i keep loosing powersteering after driving for about 30 minutes...today went to the car as it was pretty hot and it didnt cut on at all...anyone got some kind of fix for this...anyone heard of it...can it be possible power steering fan is disconnected or something???? please help guys.

 

Checked your fuses yet?

 

i had a loss of fluid to the point where i lost power steering . then the pump went . it was a bad rack .

 

I'm having that sort of problem now .. on my 03 MCS.. went to the dragon and just half a mile before starting on the twisty it went out. had to drive it without Power steering.. Also while there i heard JustJay's Pump also went out.

After it cooled for about an hour it started to work again.. only this time it the Pump itself wouldnt Shut off. It ran for a total of 2 hour with the keys in my hand before i decide to disconnect the battery and pulling just about every fuse and circut breaker in both Fuse pannels. (pulled everyone above 10 amps) and couldnt get it to shut off.

Oh and yes it was the pump and not the fan.. i could grab the wheel and turn it with ease. ( this is with wheel unlocked but key not in the on position.)

After driving to the autox and purchasing a Jump box just incase the battery died. I let the car run for approx. 30 min in the parking lot ( to charge the jump box). The pump shut down again. After running the Autox in a borrowed car. I restarted mine and everything is back to normal. The car made the 7 hour trip back home with out the pump going out. This means I have to wait for the problem to happen again before i can figure out whats going on.

 

There appear to be two major ways in which the MINI's power steering can fail (based on my own sampling of various posts). I've been without power steering for about a week now.

One failure mode is through a leak because of broken seals in the steering rack. Note that you may not see power steering fluid on the ground with this problem. But you can determine if this is your problem by checking the reservoir... the fluid level will be low (below the MIN line on the PS dipstick).

The other way is through a power steering pump failure. This appears to be my problem--- my steering fluid level is perfect (right at the "max" line in the reservoir), and I checked all fuses (there are 3 relevant ones... one is a 100A amp fuse that will require removing the airbox to access), and I also checked my PS fan (which works when power is supplied to it). I've ruled out everything but the connections and the pump. The connections look good, so I'm guessing it's the pump.

If you're under warranty, your dealer should take care of it. If you are not (like me), you could end up getting a new rack ($600 remanufactured?) or pump (around $400). Plus labor--- expensive.

Be sure you trust your technician! PS problems have been linked to MINI engine bay fires! See the sticky post in the forums right here on NAM...

 

i just went out and took a look...resivouir is fine. good level...not suer which fuses to check..and didn't feel like checking the one under the fuse pannel yet but it may have came loose from vibrations as i have removed that a couple times before due to a ps leak before...i also seen that the power steering fan was not coming on...as it is supposed to run constantly correct? what fuses should i check anyways...i am trying to trade the car in with in the next few weeks and the mini seems to be revolting me...let me know.

 

you need a new pump.

 

you think???

 

I have an '05 MC and my power steering went out while on the highway, going home from MOTD today. same as the the other post, it was fine when I shut off the car and returned after a few minutes. but after a while, it wouldn't work... at least it stopped working after I got off of the Dragon... I just ran out to top off the tank and it was fine again. But I'm concerned because I have a MINI roadtrip planned in two weeks.

I'm up for my 1st Inspection so I'll mention this when making my appointment tomorrow.

 

yea mine never failed for the past week after 30 minutes of driving it would shut down...checked this morning no fan going on...possibly overheating was my problem...when it would shut down turn the car off and back on and everything was good again. I hate to order a pump and it not be the problem as i am trading the car in..and dont want to be spending a heap of money on stuff.

 

Same thing happened to my 2002 MCS when we bought it. Cost was about $706 to replace the power steering pump. Apparently it would go off, and would come back on if you restarted the car.

We had it fixed before we took ownership.

 

Actually, I've heard (not 100% sure, though) that the PS fan does not run constantly, but comes on now and then, supposedly as needed... fortunately, it is not that difficult to remove and check with an adjustable power supply... I slowly ramped up the voltage and it started to turn at just around 3V DC.

It would be great news for you if it's just the fan... the fan fuses and the fan are not that difficult to get to.

Don't have the fuse numbers handy here (but they are listed in my Bentley Publishers MINI Cooper Service Manual). There is one in the driver's side footwell fuse box (5A? possibly for the fan) and two more (higher amperage, I think) in the fuse box in the engine bay. One (the 100A fuse) is a pain to access, but it is probably the least likely to burn out. The MINI comes with spare fuses for the smaller fuses, if memory serves...

 

yea i have pulled that 100 amp fuse before due to a hole in the ps line. well i found bmw motorwerks has a remd pump for 455 with no core so it comes cheaper then mini mania...im going to check the 100 amp fuse today and see if maybe one of the bolts came loose...i just think the cars getting angry as im trying to trade it in within a few weeks

 

I got mine from Classic MINI of Mentor, OH. They give a NAM discount. You might want to check them out, because I think they're cheaper still... give Jayson a holler at: bmwparts@classicautocampus.com

I got my PS pump for $305.60 (w/ NAM discount) plus $60 core... one week and it was at my doorstep. That's the cheapest I've seen anywhere...

Good luck and hope you enjoy your next vehicle... what are you trading it in for, out of curiosity?

 

trading in for an evo 9

 

Update: I called Patrick MINI this morning. they had an immediate opening so I dropped it off. Rich from Custom MINI Shop replaced the power steering pump and my MCC is good as new

 

Rich actually works for Patrick MINI, but moonlights for CMS. When we really get busy here in CA, we want to steal him away and keep him all to ourselves.

Steve

 

ok.. you can borrow him we were talking MOTD before he took my car.. trying to make everyone in the showroom jealous for not coming down Rich cracks me up

 

He cracked us up enough on MTTS that here we are invading Schamberg to kidnap him.

 

The power steering fan will turn on when the engine fan turns on. Jack the car up or park it on an uneven surface so that you can see the PS fan. Let the car idle until the engine fan come on, then confirm that the PS fan is running too. Although the PS can power down when overheated, your description matches the ones I have replaced. It will shut down more frequently until it doesn't come back on.

 

We used to see more dead fans than dead pumps so we stocked the fans. Now it seems the opposite so we also stock the pumps. It sure costs less if it's just a fan failure.

Steve

 

well the pump comes in thursday but today when i got home from work my power steering fan would not shut off....i am assuming once i got the new pump in the power steering fan would go back to normal operation correct?

 

Are you sure that it was the fan and not the pump? If it were the fan, then the engine fan would have been running too.

 

well i am not sure....couldn't really see i know it was coming from the area and it kinda sounded like a fan trype noise....and as far as the power steering pump....its been dead for a week now i doubt it was that..

 

On a 2002, I'm going to assume you're getting up there in mileage. The power steering pump does not last forever. I made it to just over 100,000 miles on mine and the service department was surprised it lasted that long.

I'm pretty sure it's going to be the pump, and you're going to have to have it replaced.