The Mini Cooper S has always been a scintillating performer in terms of its go-kart like handling, zesty 1,6-litre four-cylinder turbocharged engine and head-turning boppity-bop exhaust note, but it got a dose of testosterone just in time for our January performance issue – in the form of the Mini John Cooper Works.
Derived from the cars used in the one-make Mini Challenge racing series abroad, the road-going model features the same engine specification as the racing cars – the 1,6-litre turbocharged engine with direct injection and sports exhaust system now produces 155 kW at 6 000 r/min and 260 N.m from 1 850 r/min. An overboost function allows 280 N.m of shove at full tilt.
Mated with a modified six-speed manual gearbox, the Mini JCW sprints to 100 km/h from zero in 6,5 seconds and goes on to a top speed of 238 km/h. Driver aids include ABS with EBD, Cornering Brake Control, Dynamic Stability Control, Dynamic Traction Control and hill-start assist.
Safety features include a crash-optimised passenger cell; six airbags, three-point inertia-reel seat belts on all seats, belt latch tensioners and belt force limiter at the front; fasten seat belt warning light and Isofix child seat fastening system at the rear featured as standard. Unique interior appointments include a leather-bound three-spoke steering wheel, piano black trim inserts, model-specific speedometer and optional interface that includes iPod and Bluetooth connectivity, TFT colour display and USB connection.
You can read South African circuit racing stars Hennie Groenewald and Philip Kekana’s track appraisals of the Mini Cooper JCW in the January 2009 issue of CAR magazine, in which we put 18 of South Africa’s hottest hatches to the test at Killarney.
Listen to hot hatch exhaust notes.
Download wallpapers from the Track Shootout here: Batch 1, Batch 2 and Batch 3, or Batch 4.
Watch two Ultimate Hot Hatch Shootout videos
You can also view the behind-the-scenes or the Franschhoek Pass Shootout galleries.
