Intermediate power steering failure on 2002 mini cooper s. At first power steering would cut in and out when driving until it went dead completely but sometimes will resume function when you shut off car and restart. Steering is very hard when this occurs. Weeks passed with same symptoms then power steering pump will run constantly even with car shut off. To stop the pump from draining my battery I had to disconnect battery or remove the fuse that is connected to the powersteering pump. Now the car is operable without power steering but steering is rather hard.
2002 MINI Cooper S steering complaints
Page 3 of 3: complaints 41 to 57 of 57, newest first, as owners wrote them.
I read last week about possible sudden loss of power steering associated with 04-05 mini models. I have an 02 mini cooper s and have had the same problem approx 6 times in the last 4 years. With no warning, the power steering will suddenly disappear. I can steer the car, but only with significant effort. My mechanic cannot find any problem. I have not had any accidents as a result of this. I'm not certain, but it appears this might happen more frequently when the road is wet.
Power steering failure caused hard steering and supreme scare. Prior intermittent on/off of power steering pump previous week. Had to replace pump and fan motor. Old pump is not available.
My 2002 mini cooper s had an incident approximately six months ago when I completely lost power steering while going a low rate of speed. I was able to muscle the steering for a couple of minutes until the power steering returned. This occurred once more but very briefly in front of my house some time later. I did not do anything about this problem either time but I saw a story in USA today on mini steering problems (29 sept) and instantly recalled my problem. I am certain it is related to the mini steering issue now being investigated by the federal safety agency.
1. Driving in normal conditions, car starts over heating. 2. Constant power steering failure. Has happened 2 times since I have owned the vehicle. (3 year span) and also 2 times for the original owner. 3. The car was taken to the dealership for repairs. Old parts are not available.
Power steering pump failure. Complete loss of power assist. Just happened in the middle of a turn during normal driving.
2002 mini cooper s power steering pump failed leaving car with very heavy steering. Car traveled into oncoming traffic but no damage or injury occurred. I have old ps pump available.
2002 mini cooper s power steering pump failure. Pump had stopped while driving the car previously. Now, pump continues to run after turning off the engine.
The power steering pump on 2002 mini cooper s has repeatedly seized up when driving over a course of a few months and now it wont turn off when the car is off so the battery drains out.
Tl*the contact owns a 2002 mini cooper s. The contact stated that while driving at 50 MPH, the vehicle suddenly lost power steering. The contact spoke with the dealer who stated that the failure was related to the steering column and she would be responsible for repair costs. The vehicle had not been repaired at the time of the complaint. The VIN was unavailable when the complaint was filed. The failure mileage was 42,392.
Tl*the contact owns a 2002 mini cooper s. While driving at 45 MPH, the contact noticed that the steering wheel suddenly became very difficult to turn. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic where the contact was informed that the power steering needed to be replaced. The current and failure mileages were approximately 90,000. Updated 09/24/10. *lj updated 09/24/10
The new minis from bmw, ranging from 2002 - 2005, have chronic problems with the power steering failing while driving, making the cars suddenly impossible to steer. This is not an isolated problem. I've searched the web and found hundreds of people complaining about this very same thing. Here's a link to a bbc story about it. Http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/watchdog/2009/02/mini_steering_system_failures.html.
2002 mini cooper c power steering pump failure with only 50k miles.
My mini cooper s 2002. My power steering locked up making it almost impossible to steer. Very dangerous and the fan kept running when off which drained the battery. It is not drivable now.
Took my car in for winding sound coming from motor. Diagnosed as the alternator...they replaced it and sound was still present ...misdiagnosed and was actually the supercharger, but while they were checking it out initially the power steering pump stayed on...which didn't happen to me until they had it. After changing the alternator power steering pump no longer stayed on per the dealer. Had it home 3 days to wake up one morning hearing the pump on and I go to start my car and in drained my battery. Had to jump the car and then disconnect the cable to keep from the ps pump continuously running. The car is at the dealer getting a new pump $975 plus tax, researched mini owner website and found several complaints of the same issue also that some cars actually caught fire from a failure of the pump. Researched more on north american motoring . There was a long list of people who had the exact experience. Sure would be awful for the pump to go out while driving on expressway and not able to steer correctly. Surprised it hasn't caused an accident/death yet.
Several, the air bag warning light has illuminated more then ten different times, each time it was repaired by the dealer (westchester bmw/westchester mini) the last fix was after the normal warranty had expired and required much fuss to get it repaired for free. The power steering pump suddenly stopped working while driving on the highway. The radiator fan was replaced two times by me (car out of warranty) even though I complained to the dealer when the car was still quite new about the frequency of the fan motor's starting and stopping which will severely shorten the life of any electric motor. The windshield stress cracked while under warranty and was repaired. The windshield wiped motor has just failed during an incredible rainstorm.
Power steering pump failed. Replacement was required at 48,000 miles. Viewing the mini owners website revealed many similar situations where the pump required replacement on many 2002-2004 models. This could lead to serious safety issues.
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