CarComplaints.com Notes: Power steering problems are a major issue with the 2004 Mini Cooper, with hundreds of owners reporting complaints to the NHTSA about their power steering suddenly failing while driving.
Some power steering failures have caused crashes & injuries. Average mileage at failure is well under 100,000 miles & the repair cost is over $1,000. Not good.
10.0
really awful
Crashes / Fires:
10 / 7
Injuries / Deaths:
2 / 0
Average Mileage:
75,582 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
At 35 mph I noticed intermittent loss of power steering (ps). I was diving on 2 lane winding country road with no shoulders and ended up in the oncoming lane before I regained control. Luckily was no traffic at the time. The most terrifying thing is when ps it's dead for a while and then suddenly comes back on. If you are in a corner, because you've just been muscling the steering wheel, and ps comes back you will be suddenly over-steer and veer out of your lane.
My power steering failed as I was driving during rush hour on a major highway into Washington, DC. The wheel was not locked, but it became extremely difficult to turn the wheel in any direction, which was very dangerous as traffic was going 70mph. I was able to pull the car off at an exit, and stop it on the shoulder. I turned off the engine and re-started the car, at which time the power steering appeared to work normally again. This was the most recent incident of this type, but there have been at least ten. In other instances, the power steering fails during parallel parking in the tight spaces on city streets. This is unpredictable, however -- months can pass with no problem, and then it starts again.
Lost power steering when driving on the freeway. Feels like the steering locks up but can still steer when using a lot of strength. Since first incident, this has happened again several times. Usually after driving for about five minutes.
My MINIwas parked for about 2 hours. When I went to leave in it, I could not steer it. The power steering was completely unresponsive. I was able to drive it home (about 5 miles) but it was very difficult to steer and unsafe to drive.
While driving approx 35 mph my MINIsuddenly felt as if I had several flat tires. I pulled over and checked all my tires. I had no power steering, it was extremely difficult to steer the MINII have driven cars in the past without power steering) it took all my strength to drive the MINIto my destination. I turned off the MINIand called my husband. When I restarted the MINII had power steering. It concerns me that the power steering when out while driving without any warning.
I was unable to get my vehicle smogged. The obd was not communicating with smog machine. Took it to dealer and found the power steering electrical was causing a short circuit in the system.
Hydraulic power steering assist system failed while on the road 3 times causing a crash hazard. The power steering would return intermittently until it completely stopped working.
BMW installed plastic power steering pump that should have been recalled because the part is faulty and leaks power steering fluid. I had to replace pump with metal power steering pump.
Power steering failed while in traffic jam. Vehicle extremely hard to steer. Fourth incident of this happening. This is the second complaint filed with NHTSA. Owner was contacted by BMW in August 2011 for complaint review, but owner has not heard back from them and cannot get through to telephone number given by BMW.
Occasional power steering failure. At first it occurred mostly at start up for less than a minute. After calling the dealer for info, I added fluid, turned the wheel to lock in both directions and that seemed to help for a couple weeks. The issue has since returned, about 1 occurrence per week. Most recently I had no power steering for the entirety of a ~30 minute drive. I'm concerned that the steering will fail mid-turn, particularly while driving dangerous mountain roads. Does the pump need to be replaced or is this an electrical issue as described in existing complaints?
Power steering pump fail. No check engine light or any warning light. Found out that its not working while driving!!! I couldn't turn my steering wheel it became very stiff. Its very dangerous and very expensive to replace. About $900 for the part only!
My power steering went out today while driving. It was one of the most scary experiences I have ever had. I adore my little car, but today it made me so scared I am not sure I am ok driving her any more. While driving on a local road, I noticed than my steering wheel was very stiff. I started to turn into the left-turn lane and could barely do it, then tried to turn left and almost hit the cars around me because I had to use all of my strength to make the turn. My power steering went without any warning, none. I have never experienced something like this before, I had no idea what was happening. I immediately looked online when I got home to learn more about what happened and how much this repair will cost and was amazed and very disappointed to see so many similar accounts by other 2004 Cooper owners. I feel lucky after reading others stories that it happened to me on a local road close to home. I also just looked in my file and see that my power steering cooling fan was replaced 9 months ago when my car was at the dealership for other repairs. MINIBMW, how can you ignore this incredible issue and danger?
While driving the power steering inexplicably went out without warning making steering and controlling the vehicle difficult. The problem was potentially quite dangerous due to its unexpected nature. If I was not traveling straight at the time of the failure which showed itself as I began my next turn and had begun a turn when the system failed it would have been almost impossible to control the car. Serious and dangerous issue.
Steering became difficult while driving requiring full arm strength to turn wheel. An accident could easily have occurred if other vehicles were in the area where I was turning. Vehicle now requires wide radius to turn. A very dangerous situation. I have a strong upper body but anyone driving 2004/05 minis with this steering problem should take care and have dealership fix and pay for the repair.
The contact owns a 2004 MINICooper S. while driving approximately 40 mph, the steering wheel became difficult to maneuver. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for diagnostics where the mechanic advised that the power steering pump would have to be replaced. There was an open investigation of the failure under NHTSA action number: EA11005 (steering:hydraulic power assist:pump steering:electric power assist system steering:hydraulic power assist system) that could have been related to the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The VIN was not available. The approximate failure mileage was 60,000.
Exiting on an off-ramp from the freeway the power steering pump failed and steering became rock hard and it took considerable strength to keep the car from going straight and running into the guard rail around the turn. Very scary experience and if I had decreased muscle strength the car would have veered straight for the guard rail and at high freeway exit speeds.
While driving on an interstate highway, the power steering completely failed, resulting in a near-loss of control and crash due to the sudden dramatic increase in physical effort required to control the car. The failure was determined to be related to the power steering pump no longer functioning. There was no loss of fluid or breach in the hydraulic system. This is apparently a very common problem among this model of car.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Brooklyn, NY, USA