I have Service Engine, DSC & Battery Lights on.
No Power Steering
This all happened after letting the car idle for an hour or so.
Does this sound like a bad alternator or what?

 

Put a voltmeter on the batt without the car running. Should be real close to 12 or just over 12 volts. Start the car and see what she reads. Should be between 13.5 and 14.7. If its below 13.5 I would guess it as an alt. No idea what yr the car is but in the earlier models they had probs with the power steering relay/fuse causing an open circuit when to much current was drawn due to trash getting lodged in the fan on the power steering pump itself, which was also on the same circuit as the cooling fan.

 

Maybe a bad battery?
I am charging the battery now and only after a few minutes I can start the engine and no more "Check Engine" or DSC lights.
I still have the battery light and do not have power steering.
I'm going to charge it a while longer.

By the way, how can I open the battery without damaging the plastic on it too much?
I would like to check the fluid levels of each cell.

 

This is an '03
Can you tell me which fuse to check and where to look for trash?

 

Oh well..
I decided to go ahead and give MINI a call.
They picked up the car and are taking it to the nearest dealer for repair.
I'll let you know how it turns out.

 

Service Dept. says that it was the alternator.
They are installing a new one tomorrow.
I hope they check the battery cells as well.

 

Everything seems to be working fine now with the new alternator.

 

Mind telling me how much they charged you for the alternator?
I just had the battery light on tonight. Power steering was gone immediately as advised by the owner's handbook. I got my Mini towed to the garage and was told that I am not the first one. They told me that when the battery light was up, the alternator should be replaced.

How can Mini build such a car?!

 

The same thing happened to me last Thursday. Italian BMW dealer has not contacted me yet. Any idea what it cost to replace the alternator? Mine is a 2003 MCS, so the warranty is long over.