So this morning when I got into my car, I backed out of my driveway and the steering was really tight. I used to have a Ford Taurus and I remember what it was like to have my power steering go out. This felt exactly the same. I have a good idea that the problem is the power steering, but I just dont know if this is something that is electronic with the car or if I need to put some fluid in it. Can anyone let me know where I put the power steering fluid? I cannot find it in my manual, and when I looked under the hood, the only thing that looked like power steering was the engine coolant, and that was low. Basically, I just don't know whats going on with my car at this point. Does this sound like I need to get a new pump?

 

The power steering tank is next to the coolant tank and has a green stripe on its cap.

Hope this helps...

 

i went to auto zone and they dont have Pentosin CHF11S. what is an alternative power steering fluid that I can use?

 

No, there is not an alternative. Go to a BMW or Toyota dealer if there is no MINI dealer near you. It costs about $30 for a quart, but you won't use a lot and you'll have spare. Check the level. If you're looking at the engine, it's the little black tank to the right of the coolant expansion tank. Like Kazlot said, it has the green stripe on it. If it is low, then fill it up and turn the wheel back and forth a few times to prime the system. Then the next thing would be to look for any obvious leaks. Let us know any other significant information so we can help you diagnose the problem.

 

Driving from home to work this morning, the power steering went dead on me on the freeway. No prior signs/indications at all. Just died... As a precation based on the sticky related to engine bay fires starting from PS pump/fans, I parked the car at the top floor of the parking garage away from all other cars (wasn't easy climbing 6 stories without a PS pump assistance). Luckily, it hasn't burst into flames yet

The car is an 03 MCS with 95K miles. The PS pump was replaced for something else at 26K, so it has about 70Kmiles on it...

I'll have it replaced tomorrow with a rebuilt one featuring the new design. Hopefully, the second one will last for the remaining life of the car

This is one of those things that you start reading on NAM and know that it will happen to your car as well at point, and it promptly does...

 

on my third .... 93000 miles .

 

Yeah, we did one of these on my '03. Got it fixed and it's been great ever since!!

 

After work, when I started the car, PS pump worked for about 2 miles and shut off again. At least getting out of the parking lot was easy before it decided to quit :D

 

$820 later, I have a rebuilt pump (new design supposedly) installed. It seems quieter compared to the original. Let's hope that I dont have to get another one before the MINI completes its life cycle (95K at the moment).

 

damb; next time send it to bba 225.00 with shipping and warranty

 

That's alright. It failed on Thursday around noon. I called the shop that afternoon, had the car in the shop Friday around 9:30AM, and I was motoring happily back to school Friday around 11:00AM. I have a heavy teaching load this semester and cant afford even few days without the car.

 

I recall the early MCS's had an issue with the powersteering harness corroding, my dad had his replaced under warranty, I know yours is past that. Just a thougt to pass onj.

Dave

 

Well...3 1/2 hours later the pump is out and on the way to BBA. I did take my time but it is not a fun thing to play with. Hopefully I will hear good things back from BBA.
Anyone else have an overheating issue? Ours was good cold but if you stopped it heat soaked and was off. I understand most are run on conditions for the pump.
I think the rock in the cooling fan caused the unit to overheat and cooked it for good?
Will keep everyone updated as we develop.

 

Hi all,

First time posting here. Wondering if I can get some advice on my power steering problem.

My Car: 2005 MiniS
Mileage: 75K

First time PS went out, it came back as soon as I restarted the car. Second occurence happened about a month later. It came back again after a restart. After that the P/S started going out on a regular basis after about 5-15 minutes of driving. I took the car to Prestige Mini in Mahway, NJ for a diagnosis and they told me that I needed a new PS Pump, Fan, and Reservoir quoting me almost $2000. So I decided to try to save some money and take it to a local mechanic and had them remove the pump, which I sent to BBA Remanufacturing for repair. The pump was diagnosed as working and was sent back to me without needing repair. I had it reinstalled but the problem persisted. I tried refilling the PS fluid with the Pentosin CHF 11S and replaced the fuse but no help. Then, I replaced the PS fan with a new one. This worked but only kept the PS working for about a month before the problem started again. This morning I drove the car to work which is about an hour away. Power steering worked fine and then gave up about 30 minutes into my commute.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Also, if anyone knows of a reputable Mini shop (non-dealer) in the NY/NJ area that might work on these types of problems I would greatly appreciate any info.

Thanks.

 

wish i could help . i've had 3 now . last one i took to bba as i'm close to them .. this is working fine . if they said it was good then i wonder if it's not the rack that's the problem .

 

Well - Our PS Unit had a circuit board failure. Rather than wait for the repair BBA sent out a rebuilt unit from stock.
Good news is that it arrived yesterday.
Bad news---------missing the bracket on the nose (plastic end of the pump)

They are working on the issue at BBA. I pulled all I thought was related to the main bracket. The smaller bracket now is lost................?

 

Add me to the long list of power steering failures. I was driving 40mph at night around a bend when mine went out. Talk about scary!
Rested it, checked fluid today, looks like plenty but need to check the level officially.
Mini's response: my warranty went out 3 months ago, they won't help me. The Mini dealer wants $140 just to diagnose! They are on drugs.
Thank you to everyone in this thread and the other for the help, I now feel I can research and fix with my bf's help
Sorry I found this forum through Mini phail, but glad to have found it!

Question: Can anyone tell me how I can tell the fluid level on the PS fluid? There is a short dipstick but I can't tell how high the thing should be. Thanks everyone.

 

every once in a while my ps goes out all I have to do is shut the car off and turn it back on and it works again. it's happened twice in the last year. If it get worse I figure its the board.

 

My power steering went out the other day, scared me to death. I have called Mini a few times but all I can get from them is to "take the car to a dealer" then it will be decided if it will be fixed on a goodwill warranty since my warranty was up of course 3 months ago. It is $140 just to get BMW to look at the car.
Due to all of the ridiculous amounts of power steering pump failure seen on this forum and many others, we pestered Mini again today and they said we should write to NHTSA.gov and make a safety complaint for a recall.
Silly that Mini would tell us that.........
I am going to buy a guide and recondition my pump to fix it, I do not plan to just hand over $140 for them to tell me what I already know and add another $1700 to fix it.
Where is the class action on this? Seriously, in the UK they have already had lawsuits and recalls. Where are OURS?

 

Thanks! That helps!

 

1. Steering wheel squeaking and too much play, lasted apx 2 months and stopped about a month ago
2. Tire flat today
3. Power steering in and out today
Coincidence?


Today, I had a flat and while driving on the freeway, the steering suddenly was difficult. I chalked it up to the flat and stopped to fill the tire with air after which, it got better for a while. The steering got difficult again after a couple of blocks and I thought that the tire had began to leak really quickly. (you could hear the air hiss out of the hole in the tire) I stopped a second time and put more air in but the ps didn't really come back that time. I went to the tire shop and they fixed my tire. I drove off and the steering was fine for like 3 blocks then it went out again. After being parked for a few hours, I just drove it for a few blocks and the ps worked fine.
A couple of months ago the steering wheel was squeaking and seemed to have a lot of play. When I took it to the dealer, they could find anything wrong.
I have apx 52k and an '03 so not under warranty. I have a mechanic whom I trust more than SF Mini but he's not very experienced with the Mini Cooper. After reading forums tonight, I was able to locate the ps fluid cap, but I wasn't able to open it to check the level. I'll try again tomorrow and try to look at my service record to see if they topped it off ehrn I took it in for a tune-up and check up.

 

I hate to start a new thread, is anyone still reading this one?

 

Ok - Got everything buttoned up from the power steering pump failure. BBA is the only way to go ! Our unit was unique with a circuit board failure due to overheating issues. $345 later we are back on the road.
This is not an"Easy" fix to replace but it is very doable for the average skilled mechanic type. I would do it again to save the $700. Just follow all the instructs from the various sources on this site!
Thanks everyone for the input.

 

Happens to me intermittently, too. Not even once a month. As soon as I shut the car off and restart, it works again.

 

I'm not sure what to do. I just want to warn all early year Mini owners. I had no warning, noise, signs of this. I just parked one morning and when I got in to dirve home no power steering. Upon further investigation:






Electrical terminal completley burned off!!







Wires into pump fried!!!


I have no idea how my car did not burst into flames!!

Please make sure your power steering pump fans are working. Apparently
mine had locked up and I assume it shorted out the pump. Car is an 11-2002
build S with 58k miles. No warranty and never had any pump work done. It is original to the car.

I'm not sure I have any recourse with MINI-USA but I feel I need make them aware of my experience.