the sounds of it. Although compared with the problems some of my other cars threw up, this is fairly minor stuff, and I can still use the lever on the floor to move the seat forward if I need to get someone in the back.
The only problem I've had so far is the passenger seat does not seem to move forward when trying to get someone / something in the back. A fairly common fault by the sounds of it. Although compared with the problems some of my other cars threw up, this is fairly minor stuff, and I can still use the lever on the floor to move the seat forward if I need to get someone in the back.
Alex Z said:
Very nice. I loved my F57 Cooper S but a little bit of me wishes I’d gone for a JCW.
Yeah it had to be the JCW for me. Not that there's anything wrong with the Cooper S, but like you I'd have always been wishing I'd gone for the JCW every time I saw one.Cambs_Stuart said:
That looks fantastic. Sorry to ask a dull question. How are these for space?
In the front, plenty of space I think. In the back, not so much, but fine for short journeys as long as the passengers aren't too tall. The boot is about what you'd expect - fairly small. cerb4.5lee said:
That looks well nice TRD. 
As you know I really enjoyed the 3.5 years I had with the F56 Cooper S, so I know that you will love this too.
Enjoy it.
Thanks Lee As you know I really enjoyed the 3.5 years I had with the F56 Cooper S, so I know that you will love this too.
Enjoy it.
I know you always had a lot of time for yours, and like you I'm really starting to appreciate cars with torque!I had one of these - did over 50k in it in 3 years, only issue was a dodgy earth on the rear clusters (sorted under warranty) - and windscreen chips, as they are pretty upright. Loved it.
Mine had 17's which help with the ride a bit.
if you're so inclined you can get a box to give you CarPlay for a couple of hundred and an hour or two to fit - the built in nav wasn't amazing in 2017.
Mine had 17's which help with the ride a bit.
if you're so inclined you can get a box to give you CarPlay for a couple of hundred and an hour or two to fit - the built in nav wasn't amazing in 2017.
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