68k miles on a 2003 mini cooper s and the power steering pump is whining. I feel as if this may be really early for it to be needing to be replaced.
MINI Cooper whining noise problems
16 of the 2,237 owner complaints about the MINI Cooper describe whining or grinding noise, most of them for the 2005 model year.
- owner complaints
- 16
- worst model year
- 2005
- typical mileage
- 83,000
Is there a fix? There are 2 recalls for this area of the car. See below
By model year
- 20181
- 20063
- 20057
- 20041
- 20033
- 20021
Often reported together
Transmission failure 3Power steering loss 2Steering noise 1Overheating 1Jerking 1Fire or smoke 1CVT failure 1Battery drain 1
What owners say
Driving at low speed piercing loud noises came from speakers, buzzing and whining. Noise stayed on with ignition on or off and radio on or off. This occurred two more times on way home. Am waiting for dealer appointment. Have not driven vehicle since.
2005 Mini Cooper S has power steering whine, hard to steer the wheel. Very unsafe.
Once the car warms up the automatic transmission lurches when the car shifts from 1st to 2nd and 3rd gear. The engine still accelerates, however, the transmission simply whines and no power is distributed to the wheels. Very unsafe when pulling out in traffic. Mini advertised these vehicles as never requiring transmission fluid changes. The vehicle has less than 100,000 miles. No recall exists, however, the issue is well documented on web forums.
Our 2003 mini cooper has about 120k miles on it. It was completely fine until recently when the power steering pump started whining. Sometimes it completely stopped working and we had no power steering, thankfully this was while the car was parked and not while driving. Turning the wheel is a little harder than usual, and if you turn it too much, the car bogs down and the revs go way down. We've tried flushing and replacing the power steering fluid, but it didn't seem to help. We've even put in some expensive additives that promise to repair the problem and stop the noise, but it doesn't work. We don't feel safe knowing that our power steering may go out at any moment. And we certainly don't appreciate the looks we get when we drive past people.
Power steering whine
Loud whine from power steering pump.
The car began to make a high pitched whine which increased over the next couple of weeks, it continued to get worse and I noticed when I would move the steering wheel back and forth the noise became much much worse, leading to the failure of my power steering pump. Mini issued a recall on the power steering pumps for their 2001-2005 models (13 year, 150,000 miles.) mine is a 2006, I still don't think the problem has been resolved for this year of model as I am finding multiple accounts online of individuals with 2006 mini power steering pump failure.
Tl* the contact owns a 2006 mini cooper. The contact stated that while parked, he noticed a whining sound coming from the steering wheel. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnosis. The technician stated that the power steering pump would have to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 20,000.
I had a little whining sound when I pushed on the clutch. Everything worked fine even with the whining sound. I started driving to the mechanics and my car completely shut down. The transmission came completely apart. All the teeth are gone from the second gear with no warning. I have already spent 2000.00, now I will have to either spend another 3000.00 for a new transmission, or trade in my car at a horrible loss and I will be upside down on the next car. I read that there were class action lawsuits against mini/bmw over the transmissions. I was hoping that I would find a recall on here.
Related recalls
Power train: automatic transmission: control module (TCM/PCM/tecm)
- What is wrong
- BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain model year 2014-2015 MINI Cooper Hardtop 2 Door, and Cooper S Hardtop 2 Door vehicles manufactured January 6, 2014, to October 17, 2014. During service appointments, dealers may have inadvertently reprogrammed the transmission control unit with software that may allow drivers to exit the vehicle when the transmission is not in Park. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 114, "Theft Protection and Rollaway Prevention."
- Risk
- If the driver exits the vehicle without the transmission being in Park, the vehicle could roll away as the driver and other occupants exit the vehicle or anytime thereafter. A vehicle rollaway increases the risk of injury to exiting occupants and bystanders.
- Remedy
- MINI will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the transmission control module with the correct software, free of charge. The recall February 4, 2015. Owners can contact MINI customer service at 1‑866‑825‑1525.
Recall number 14V789000 · Recall details
Power train: manual transmission: floor shift assembly
- What is wrong
- On certain passenger vehicles equipped with manual transmissions, the transmission shift cable connects the gearshift lever in the vehicle interior to the shift linkage on the transmission. It is possible for the shift cable to detach from the transmission shift linkage while the driver is attempting to change gears. If the cable detaches from the shift linkage, gear changes will no longer be possible and the transmission will remain in the last gear selected.
- Risk
- If shift cable detachment occurs and the transmission remains in any forward gear, the vehicle can still be driven in that gear only. However, if the transmission moves into neutral and remains there, the ability to accelerate or maintain speed will be lost, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will inspect the shift cable and, if necessary, install a retaining clip over the end of the shift cable to prevent it from detaching from the transmission. Owner notification began august 6, 2002. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact bmw at 1-866-ask-mini (1‑866‑275‑6464).
Recall number 02V201000 · Recall details
Questions about the MINI Cooper whining noise
Which MINI Cooper years have whining or grinding noise problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2005 (7 complaints), 2003 (3 complaints) and 2006 (3 complaints).
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