2003 MINI COOPER S Steering Problems

POWER STEERING FAILURE. WHILE DRIVING THE MINI FOR ABOUT 20 MINUTES WE MADE A TURN ON OUR ROAD HOME AND THE POWER STEERING FAILED WITH NO WARNING WHATSOEVER! IT WAS ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO TURN THE WHEEL! WE FEEL VERY FORTUNATE BECAUSE WE LIVE ON A WINDY ROAD THAT HAS MANY LARGE REDWOOD TREES ON THE SIDES OF THE ROAD WITH A CREEK DOWN A RAVINE. WE COULD HAVE EASILY HIT ONE OF THOSE TREES HEAD ON. OR IF WE WEREN'T ABLE TO TURN THE WHEELS WE COULD HAVE ENDED UP AT THE BOTTOM OF A RAVINE IN THE CREEK! EXTREMELY DANGEROUS! *TR

2003 MINI COOPERS- POWER STEERING FAILED DURING EXIT FROM NYS THRUWAY-RAN OFF THE RAMP DUE TO UNEXPECTED LOSS OF STEERING POWER. NO DAMAGE OR INJURY- TURNED ENGINE OFF- RESTARTED- POWER STEERING BACK ON. CONDITION HAS OCCURRED SEVERAL TIMES SINCE. *TR

MY FRIEND AND I GOT INTO MY 03 MINI COOPER S THIS PAST WEEKEND. WE WERE DRIVING ALONG IL RTE 1 UNTIL I GOT UP TO A 2 WAY STOP. I WAS MAKING A LEFT TURN BUT I REALIZED I LOST ALL POWER TO MY POWER STEERING UNIT. I BARELY WAS ABLE TO MAKE THE TURN IN ORDER TO AVOID GETTING BROADSIDED BY A DODGE RAM BARRELING AT ME AT 60 MPHS. *TR

POWER STEERING PUMP ON MY 2003 MINI COOPER S FAILED, VERY HARD TO STEER ONCE FAILED, NOW I'M HAVING THE SAME FAILURE AGAIN AFTER REPLACING IT LAST YEAR. READ ON THREADS AND OWNERS EVERYWHERE ARE HAVING THE SAME PROBLEMS. *TR

TL* THE CONTACTS OWNS A 2003 MINI COOPER S. THE CONTACT STATED THE POWER STEERING FAILED INTERMITTENTLY. HE CONFIRMED THAT WHEN SHUTTING OFF THE ENGINE FOR A FEW MOMENTS THE POWER STEERING WOULD RESET ITSELF ONCE IT RESTARTED. NEITHER THE DEALER NOR MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED TO REPORT THE FAILURE. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGES WERE 80,000. UPDATED 11/03/10. *LJ

SUDDEN FAILURE OF POWER STEERING ASSIST IN TRAFFIC I WAS BARELY ABLE TO CONTROL CAR.

2003 MINI COOPER S, 90000 MILES. POWER STEERING WHEEL FAILURE DURING NORMAL DRIVING. THE STEERING WHEEL IS EXTREMELY HARD TO TURN MANUALLY, THUS CAUSING PANIC AND REAL DANGER, BECAUSE THE CAR SWERVED OUT OF A TURN. DEALER SAYS IT IS A COMMON ISSUE, AND NEED TO REPLACE THE FAN OR PUMP, REPAIR PRICE $1300. MINI NEEDS TO RECALL THE CAR. *TR

MY 2003 MINI COOPER S SPONTANEOUSLY CAUGHT FIRE WHILE PARALLEL PARKING IN LOS ANGELES, CA. THE POWER STEERING PUMP FAILED, A FIRE SHORTLY FOLLOWED. THE LOS ANGELES FIRE DEPT. WAS PHONED. CAR NEEDED TO BE TOWED. *TR

FAILURE OF 2003 MINI COOPER MANUAL TRANSMISSION. MY CAR HAS BEEN UNDER REGULAR MAINTENANCE. I FIRST NOTICED THE CAR LOSING POWER GOING UPHILL, THEN IT BECAME DIFFICULT TO PUT THE CAR IN GEAR. NEXT MORNING I WAS UNABLE TO GET INTO REVERSE, WAS EXTREMELY DIFFICULT TO SHIFT AND SOME GEARS COULD NOT BE ENGAGED. AT A STOP LIGHT I BEGAN HEARING A VERY LOUD GRINDING NOISE, LIKE METAL IN A BLENDER, THE CAR WOULD NOT ENGAGE IN GEAR, I HAD TO BE PUSHED OUT OF THE INTERSECTION. THE DEALER OFFERED NOTHING. MY PRIVATE MECHANIC FOUND METAL SHREDS THROUGHOUT THE TRANSMISSION. SAID A BEARING HAD COME LOOSE AND DESTROYED THE INTERIOR OF THE TRANSMISSION, ALL AT 65K MILES. HE ALSO SAID THE ENGINE COULD HAVE FAILED WHILE ON THE FREEWAY AT HIGH SPEEDS AND THIS COULD HAVE BEEN LIFE ENDANGERING. ALSO THE POWER STEERING PUMP WENT AT 30K MILES. BOTH VERY...

DRIVING HOME AS USUAL, WHEN I TURNED TO BACK-IN TO THE DRIVEWAY AND THE POWER STEERING WENT OUT. VERY DIFFICULT TO MANEUVER CAR INTO THE DRIVEWAY. LEFT CAR OVERNIGHT AND TRIED AGAIN NEXT DAY. FINE THE NEXT DAY, BUT HAPPENED AGAIN THE FOLLOWING DAY. 2003 MCS 31,700 MILES. LOOKING INTO CAUSE OF FAILURE. *TR

POWER STEERING GOES OUT WITHOUT WARNING LEAVING CAR DIFFICULT TO CONTROL. *TR

TOOK 2003 MINI COOPER S TO PERFORMANCE DRIVING SCHOOL AND HAD POWER STEERING PUMP CATCH ON FIRE. *TR

IRONICALLY, I FIRST LOOKED AT THIS COMPLAINT SITE TWO DAYS AGO AS I FIRST LEARNED ABOUT ITS EXISTENCE FROM THE APRIL 2009 ISSUE OF CONSUMER REPORTS. I FELT GOOD THAT THE TWO MOST FREQUENTLY NAMED COMPLAINTS FOR MY MODEL AND YEAR HAD NOT OCCURRED. SO, TODAY THAT GOOD FEELING ENDED, AS ONE OF THE COMMON OCCURRENCES HAPPENED TO ME - A COINCIDENCE? OR THE MINI GODS REVENGE? TO CONTINUE: I NOTICED THAT AFTER I SHUT OFF THE CAR, SOMETHING WAS STILL RUNNING FOR A LONG TIME AFTERWARDS. OPENING THE HOOD, I REALIZED THAT IT WAS PROBABLY THE POWER STEERING PUMP THAT WAS NOT TURNING OFF, AND KNEW FROM READING THIS SITE, THAT IT WOULD LEAD TO BATTERY FAILURE AT A MINIMUM, AND A FIRE AT WORST CASE. SO, I IMMEDIATELY DROVE TO THE DEALER - HERB CHAMBERS MINI OF BOSTON - AND LEFT IT FOR REPAIR. THE CALL I RECEIVED...

POWER STEERING FAILED ON A 2003 MINI COOPER S WITH 51,586 MILES. *TR

I PURCHASED MY '03 MINI COPPER S WITH 49K FROM A HONDA IN MECHANICSBURG, PA DEALER IN AUGUST. IN DECEMBER, I PURCHASED TIRES AND THEN WENT TO A SELF-SERVICE CARWASH AFTERWARD. WHEN I GOT HOME AND BEFORE I PUT IT IN THE GARAGE, I TOOK OUT THE HOSE AND WASHED OFF THE WHEELS AND UNDER THE CAR. DURING THE PROCESS THERE WAS WHITE SMOKE, WHICH I THOUGHT WAS STEAM FROM THE WATER HITTING THE MANIFOLD. I PUT THE CAR IN THE GARAGE AND LATER WHEN MY WIFE CAME HOME SHE COMMENTED ON THE SMOKE AND MIST IN THE GARAGE (IT WAS QUITE COLD THAT NIGHT.) THE NEXT DAY WHEN I PULLED THE CAR OUT, THE STEERING WAS VERY STIFF AND I ONLY DROVE IT OUT THE DRIVEWAY AND ON THE ROAD BEFORE I REALIZED THE POWER STEERING WAS COMPLETELY OUT. I DROVE IT ABOUT 15 MILES TO THE DEALER AFTER...

MY 2003 MINI COOPER S HAS 41,000 MILES. ON 2/2/09, THE POWER STEERING FAILED AND I HAD A TOUGH TIME KEEPING THE CAR IN CONTROL. I WENT HOME, RE-STARTED THE CAR AND THE POWER STEERING WAS FUNCTIONAL. I TOOK IT IN FOR REPAIR ON 2/5/09, THE POWER STEERING PUMP AND LINES WERE REPLACED. *TR

THE ONLY EVENTS LEADING TO THIS PROBLEM WERE NORMAL, EVERYDAY DRIVING AND ROUTINE, FACTORY RECOMMENDED SERVICE. THE FAILURE APPEARS TO HAVE INITIATED AT THE COOLING FAN FOR THE ELECTRIC POWER STEERING PUMP. WHEN THE FAN SEIZES, THE PUMP OVERHEATS CAUSING AN ELECTRICAL SHORT IN THE PUMP ELECTRONICS. THIS CONDITION CAUSES THE PUMP TO RUN NONSTOP EVEN WITH THE IGNITION TURNED OFF AND THE KEY OUT. THIS IN TURN RUNS THE BATTERY DOWN AND CAN POSSIBLY LEAD TO A FIRE. THE DEALER REPLACED THE POWER STEERING PUMP, THE POWER STEERING PUMP COOLING FAN AS WELL AS THE BATTERY SINCE IT'S USABLE LIFE WAS DIMINISHED FROM THE EXCESSIVE DRAW. OLD PART IS NOT AVAILABLE AND NONE OF THIS WAS OFFERED AS A WARRANTY ITEM. *TR

I'VE BEEN FOLLOWING BLOGS ABOUT MINI COOPERS GOING ON FIRE SINCE I OWNED ONE, AND I NEVER THOUGHT IT WOULD HAPPEN TO ME. WELL, I HAD JUST GOTTEN BACK HOME FROM SCHOOL WHEN I SMELL SOMETHING LIKE WIRING BURNING IN MY CAR, SO I KILLED THE ENGINE AND OPENED THE HOOD. POWER STEERING STILL RUNNING AND SMOKING, SO I CALLED MY DAD TO HELP ME. HE DISCONNECTED THE BATTERY AND STOPPED THE EPS PUMP FROM BEING CONSUMED ON FIRE. THIS SHOULD NOT BE HAPPENING, THE BMW-MINI FIRM SHOULD TAKE RESPONSIBILITY AND NOT LET THEIR CLIENTS SUFFER THE AFTERMATH. THIS IS SURELY A RECALL, NO ONE HAS DIED YET, THANKS GOD, BUT LET'S BE SERIOUS FOLKS. SINCE NEW PUMP AT DEALER IS $650.00 CALLED JUNK YARDS AND PART IS NOT READILY AVAILABLE AND IF AVAILABLE JUNK YARDS CHARGE VERY CLOSE TO A NEW ONE FOR A USED ONE. I WAS NOT...

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 MINI COOPER S. WHILE THE CONTACT'S WIFE WAS DRIVING 60 MPH, THE WHEEL AND TIRE DETACHED FROM THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER AND HAS NOT BEEN DIAGNOSED AT THIS TIME. THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE COST FOR THE REPAIR WOULD RANGE FROM $3,000 - $5,000. THE AFFECTED COMPONENTS WERE THE STEERING, BRAKES, SUSPENSION, AND SHOCKS. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED AND THE CONTACT HAS PICTURES AVAILABLE. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE CURRENT AND FAILURE MILEAGES WERE 30,000.

COMPLETE AND INSTANT POWER STEERING FAILURE WITH NO WARNING OF ANY KIND. REQUIRED CONSIDERABLE ARM STRENGTH TO CONTROL VEHICLE. *TR

THE POWER STEERING SUDDENLY WENT OUT ON FRIDAY, JUNE 27, 2008 CAUSING DIFFICULTY IN STEERING AND NEARLY CAUSING AN ACCIDENT. AS I TURNED INTO MY HOME DRIVEWAY. UPON TOWING THE VEHICLE TO CREVIER AUTO IN SANTA ANA, CALIFORNIA ON FRIDAY AFTERNOON/EVENING, CREVIER WAS UNABLE TO LOCATE THE VEHICLE. ON MONDAY, JUNE 30, AFTER MUCH CONSTERNATION, CREVIER FINALLY LOCATED THE VEHICLE AS THEY HAD IT ON THEIR PREMISES SINCE THE PREVIOUS FRIDAY. TUESDAY, JULY 1, A SERVICE TECHNICIAN NOTIFIED ME THAT THE POWER STEERING PUMP HAD GONE OUT ON THE 2003 MINI COOPER S. THE VEHICLE HAS LESS THAN 50,000 MILES ON IT AND HAS BEEN DRIVEN GENTLY THROUGHOUT ITS LIFETIME. *TR