UPDATE: I pulled the PS Fan off the car and tried hooking it directly to a car battery and IT WORKS!!!!!!!!!!!!! So what in the heck is my problem guys?????????????? I have check all fuses, is there a relay? I thought the PS FAN was hooked to the same circuit as the radiator fan and that fan comes so I dont get this.

Hey guys,

Just picked up a 02 MCS, wanted to go over the car and check for all the regular issues.

How do I tell for sure if the power steering fan works or not. I have searched relentlessly and cannot find the exact answer.

The fan DOES spin freely when I try to move it from underneath but I have not been able to see it turn on.

I tried having the AC on, but the fan still doesnt spin.. is it bad? Or could it be a fuse? How can you tell which fuse it is as the fuses are just labeled with pictures and no descriptions?

Thanks.

 

The power steering fan does not turn on unless the radiator cooling fan is running at its high speed mode. When you have your A/C on, the cooling fan will only engage the low speed mode until your temp rises to ~112C, in which case it activates the high speed mode and the power steering fan should operate.

GotMINI

 

And if the rad fan does not turn on the fuse has probably popped. MINI had a TSB (recall) to fix the problem of having the PS fan and rad fan on the same circuit.

 

Thanks, at about what indication on the temperature gauge needle is 112C?

 

About midway.

 

Damn... I tried it with the car at operating temperature and with the ac on, the other fan is definitely on, its very loud, but when looking underneath, the small PS fan is not spinning.

This sucks.

 

Just get the newly designed PS fan and put your mind at ease... You dont want that sucker to cease (I am sure you've seen the sticky thread at the top).

Good luck!

 

I forgot just which one it is, but its a 5am fuse for the power steering fuse, check it and I am betting it is blown.

 

Yea its hard to tell what fuse is what because they are labeled with pictures and crap.. not very funny MINI. lol

I guess I will check ALL fuses today and see if I can get it to work, the fan doesnt seem broken, spins free and whatnot, just wont turn on.

 

UPDATE: I pulled the PS Fan off the car and tried hooking it directly to a car battery and IT WORKS!!!!!!!!!!!!! So what in the heck is my problem guys?????????????? I have checked all fuses, is there a relay? I thought the PS FAN was hooked to the same circuit as the radiator fan and that fan comes so I dont get this.

 

Did you actually pull the fuses out? Its one of the 5am fuses under the drivers side dash, I know mine looked fine until I pulled the fuse out and looked at, sure enough it was blown. I replaced the fuse and its been working perfectly for a year now, I assume something must of hit it and popped the fuse. But yes if you turn on the AC and wait for the radiator fans to come on, then the PS fan should run at the same time. Unless there is some kind of switch built into the radiator fan, I'm not sure what is wrong.

 

Yea.. i pulled the fuses.. AND I even check every fuse with a meter to make sure they were good!!

So I am lost. Any ideas?????????

 

Have you used the meter to check the power(while the radiator fan is on) at the wiring harness that connects to the PS Fan? Next step would be to find a wiring diagram to figure out where the wiring is going, and what is sending the power to the PS fan.

 

Here are a few pictures for those that don't know what the PS (--which could mean "piece of **it") fan looks like as well as the manufacturer.
In the last two days I have changed my oil (Royal Purple), replaced my oil drain plug with a drain valve, changed my transmission fluid (Red Line), new plugs, wires and reset the computer. Around 7pm last night I finished up and took it for a spin. DRIVES AWESOME. Then an hour later I get in, start it up and get ready to drive it to the store...all of the sudden (while still on my driveway) I hear a high pitched noise coming from my engine, so I turn around and head back to the garage, look underneath and realize its the PS fan. I researched and researched on how to quiet thing up and come across a post on ZDNET which says that the way to quiet a computer fan (which this is just about the same thing) is to put 3in1 oil on the fan. I dont have any 3in1, so I put a few drops of synthetic oil on it and VOILA. its quiet. Why do things like this happen the night before you go to work? I have a 2hr. commute each way so I will see if that did the trick. Here is the manufactures website
http://www.spalusa.com/store/main.as...&item=30103009
and here is the blueprint for the fan
http://www.spalusa.com/pdf/30103018_SPEC.PDF#view=FitH
Has anyone thought about a small marine blower in place of this small fan? It would keep the PS from getting hot and they move WAAAAY more air. http://www.boatersland.com/blowers.html I am sure someone out there could figure out how to retrofit the blower in place of the fan.