Ok so i have quite an interesting story to share. When i first got my MCS a few months, i took the car to firestone to have the wheels aligned. Instead of aligning the front wheels, they "discovered" that the whole power steering rack needed to be replaced, due to some major leak they found. They also told me the car was "undriveable" even though i had already put 2000 miles on it

Flash forward to May 25, i took the car to Mini Pensacola (I live in Florida) and told them the issue that i supposedly had. They had visually inspected the vehicle and even drove it. He came back saying the car drove greeeat and that the only issues were a worn control arm bushing and a wheel balance needed.

So for some reason, i ended up taking the car to get the wheels balanced (At Firestone) and they called themselves doing it. When they were done, they told me the power steering rack was bad. I walked to my car and saw a loooong trail of power steering fluid that led to my car. I drove it a few feet and sure enough, the fluid was gushing out from underneath the passenger side. I immediately had them raise the car back up and the steering fluid was pouring at this point, leaving a puddle of fluid. They blamed it on the rack, saying the boot was split and i called BS because the car was not leaking at all before they touched it. They ended up "turning the boot around" and refilling the fluids and i haven't noticed anything fishy yet...
Mini is saying the rack doesnt need replacing since this is rare and firestone is saying that im screwed? What did these Fvcks do to my Cooper??

 

Time to call the BBB and see if they have any "complaints" about them. Or even Google their name and see if it turns up anything fishy. Time for a third opinion if you aren't satisfied with the first two.

 

If it is leaking from under the boot, the thing is bad. The boot makes it just look damp if it is holding the juice in. If they can move the boot to let the juice out all it is doing is letting the already leaked juice to complete the journey to the ground. Under the boots are seals they can't mess with really. To fake this a hose would be loosened for a "insta-gusher".

I'm not saying much about what happened, but giving some info for you to figure out.

Wife's mini has seaping boot syndrome. A little $.02 o-ring can wear and you need a rebuild. I am just going to wait for it to flat out let go. I topped off the resivour when I noticed it and need to check to see progress (it was about 6 weeks ago and since I don't see a puddle in the garage, I am not too worried..It may go on like this for years.)

 

Sounds like Firestones version of an upsell. Sorry to hear things like this are still happening. But as our economy worsens, stuff like this could get worse.

Back in the day it was common for shops to squirt some oil around shock (struts) and then call the owner over to the car stating that they needed new shocks. Instant upsell.

If you don't have a MINI dealer close by, join a local MINI club and find out where they have their MINI's serviced. Could save you some headaches later on.

Good luck.

 

+1

 

Yes i know, but i had three other mechanics at different shops look at the same issue and they said it was fine, and the gushing may have been caused by a hose being removed and put back on halfway

 

Hopefully they added the CORRECT ps fluid....or YOU WILL BE BUYING A RACK!!
something sounds fishy....though....+1 to grayravens statement....

 

Ugh yall are breaking my heart!!

 

Don't forget the second half of that scam...wipe the old shocks down and they look good as new.


My little old school teacher mom had a shop try to do that. She went for an oil change or something and they were like "by the way, we put in struts, that will be $400".. Lol, my mom got mad, took the extra set of keys out of her purse and drove away, without paying for anything.
When they called a day later for their money, large me and my larger friend went there and pointed out to them where they missed a spot wiping off the old shock and if they wanted to call the police, we would be happy to have a chat with them. So instead of mom, they got screwed out of money. (Don't **** off mom)

 

Ok i kinda figured.. So at this point is there anything that can be done? I was told by MINI that i can just keep adding fluid to the resevoir

 

I'll probably get harpooned for this, but have you considered one of the magic-moose-pee additives that swell the seal a little and reduce leaking? I've actually had good results in other cars using such stuff...and for a couple bucks, (and no downsides of which I am aware), it's worth a shot.

 

This is why you sign a form acknowledging consent for listed repairs. If any additional ones are needed, they call or have you come up and sign/update the paperwork. If it's not in writing, it's illegal.

 

Ugh, first post went through. OK, correcting this one.

...

+1 to BBB. Don't just read, file a complaint there, too. Get those reports in writing from the other locations. Take it up with Firestone corporate.

 

It depends on how much you have to add. The proper stuff isn't so expensive you can't top it off once every month or two, but if you are adding craploads every week, replacing the thing isn't far off. I am just going to add some to the wife's car as needed until she complains to me or it gets worse.

 

Not sure but I don't think they had forms 30 years ago...probably why they do now.

 

HRM, did not realize it was that long ago. Yes, policies/procedures have changed alot since then.

 

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