Yes I just started posting request that people with these safety issues post a complaint on NTHSA site.


http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/ivoq/

I love the mini, but I dont want it to get someone injured.

Of course if my regular Maintenance list says: Replace Power Steering unit at 50K miles I will shut up.



Paul

 

What are the symptoms - is it very obvious or is it something subtle at first that people should be extra tuned into to notice?

 

For me it was total suprise. No intermittent problems,no noises(other than the whine that has been there since mile 0), just driving along and then no power steering. Almost like I was driving a 2 1/2 ton truck minus power steering and the huge steering. Had to use some serious arm strength.




Paul

 

Scary - I'd be in trouble if that happened to me

 

Hello all! I have a 03' Mini Cooper (non-S). Currently I have just over 90,000 miles on it. A few months back I noticed my power steering would go out once in a while. Most of the time it was when I turned the car on. I'd turn the car off and then turn it back on and behold, the Power Steering Pump would kick in and be working again. Like a jackass I ignored the problem this whole time. It was just an occasional glitch that I figured I could deal with. Well, this weekend I took a trip from LA to Palm Springs (about 100 miles +/-). When I arrived in Palm Springs I noticed a high pitch whining sound coming from the bonnet. It was either the Power Steering Pump or the Power Steering Fan still running, with the car turned off. So I left the car alone for about an hour, and came back out and it had stopped on its own. Once I got back to LA, I left the car sitting for a few hours and it still had not turned off. The engine was completely off during that time, but the fan/noise continued. The car has not overheated and temperature to/from Palm Springs was just below 1/2 where it normally is. Does anyone have any ideas what might be causing this and if so, what can be done? I've disconnected the car's battery and upon doing so, the fan or pump stopped immediately, when I reconnected the battery, the fan/pump started instantly.

Thank you for any help or info!!!!!!!

orb.

 

Power steering pump is DOA. Very common problem.
I was able to pick up a low mileage used pump from this place:
http://www.mazdarecycling.com/

Good Luck!
Jim

 

Good times! Well thanks for the link, I'll hit up those guys and others and see if I can come up with something....

Thank you again for the quick response!

orb..........

 

Hello,

I just had the same problem you described. I have a '03 Cooper (112,000 miles) and my power steering went a couple of weeks ago. It kicked back in for a day and then went out again. Yesterday, the pump kicked in and then I stopped at work. When I turned the car off, there was a noise coming from under the Bonnet. When I returned to my car after work, the car was completely dead. I had to get it jumped. The pump would just continually run and drain the battery.

Last night I disconnected the battery before going to bed and then reconnected it this morning before leaving. I brought it to my mechanic and he disconnected the pump. I will just have to live without power steering since a new pump runs about $500. Maybe I can find a cheap one used. Good luck with your situation.

 

Man that sucks, I know exactly what that's like. What's interesting about mine now, is that since that day that it was staying on, even with the engine off, it has stopped doing it completely. Without disconnecting the battery or tweaking anything else, when you turn the car off, the pump stops (just like normal) and the pump runs while the car's going. I know it's just a matter of time before it fails and I found the same pricing, $450-500 for a new one... so I'm just going to wait it out as long as possible. Good luck with yours and let me know what happens.

orb.

 

This is so strange, because my wife and I just drove down to Myrtle Beach today for the weekend. We went out to dinner and on the drive back to the condo the power steering stopped working during a turn. I came to a stop sign, turned the car off and back on again, and the pump started working again. When we got to the condo, I shut the car off and of course it's making the same whining noise that you all are speaking of. The fluid almost sounds like it is boiling in the reservoir. I am letting it cool down right now and hoping the fan stops once its cool, if not I guess I will have to disconnect the battery overnight.

If this happens again tomorrow is there anyway to disconnect the pump so that I can make it home without boiling the fluid? (5hrs) A plug or fuse somewhere that I can pull so that it's not boiling the fluid?

Thanks in advance for the help.

 

The electro-hydraulic pump is garbage. Plan on replacing it every few years with a new one that already has one foot in the grave. You'll know it is dying when it starts to whine.

 

I have an 03' MCS that has been a pretty great car except for 3 things.

1) Leaking sun roof drain (Common, I know, but frustrating)
2) Alternator failed at 45k (Electronics don't like to be spun at 8k RPM all the time)
3) Loud power steering fan/pump (My current Problem)

So with 1 and 2 out of the way, 3 is my only issue currently. I know it's the power steering because when I kill the car on purpose; the only things that stay spinning are my cooling fans and my PS fan. I let the car stay dead for about 5 minutes and the cooling fans shut off so only the PS fan/pump is left. What I do not know is how the pump/fan actually work. (Electric Only?) So what are you opinions for me to check. I have looked under their to make sure nothing has gotten lodged in the fan and everything seems to be normal.

Thanks in advance.

Curtis

 

Have you been under the car and checked the fan while on? If it is indeed loud, then you could replace it now or wait until it just plain goes and then possibly ruining the pump. Simple two bolts off and unplug. Just as easy as putting a guard on it.

 

you said the power steering fan stays on?? Normally the fan shuts off and if you still hear something running, its the power steering pump itself. alittle more work and alot more costly...

 

yay!! how much are we talking?

 

Confirmed!! Power steering pump died this morning on my way to work. Good think I wasn't in the middle of a turn. It really isn't all that hard to drive without the power steering as my last Mazda RX-7 and Mazda MX-6 didn't have it. Am I going to hurt anything on the Mini if I drive it like this for a while. Christmas and New Years cleaned me out if you know what I mean.

Curtis

 

Unless there is something fundamentally different with this system versus the older power steering systems I am more familiar with, I don't believe you'll damage anything by driving it with a dead pump. Mine failed before Thanksgiving. I just replaced it on New Year's Eve and drove several thousand miles in the meantime. Although steering is definitely harder than on a car designed without power steering from the start, I didn't really miss it except for parallel parking in the city and having to fight torque steer a little more.

As for price, the local (to me) salvage yards wanted $350.00 for the pump when they had one. 9motorsports in Sacramento (I think) wanted $380.00 for a rebuilt pump and you had to send in your old pump to get back your core charge (I can't remember how much it was.) I think I heard most dealers are asking around $450 or so, but East Bay Mini quoted me way more than that over the phone. I ended doing a salvage yard query over the internet and got one from a salvage yard in the southeast for less than $250.00 shipped to my door. Plus I get to keep my original pump and can have that rebuilt without having to leave the car disassembled for a week while its being done.

Hope this helps.

 

Did you change the unit yourself?

 

Yes, I did it on my garage floor with the front end of the car on jackstands. The hardest part was getting the low pressure hose from the resevoir off the pump and then back on the new one. I think I spent an hour on just those two maneuvers alone. Maybe it would have been easier if I had bought a replacement hose too; more pliable than the 5 1/2 year old original.

No other big surprises though. I have the Bentley manual which helped, and it has all the tightening torques for the fasteners. You need to have a liter can of Pentosin CHF-11S on hand refill the system when your done. A local repair shop that specializes in BMWs sold me a can for $24.00. I used a little more than half the can. I'll check the level again today when I get home.

I'm no super-mechanic and I was able to do it with a basic socket set, so it can't be that bad. If you want more details let me know.

 

orb451, i thought your post was my own that I left on another forum. SAME EXACT STORY!! I have the same exact problem with my 2004 mini, 98k miles. Battery died, got a jump, turned car off and high pitched noise kept going. Battery died the next day. Bought new battery but when I turn the car off, the noise persists. Disconnected battery so it doesn't die on me, even though it's brand new (can this happen?). Is it just the power steering fan that is the problem or the whole pump? Do each of these parts run about 500.00? HELP!!

 

It's the power steering pump that is killing your battery, and it certainly can kill a brand new battery. The motor controller for the pump is actually built into the pump and it often fails stuck on! You may find it easier to disconnect the power to the pump so that your not constantly disconnecting the battery. The downside is you won't have any power steering even with the car running.

The pumps run about $500.00 the fan is "only" $100.00. I was able to find a rebuilt one for $380.00 plus core charge at 9motorsports. I ended up buying one from a salvage yard for $238.00 including shipping. That way I can keep the old one and have it rebuilt when I need it.

Your fan could be bad also, but that is not what is killing your battery. Its possible that a bad fan hastened the demise of your pump by letting the pump get too hot.

Also, as my wife and two girls are quite good at making any disposable income disappear, I installed the pump myself to save on labor.

Good luck, and if you need the name of the salvage yard ( I don't have it with me.) or my installation experience let me know.

 

Anyone have a link to a write-up on how to change the power steering pump?

 

Remove some of the p/s fluid in resivor, will help with less mess. Remove both 13 mil nuts from auxilary cooling fan, located on sub frame. Unhook connector to fan. Next, remove singel 13 mil nut on sub frame that connects p/s pump bracket to sub frame. There are two hidden 13 mil bolts on back of sub frame,located under p/s rack assembly. Remove your presure and return hoses to pump, including resivor supply hose.

 

Just to note, the hose clamp for the low pressure hose is not reusable (at least not easily) so you'll need a new one on hand before you start.

There are two electrical connections to the pump. One for power, always on, and the other provides a signal to turn the pump on and off. They both have locking tabs; I found the signal connector easy to remove but I could not operate the tabs for the power connector very easily. I got it off with no damage but have heard of cases where the tabs had been accidentally broken off. In my case the cables were also cable tied to the pump mounting frame, so check that before pulling the pump out just to be safe.

Technically, the three 13mm nuts should also be replaced since they are self locking and meant for single use only. That said, I reused mine because I didn't have replacements handy.

If your pump doesn't include the mounting frame you'll need a Torx driver to remove that from the old pump, T40 I think was the size.

I only needed a single one liter can of CHF-11S to top off the system when finished and had about 1/3 of the can left over.

 

Thanks for the info. Look's like I'll just replace it myself when I have the time. Driving the Mini isn't so tough except for parking like you said. I'll update the post when I have more info.

Curtis