I took my 05 mcs into the shop to see what the source of a noise coming from the front is. They told me i need to replace the Power Steering Rack. They wanted to 2000 to fix it. Is it possible to fix this yourself and if so how hard and where can i find the parts for it.

 

Did this in the summer. Not sure if the issue is with the noise is actually the rack or not, but my seals blew and the rack was leaking so I had to replace it.

You need to lower the rear of the subframe (not remove) to get the rack out. Best bet is the remove the subframe bolts from the back of the subframe and loosen the front bolts so the subframe is still supported but can drop down a bit, its tight but its do-able.

It is a pretty big pain, and you need a special star nut socket to get the rack bolts out, and the high/low pressure lines are a pain to get on/off, and the steering column is tricky, use a long extension with a swivle.

I got a refurbished rack from carsteering.com that was 330 bucks I believe, working perfectly 5000 miles later.

If I could do it in my driveway by myself you could too, $2000 is absurd.

Buy some beer for liquid patience, bring a friend, and save yourself some cash.

 

Thanks. That helped me out alot. Where did you get your special star nut socket at? and did you have some instructions or was it pretty easy to see how to remove and everything?

 

The socket you need is a 10 point socket, I believe 10mm or 12mm I can't remember. The heatsheild bracket on the powersteering lines is a bit tricky to remove, make sure you have all the bolts off the lines before you try and yank it out.

I remember putting the rack in / out on a weird rotated angle maybe 90-100*, but it eventual got in. Do not pull hard on the inner tie rods when positioning it.

No instructions when I did it, it is fairly straight forward if you take a bit of time and look it over, If I had the info I posted earlier it would of been no issue, by my self on my driveway for the first time it took my a weekend to do (not working solid at it). With two people it would be twice as fast I think.

Make sure you get the proper power-steering fluid, the Mini uses specific stuff, and read up on how to bleed the power-steering system after.

Let us know how it goes if you do it

 

I will have to do this job myself. It has been leaking for almost three years now, but over that time hasn't taken more than one qt of fluid. Putting it off until I do a clutch job.

Also you will need an alignment. A trick to get a decent setting is to measure the tie-rod ends on your old rack, before taking them off (if the new unit does not have them fitted). This way once you install them, you won't be starting with some crazy toe settings once the job is finished. It is not a substitute for an alignment, but it will make the drive to the shop a bit easier.

 

Good tip! I think I waisted 10% of my front tires driving to the alignment shop