[NeuroBeaker]

Welcome MINI enthusiasts! Presumably you're reading this post because your power steering isn't behaving in the way that a healthy car's should. Well, you've come to the right place, because we're going to see what we can do to help get you motoring once more and back to enjoying your MINI Adventure!


What models are affected?

First Generation MINIs - models: ONE (R50), Cooper (R50), Cabrio (R52), and Cooper S (R53).

The ONE-D (also R50) may also be affected but I believe this model has a different power steering pump construction and is not interchangeable with any of the petrol R50s. I will readdress this point in a future update when I have more information.


My power steering is intermittent or has failed completely. How do I know if it's the pump or not?

Diagnostic checks are a bit useless... it's been discussed here that it doesn't really matter what's wrong with the pump, as it's basically:

Power steering has failed (permanently or intermittently)... response: examine the pump.

Subsequent pump examination:

Component A in the pump failed... solution: replace the pump.
Component B in the pump failed... solution: replace the pump.
Component C in the pump failed... solution: replace the pump.
Component D in the pump failed... (you get the idea).

It'd be far better if it just went:

Power steering has failed (permanently or intermittently)... response: replace the pump.

Roughly how much should I be paying for diagnostic check and labour?

Essentially, while they're replacing the pump, they should have a look to see if the wiring loom needs doing at the same time. There shouldn't really be a diagnostic charge for this one as it's such a common problem (see previous section)... but this is may come down to how good natured your dealership is, and how good a customer you've been in the past. If it's only the pump (and not the loom as well; that's much more expensive) that's gone, then hopefully you'll get by with a contribution of £40-110 (about £70ish seemed 'normal'), but remember, anything in that range is an excellent result (if you're just a bit above, it's still a good result). As time goes on, we'll see BMW asking for larger contributions as the cars that exhibit this problem will be ageing. Ultimately, and quite reasonably, the manufacturer will eventually want to move on from this issue and won't be offering assistance indefinitely. See subsequent sections in this guide for tips on approaching your dealer.


Are BMW aware of this problem?

Yes. BMW and their dealerships are very well aware of this problem, it is a very common one, and anything your dealer or the manufacturer claim to the contrary is simply not true. Simply look at the poll associated with this thread - perhaps even print that out to show your dealer.

Originally Posted by ass07

[i] reported [the power steering pump problem] to VOSA and the guy practically laughed when I told him what fault I was reporting. He confirmed BMW ARE aware of the issue as VOSA are in talks with them re this issue.

However, whether the VOSA can do anything about this issue is another thing entirely, as explained by mab01uk and MiniManiaUK:

Originally Posted by mab01uk

It would be difficult for VOSA to demand a recall for this on safety grounds as it is possible for the power steering to fail on any car whether it has a Hydraulic system with pump driven by a belt off the engine ( the most common ), fully Electric motor assisted acting direct on the steering column (most modern small cars including 2nd Gen MINI ) or Hydraulic system with a pump driven by an electric motor ( like the 1st Gen MINI ). The end result is the same, suddenly very heavy steering due to loss of assistance but not a total loss of steering as in the case of the VOSA recall for the new Vauxhall Corsa (see below).

I guess the only improvement BMW can do to the 1st Gen MINI pas would be to extend the life of the electric motor pump assembly and / or make it more reliable but sooner or later like all electro-mechanical components it will wear and fail in service and require replacement or repair.

Note: The new Vauxhall Corsa is currently undergoing a recall due to possible total loss of steering control due to steering column failure and weld failures on lower suspension arms. (A friend of mine crashed her 07 Corsa a few weeks ago due to total steering loss, luckily at low speed after leaving the M40 ! She was traveling in a straight line at the time when it suddenly veered across the road ! )
VOSA Links:-
Corsa Recall 1
Corsa Recall 2

Originally Posted by MINIMANIAUK

recall on steering loss maybe - but they can catch fire!!!!!
Its only a matter of time...

As to the replacement under goodwill ,do people realise that the pump will fail again,there is an intrinsic design flaw. --- This has not been addressed in the latest BMW fix ,faffing around with a diode .

Indeed, even the UK Consumer programme Watchdog has tackled the Power Steering Pump Problem earlier this year. See this thread for details:

BBC - Mini power steering failures - Watchdog - Blog

How to approach the dealership with the aim to getting financial assistance in fixing your power steering failure:

If when the steering is very heavy, you notice an absence of the MINI's characteristic whine from the engine compartment, then it's quite probably that your Power Steering Pump has failed. This is a common problem on MINIs and an exhaustive number of owners have had this problem, and how they dealt with it will be detailed right here in this very thread!

If your car is in warranty, simply tell them to fix it.

If your car is out of warranty, but still has relatively low mileage, then here is what to do:

1. Write a letter to your local dealer (addressed to the Service Manager), and in this letter you will want to detail the following:
   1. You believe your power steering pump has failed (as noticed by an absence of whine from the engine compartment when the steering wheel becomes extremely heavy).
   2. You believe that this failure makes the car dangerous to drive. You love your MINI very much and it distresses you that you are unable to enjoy your MINI ownership.
   3. The car is only recently out of warranty and given that it is a low-mileage vehicle, you believe this component to have failed prematurely.
   4. You are a member of a MINI Enthusiast Community and you are aware that this is a common problem with the MINI (more than half the cars surveyed have had a PSP failure - note: some had a failure after they'd already voted, me included) and that this is recognised by BMW.
      1. To your personal taste, you may or may not want to let on at this point that you are aware BMW are in talks with the VOSA on this exact issue. It might be too strong a card to play up front - so it's your call.
   5. You request that your dealership contact MINI UK on your behalf to arrange provisions for the repair on the basis that the component has prematurely failed.
2. Ring the dealer and book an appointment.
3. Take the car in and drop off both the keys and the letter.
4. When the dealer diagnoses the problem and contacts MINI UK the absolute best possible outcome for you is:
   1. MINI UK will give you a new power steering pump for free (i.e. 100% parts cover)
   2. MINI UK will pay half the costs for installation (i.e. 50% labour)
   3. Having made a contribution towards the replacement of your power steering pump (about £70 seems normal, but this can be anywhere from £40-110), you will now have a 2-year warranty on the component - starting from the date of installation.
5. Drive home happy.

Note: If your dealership says that MINI UK rejected your claim (i.e. wandered out into a back room and came back 2 minutes later), some have suggested that it is a good idea to contact MINI UK directly yourself and see if a technical claim was actually processed on your car by the dealership. It actually takes time for MINI UK to review each case and decide whether or not to make an offer of assistance with the fix. If your dealership hasn't processed your claim to MINI UK (dealerships earn more from work that isn't partially covered by the manufacturer - as MINI UK pays a greatly reduced rate to the dealership), you can go back to your dealership knowing exactly what actions they did (or didn't) take.

All pumps replaced by BMW that are 'sold' (i.e. you paid for labour or similar) come with a 2-year warranty but if it was replaced for absolutely nothing during the original warranty, then you haven't got this guarantee for an additional two years - the guarantee only lasts to the remainder of the car's original warranty. So, even though the pump has been replaced once already, you may need to approach this with the same mentality and expectations as it being a "first pump failure".

With that being said, if your mileage is relatively low then I'd say you stand a reasonable chance of a good offer of assistance from MINI UK.

MINI UK won't help me, what can I do? (to be continued...)

[NeuroBeaker]

Continued from above...

MINI UK won't help me, what can I do?

If there is absolutely no way you can get a claim processed through MINI UK then there are cheaper options for repair than using the main dealerships for parts and fitting. For example, here are a few places you can get replacement components:

Power Steering Products:

Power Steering Rack - reconditioned (click here)
Power Steering Pump - reconditioned (click here)

And these additional related products (for the Cooper S only) also look like they would be helpful:

Power Steering Cooling Fan (click here)

Power Steering Cooling Duct (click here)

At this point, I need to call upon someone more technically-minded to advise us on the distinction between the power steering rack and power steering pump - as I had previously thought the names were interchangeable and referred to the same component. So here we go:

Originally Posted by mab01uk

Full name is rack and pinion steering. The pinion is a small gear turned by your steering column which moves a toothed rack from left to right therefore moving the wheels side to side, The power steering pump /motor (hydraulic or electric, or in the MINIs case a combination of the two) purely reduces the effort required by the driver to turn the power steering rack. Many older cars have no pump and therefore no power steering assistance.
Steering Rack/ Power Rack & Pinion-How it works

The cooling fan for the pump is only fitted to the Cooper S.

This may also be of interest (I have posted it before):-

This is a thread from NAM in USA from someone who has opened up (and photographed if you search through the thread) a pump motor for repairs and suggests the failure is often due to build up of dust from the motor brushes and or failure of the internal electronic controls.
PS Pump rebuild - LINK

BMW seem to charge about £500 to replace, a reconditioned pump if BBA-Reman have got one is about £140-200 but I have heard people pay up to £1200 if the steering rack is also leaking and replaced but this is more unusual. Here is a photo of the pump (which sits low down behind the engine) for your interest from BBA-Reman:- PS Pump

For a confident DIY mechanic it is not that difficult to swap and can be done from below on axle stands with standard tools. Disconnect battery. If you have an "S" there is a cooling fan/bracket to remove from the subframe followed by the pump itself,(1 nut, 2 bolts, electrical connection, fluid pipe). Renew the O ring on the high pressure outlet if fitted. Bleeding is straight forward like any other cars power steering. Pour in the fluid slowly to prevent air bubbles up to max. mark. Start engine park with front wheels on 2 glossy magazines (yes really they act as turn tables!) and turn steering slowly from lock to lock. (Don't hold full lock for more than 5 secs or you can damage pump). Stop engine & check level & for leaks, repeat the above several times to purge air, if any air remains causing noise leave overnight & repeat next day. Photos and detailed procedure is in the Mini Haynes Manual on page 10.4 and has been detailed in Modern MINI magazine a few months back and by some Online MINI forum members.

DIY replacement of the complete Steering Rack is also shown in a similar detailed photo step by step procedure in this months (April 2008) Modern MINI magazine (issue 21) pages 38-41.

Is there anything I can do myself to stop the pump from failing again? (to be continued...)

[NeuroBeaker]

Continued from above...

Is there anything I can do myself to stop the pump from failing again?

I'm glad you asked - yes there is! Unfortunately, the fix from BMW simply replaced the failed pump with an unit that is identical in design... meaning that it will inevitably fail in the future. Up to now, there are no after-market replacements that fix the problem but there is a maintenance regime you can follow.

For a detailed description on how you can maintain your power steering pump to ensure longevity in your new pump, here are some fabulous instructions, again from Adam at MiniManiaUK (gathered into one post by me, but follow the links there to the originals, which include pictures):

Originally Posted by oldmots

In the interests of preventative maintenance, can the brush area be opened and blown out as a preventive activity without removing the pump from the car? Even if it has to be removed, if the dust is causing the failure, it might pay well to remove the pump every 10,000 miles and clear it. Is this possible?

Originally Posted by MINIMANIAUK

In situ it is awkward to do anything, removal is only 1 connector,1 pipe and a few bolts,(on a ramp 1/2 hour max) once removed as a unit (the pump is in a type of tray with anti vibe mounts)
It is one of the easiest motors I have come across to strip down!!!!
Some motors once you undo a few screws you end up with a dooiiiing! sound and a handfull of springs,brushes,shims etc -NOT so this one ,it is easy and can only go back together one way.

Now you need a bucket full of solvent cleaner,and a paint brush -get scrubbing!!!
once clean (-you will instantly see why they fail ) either blow out with an air line or allow to dry in the sun (thats tough in the UK)
be a bit gentle with the pigstails on the brushes themselves they can be pulled off- put it all together again in reverse and there you have it .
If you want to go that bit futher the pump seal can be replaced with a better one and the brushes again with a better set .
The motor itself is a nice construction ,it just needs better brushes and a better electrical connector (a bit more up to high current) venting and cooling- BMW SO nearly got it right!!
PLEASE USE THE CORRECT SOLVENT/CLEANER
the brushes should be brush bedded if replaced,but I have found this unnecessary-
Repeat this process every 20000 miles(standard brushes)

Bearing in mind that not 1 person in the UK has opted to fit an added cooling duct! for £30!!!!,and 5 mins . cant see many doing this!!!
Shouting at BMW may work for a while longer,but as always prevention is better than cure,.
(my 0.02p worth)

Originally Posted by oldmots

Great news! This could save a lot of us some serious money in exchange for a little time! Thanks for sharing this information.
If one was interested in the better seal and brushes, where would they look for the parts? This almost sounds like a wholesaler's/rebuilder's area to me. I am assuming by solvent you mean electronics cleaner? I don't know many solvents that you can soak a motor armature in but this. The difficulty for most of us is that we need to get this apart and running again over a weekend since most need the car. This means having all parts in advance of teardown, no time to part search after removal to look at the innards up close.
Again, This is a big help to me, thanks, I will get into it soon as my car has 40K miles on the original pump.

Originally Posted by MINIMANIAUK

You can use brake cleaner as it drys very fast and leaves no residues, easy to get too .Any electrical motor supplier and repair place could direct you to a brush supplier , there are many types of brushes but they are in preferred sizes (still good old imperial AFAIK) I will get the specs required and the seal size

Originally Posted by MINIMANIAUK

I will strip out a motor later today (time permitting) and take some pics,also get the brush tension figures as that will allow a quick check to be carried out post brush replacement,too much tension cause rapid wear and brush cracking,too low and you can get sparking on the brush ends .
The brushes are quite long and appear to have a long lifespan wear wise.but the motors are continually running probably 500 hours a year or so but the cost is so minimal why not use new ones!!
Will it prolong the life of the motor? YES , will it change the face of the power steering problem NO. I very much doubt many owners will be bothered to remove/clean/refit the motor even if they knew it was needed,yes its only 2 hours all up , but how long does it take to inflate tyres? and 85% of the cars I see have low pressure!!!
or Oil ,
I bet most of the S owners have never even seen the battery
Modern car owners are not used to or expected to do maintenance,it is only when things dont work that they get looked at.

Originally Posted by MINIMANIAUK

with the pump removed from car in anti vibe mount

Power Steering Thread - 1a.jpg

Originally Posted by MINIMANIAUK

remove the avm ----4 nuts 10 mm

Power Steering Thread - 2a.jpg

Originally Posted by MINIMANIAUK

remove 3 torx screws - and the motor case -this needs a good tug as it contains the permanent magnets

Power Steering Thread - 3a.jpg

Originally Posted by MINIMANIAUK

a look inside the cover/permanent magnets and after a quick tap on floor (this one is a good one - they can be far worse !! - a gluey mixture inside )

Power Steering Thread - 4a.jpg Power Steering Thread - 4b.jpg

(to be continued...)

[ButtonIt]

So, on my second MINI and after nearly 7 years of MINI ownership I suffered the dreaded power steering pump issue.

As described on another forum, I suffered the fault where the pump stays running even with the engine switched off. The same fault that could potentially lead to the thing catching fire

My MINI is a 54 registered Cooper S with 49k miles.

A quick visit to Scotthall BMW in Southampton and a request sent by them to MINI UK has resulted in a very generous 100% parts and 50% labour. Leaving me with a bill around £60 (subject to the work being carried out next monday).

A big thank you to Scotthall and MINI UK.

And for those new users who are reading about this suffering the same issue. The advice I will give you is.. disconnect the battery earth terminal (there's a spanner in the toolkit next to the battery in the boot) and contact your local dealer. It is a very common problem so if they say they've never heard of it they're probably trying to pull a fast one In this case try another dealer.

Good luck everyone, I'll post more after Monday

[NeuroBeaker]

Continued from above...

Originally Posted by MINIMANIAUK

At this point my able assistant needs feeding ,and I have a load of carbon dust on the office carpet!! and all over the assistants paws!
NOTE ; do not do this procedure in you home or near a dog
I shall continue later post cleaning up

Power Steering Thread - 5a.jpg

Originally Posted by MINIMANIAUK

Clean carpet/dog then ;
Remove two larger torx screws that hold the bracket in place,then the three smaller torx screws,that hold the pump and motor together, separate the two items .
MOTOR- the armature is held in by a small circlip(snap ring) , remove circlip and the armature can be pulled out - This is probably as far as you need to go for cleaning and inspection purposes- the brushes(pic) are long (22mm left on this one) and last a long time ( they are 5mm x 10mm )
Now it is a simple cleaning process,and very lightly sand the commutatot (where the brushes touch)with a very fine sand paper or wire wool to remove any score marks.
there is a seal on the housing but this should be fine to reuse,

Power Steering Thread - 6a.jpg Power Steering Thread - 6b.jpg

(to be continued...)

[NeuroBeaker]

Continued from above...

Originally Posted by MINIMANIAUK

The PUMP assembly is a bit more tricky and I would suggest a simple check by turning the drive keyway and listening for a nice regular clicking sound and no stiffness when turning,
However if you must look inside -remove the 4 torx screw and gently lift off the cover ,inside is the pump rotor,rollers,and cage (see pic) ,the seal is 21/2 inch ID , the inside shoud be spotless ,check for signs of rubbing and score marks .
there are no service parts as yet available AFAIK so unless it is something jammed in pump or a simple debris issue you will need a new unit.
run some clean pas fluid through the pump ,and reassemble in reverse with the motor once cleaned and reassemble the avm tray and refit to the car -job done

Power Steering Thread - 7a.jpg Power Steering Thread - 7b.jpg Power Steering Thread - 7c.jpg Power Steering Thread - 7d.jpg

Originally Posted by westwood

Great pictures MiniManiaUk

Is there a smaller electrical connector as well as the main motor one ?
I was wondering what feedback this might provide ie pressure/rpm ?

It has puzzled me that in the case of a pump failing 'on' even with the ignition turned off that surely this must be a welded relay or shorted transistor on the control unit, yet I've not heard anyone mention this being replaced ?!?

Can anyone shed any light on this please ?

Originally Posted by MINIMANIAUK

There is a smaller 3 pin connector on the motor case,this is for the control circuitry contained in the motor behind the brush mountings- it is a complex control circuit and there are a number of components on a circuit board inside - this is an area which could have been improved in a couple of ways
1 heat - the circuit has little or no heatsinks ,and as its contained in a hot motor and next to a hot pump not the finest idea,( it could have been external to the motor in its own box )
2 carbon dust- carbon dust is conductive and very fine,it can get behind the plastic brush housing ,if it settles on the circuit board - instant problem!! electronic circuits dont like being shorted out!! -venting would have helped or remote control box
These two things are the most likely cause of the failures (pump not switching off ) carbon dust and heat - heat is difficult to remove ,the design is what it is, and I DO NOT recommend you try and open up the housing to get to the electronics.
carbon dust you can do something about -strip and clean -reassemble
heat - you can add the cooling duct to aid more air to the fan to help a bit whilst the car is moving

Concluding advice:

The single most important thing I can advise is dropping off a thoughtful letter with your car. It should politely but firmly plead your case and provide ample opportunity for your dealer to shine - remember the tone is that they're there to 'save' you and restore the joy in your MINI ownership experience, not take a 'flaming' from you.

As aforementioned, for a more technical explanation as to what's going on with the precise components in question, you may want to have a thread through the thread and take special note of contributions from mab01uk and MINIMANIAUK.

Good luck and keep us updated to your progress in the Power Steering Pump Thread (right here: 24 hours a day, 365 days a year)!

All the best,
Andrew.



PS:

I apologise for not being able to include it into one starting post, I found that there were limits of 10,000 characters per post and I'd exceeded them by quite a large margin.

Could everyone please let me know if you find any problems with this advice? e.g. Broken links, nonsensical quotes, poor spelling/grammar, or bad information... it will all be corrected as quickly as possible. Thanks!

[TimCS]

Thanks for the heads up. My '06 S is coming up to 30k and having had the thermostat housing go a couple of months back I'm now waiting for the steering pump to go Just out of interest - when MINI fix this problem is the fix a permanent one ie has there been a change in spec to sort the original problem or is it a case of it will happen again in an undetermined amount of time?

[FatihV]

Great topic and performance
----
as an international member from Istanbul, I can say that; I've had this pump problem seriously on my 2004/10 mcs without warranty and approx.45000km.

My local dealer is very hard to solve the problem so I got my mcs to the another pump fixer. The result: no new pump, but fixed and working pump now, for USD200$.

pros: fixing price; that authorized service dealer wanted ~1000EUR.
cons: more irritating electrical pump sound. like VZZZZ..VZZZz.:

thnx.

[NeuroBeaker]

Originally Posted by FatihV

My local dealer is very hard to solve the problem so I got my mcs to the another pump fixer. The result: no new pump, but fixed and working pump now, for USD200$.

pros: fixing price; that authorized service dealer wanted ~1000EUR.
cons: more irritating electrical pump sound. like VZZZZ..VZZZz.:

That's a very good price for a fix, providing you don't mind a change in acoustic characteristics. Thanks for your post!

All the best,
Andrew.

[rellik666]

Well done with this BRILLIANT! So much better than wading through loads of advice Well Done