Ive got the same issues as you tigertiger (burning bright, in the forests of the night). does anyone have the service bulletin number so I could ask the mini people here in my area? as it stands now Im looking at replacing the control unit or to keep looking for that "legendary" short. just as a heads up, the alternator was replaced about a month prior to me having this problem.

 

I went thru my MINI files and found a handwritten note that I made to myself with the following number. I believe I got the number from the Alldata site when they used to have all of the original MINI TSB's listed.

I cannot promise that it is a good number. If you discover that it is, please let me know.

S1 M 32 01 04

Good Luck,

 

Several years ago I mentioned the service bulletin about the separate circuits to my dealer and they said that it was for only for cars that had problems or issues related to it. So I guess I'm still waiting for a problem to occur.

 

So about these Service Bulletin's.... If my car is way out of warranty (02 model), do they mean anything for me? Is it like a recall and doesn't matter about the warranty? Or is it something I would have to pay for?

 

TSB's are different then recalls. TSB's are only free if it's under warranty.

 

Zso. It continues to occur with irregular regularity. Perhaps it is time to split wiring harness. sigh.

As much as i like this car, I not too pleased with BMW! I am considering a July drive to the Southwest--but this must be fixed!

 

OK, Bump! I'm having the EXACT same problem as tigertiger had here. I need some help from you guys!!! In May, I started having some problems. Here are the facts:
2002 Mini Cooper S, with less than 25k miles.
1. Battery light came on and power steering stopped working (which is what the manual says will happen if there is an interruption in the charging system).
2. Took the car to my local mechanic who diagnosed a bad alternator. He had my alternator rebuilt and re-installed. After about 10 miles, the battery light came on and the power steering stopped working. F39 fuse was blown. Replaced fuse and it blew again.
3. The mechanic thought the fuse problem may be due to the REBUILT alternator, so he ordered a BRAND NEW alternator from MINI, and installed it. The car worked great for about 15 miles. Then the battery light came on and the power steering stopped working. More blown fuses.
4. Argh! Towed the car to the MINI dealer, 110 miles away! They diagnosed a bad alternator and a bad battery. The alternator was covered by warranty (phew!). They replaced both and took it for a test drive. The battery light came on again and the power steering stopped working. F39 was blown again.
5. They had a mechanics meeting at the dealer to discuss the problem and decided to up the 5amp fuse to 7.5amp. This seemed to work, for about 2 weeks. Yesterday (2 weeks later), I took the car on a LONG drive and the problem has returned. The F39 fuse blows intermittently.

Can somebody please help? I know there's a lot of smart people on this forum and an unimaginable amount of experience. As you can see above, I've had tons of people "guessing" about this issue. I'd like the advice of someone who has had the problem and figured out how to fix it (i.e. Less guessing, more answers.) I'm planning to take the car BACK to the MINI dealer next week and I'd like to help them with their attack plan, as I'm not sure if they know what's going on either...

Thanks to all!!

 

anitan1, I had the exact same problem over two years ago. what went bad for me was a common ground and control board that was connected to the charging system. the main problem was the common ground, which was the engine to chassis ground. Im not sure if you are familiar with it. its the one on the passenger side located by the engine mount. it looked ok except for a little corrosion but that was enough to make the system go bad. so the shop i took it to replaced that and added a back up ground. I hope this helps. if I can I will try and locate the my shops corrective action paper work.

 

Joser, thanks a bunch. If you can find that corrective action paperwork, that will REALLY help me out. After all of this is fixed (fingers crossed), I'll write it all up in here so that there will be a permanent record on this forum. If you can't find the paperwork, any detail you can provide on the back up ground they added and on the control board problem, will help immensely. Again, THANK YOU SO MUCH.

 

***UPDATE*** Problems solved...

I've waited a month to update this thread just so that I could make sure the problem was solved. It is. List continues from above:

6. I took my Mini back down to the dealer, who seemed to be JUST as frustrated as I was by the problem returning. IMHO, the dealer did the right thing by working to find the real problem instead of just throwing replacement parts at me. They began removing parts and systematically inspecting every inch of wiring in the engine compartment, starting at the engine compartment fuse book. After a couple of hours of this they found a wire beneath the heat shield that was chaffed and intermittently grounding out against a grommet that was supposed to be holding it. Apparently, the wire went to the power steering/alternator wiring harness. Each time the wire would ground out, the fuse would blow.
7. The dealer replaced the wire and the F39 fuse again (this time they used the correct 5amp fuse). A month later the problem has not returned. I'm now positive that they fixed the problem. Total charge for the most recent trip to the dealer and the fix = $0.00. The dealer felt so bad about the whole ordeal that they said they couldn't charge me... They just earned my business when I finally go buy a new MINI.


Side Note: I called the dealer a few weeks later to get a price for a clear mask for my MINI and I decided to have a little fun with my service rep. When he picked up the phone, in an exasperated voice I said, "the problem is back...my power steering is out." You could have heard a pin drop and then he says, "What the heck!?!? I don't get it..." When I told him I was kidding he said, "Thank God. You almost gave me a heart attack!" It's nice to know that they actually care about the car and their customers...

 

I'm having a similar / related problem:

1. I brought the car in for an unrelated issue (airbag sensor)
2. They did a "courtesy inspection" as part of the diagnosis and also found my PS fan was starting wear out / bind up (note: I had never encountered any PS or power failure problems)
3. As a precaution, I approved the replacement of the power steering fan
4. There was some delay in the repair, because they had to "tap a new mount" or something of the sort (??)

Then...

5. I picked up the car and drove to get dinner 3 miles away. Car was running fine. After 1 hour of dinner, I came out to discover my car was DEAD as a doornail. No power at all. No electronics or lights left on, just mysteriously dead. I had a friend jump the car for me and got it running, let it idle for a while to charge up the battery.
6. As I drove away I realized that I had NO power steering (very hard to turn this little car with no PS!)
7. I took it straight back to the dealership and dropped it off for service the next day

Now...

8. My SA says that coincidentally the PS control unit (electronics embedded inside the pump) is dying intermittently and also draining my battery dead - and they expect me to pay $1200 to get it fixed !?

I said: "No Way!"

A. It sounds like they screwed something up
B. I *never* had any power/ps problems prior to this (well, i had a new battery put in 1 year ago because it was dying - but even then the power steering worked fine with a dying battery)

I couldn't figure out how/why a PS failure would cause the battery to drain and die until I came across this forum. Maybe it's the split wiring issue? I didn't check the fuse, but maybe that's the cause?

Any thoughts?

Car is an '06 MCS with 55k miles

 

o-ron,
I'd get a second opinion from another dealer. I've seen TOO many reports of guys having a new PS unit sold to them, only to find out it's not the problem.

That being said, I've heard that once your PS fan starts going bad, it may already be too late for the PS unit itself. So, if your fan really was binding up, then it could have already damaged your PS unit. It seems VERY coincidental, but stuff happens.

Good luck. I hope you get this figured out...
Nate

 

To fix dust problem in steer motor. Drill a10mm hole between the magnets at r/rear and spot weld 90'hyd/fitting pointing rearward. Attach hose ,long enough to run to r/hand shock tower.Put small air filter in end of hose. Drill in fr/left ,making sure to clear brushes. Weld 90' fitting in vertical position, attach hose and run to airbox to find vacuum.You now have a purge system.Use thin wall hoses to save pump refitting issues.

 

Remove pump.Remove 3screws on motor housing and pull off housing. Blow all dust out of brush and electronic housing.At this point check the motor armature brush contact plates for excessive wear. Next wash out the electronic unit thoroughly with electronic cleaner.Blow the complete unit again with air.Reassemble the motor and fit to car.With all the conductive carbon dust removed ,there is a good chance it will work ok if none of the electronic components have been damaged.The average guy can do this repair with car ramps,a socket set ,screw drivers,oil drain pan,and a cheap digital camera to take progress photos to help your confidence with reassembly.Take your time,you can do it.Also it is very important advice from our other friends to replace the main earth straps from engine to car body .We have put two on our car for extra protection for the electrical systems.Do not ever under estimate the problems that a failed earth can cause.I have had problems caused by this many times over the years.Good luck my friend.