This is in memoriam of my late father. Hello, way back in March 2013 myself and my late father walked into the MINI showroom at our local dealer JCT600 I had heard the hype about the 2nd generation JCW GP2 but never seen one in the flesh, however sitting pride of place central position in the showroom was a JCW GP2 my late father was instantly smitten, and although my late father had a current driving license, due to a fall in 2012 he broke his Right humor bone, and that sadly put an end to any driving ambition :-( So as I would do absolutely anything for my late father, we placed our order for a new factory built JCW GP2 there and then no ifs or buts, with that Said my late father was now all excited regarding his impending JCW GP2 delivery, and we watched all the JCW GP2 YouTube clips available. Now some of you maybe aware that a short time after ordering the JCW GP2 my late father was diagnosed terminally ill with Cancer, and sadly the diagnosis was weeks and a maybe a few months, rather than months and years :-( the JCW GP2 arrived at JCT600 the second week in April 2013 sadly my late father never got to see his JCW GP2 which has been sitting in the storage compound at JCT600 ever since. My late father sadly passed away on Sunday 9th June 2013 and so on Friday 21st June 2013 I finally agreed to continue with my late fathers ordered JCW GP2 of which will be in memoriam to my late father with a few cosmetic and performance touches, which will put a smile on his face But for now here she is sporting her PDI suspension ride height, which will be adjusted to the normal road ride height tomorrow, she will stay just as she is for now, not cleaned, de-stickered or any protective plastic covers removed, I will be collecting her on Friday 28th June 2013 she will then be treated to a professional detail and then put away, her first outing will be to MITP 2013. Her number is 1880 of the 2000 worldwide.
Sorry for your loss and congrats on the new GP 2 in your late fathers honor. I am sure he will be very proud of you.
What a great thing to do, in following through with your Father's dream. Bittersweet to be sure... You are to be congratulated my friend! Here's to you and your late Father. :beer
:cornut: Prayers sent for your Dad. I'd rather have my son in that car than a tombstone bigger than a Mausoleum. Jason
Its fitting that you have the GP I know your dad would be happy. In time like this objects become more than what they are. They become a reminder of all the good times. My dad gave me his motorcycle before passing. Every time I'm in the shop working on it I hear the lessons he taught me as if he is there handing me tools. I am sure that every time you drive your GP you will remember you father and the lessons he taught. As if he is in the passenger seat showing you the apex.
Dad will for sure be your co-pilot on that first drive and road trip. Sorry for your loss......Super awesome tribute! Motor On
Good morning Gentleman, thank you all for your lovely kind words and thoughtful wishes, today is the day I collect the JCW GP2 in memoriam to my late father, I am sure he will be with me for every road trip and track event I take.
My first drive of the JCW GP2 was only 11 miles, that said, the engine is now broken in nicely as are the fabulous brakes, unfortunately I couldn't push on to hard due to the ever changing damp/dry and drizzling weather conditions, however the Kuhmo Ecsta tyres the JCW GP2 comes with fitted as standard, are not for the faint hearted in damp drizzling road conditions, the front turn in grip is there as expected, but the rear breaks away surprisingly easy, but is fun and can be balanced easily with a gentle squeeze of the throttle. I am confident then when I get the corner scales out, I can fine tune the suspension to my driving style, I will also be purchasing a second set of the GP2 wheels and wrap them in Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymmetric 2 sized 215/45/17 these will be everyday road use, whilst the Kuhmo Ecsta's will be used for dry track days.
Good evening, today I have had the opportunity to check, adjust and fine tune the suspension on my JCW GP2 whilst adjusting the tyre pressures to suit the suspension adjustments, and after 111 miles of testing and adjustments the end result is nothing short of amazing, the JCW GP2 straight from the factory is excellent, spend a little time adjusting and fine tuning the suspension and under bonnet strut brace, the excellence is transformed into sure footed crisp precise turn in and control. Furthermore, now that I have woken the engine up, with large amounts of hard throttle, the engine delivers savagely smooth instant growling power all the way to the Red line, it really is quite relentless in its delivery, and if your slickly quick with the gear changes the JCW GP2 is a very capable and rewarding drive, it really doesn't need vast amounts of power, it is very very potent straight out of the box, and will quite happily shame other hot hatches and bigger more powerful cars. All in all anyone still lucky enough to be thinking about one, or indeed wanting one, while they are still available, don't hesitate just do it, I guarantee you'll be smiling each and every time you get in, and your smile will grow as you accelarate hard then a quick dab of the fabulous brakes before each twist and turn, enjoying the effortless precision from the very well weighted and balanced steering, before squeezing hard on the throttle accelerating through the slick gears to the next twist or turn, without any torque steer.
Oh I'm here too. :devil: Its a GP that makes up for it not being a R53. :biggrin5: Good luck with the setup, and drive it like you stole it!:arf:
For those of you with the GP2 be aware that this might happen at prolonged high speed, the rear window water seal can peel away and fall off, as it is only secured by double sided sticky tape! Driving along everything was fine, then, I became aware of a tapping noise on the rear window, I glanced in the rear view mirror, to see this flapping around in the turbulent wind, I am far from happy to say the least. :evil: