Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| STEERING - COLUMN | |||||
| SI M34-01-07 | 06/01/2008 | 10025843 | Mini: dsc indicator lamp active. r56 (cooper, cooper s) vehicles produced august 31, 2006 to july 22, 2007. the dsc indicator lamp (dynamic stability control) is active and the automatic turn signal reset is inoperative. *pe | 09/09/2008 | |
| STEERING - ELECTRIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM | |||||
| SI M34-01-07 | 06/01/2008 | 10025843 | Mini: dsc indicator lamp active. r56 (cooper, cooper s) vehicles produced august 31, 2006 to july 22, 2007. the dsc indicator lamp (dynamic stability control) is active and the automatic turn signal reset is inoperative. *pe | 09/09/2008 | |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| STEERING | |||
| 01/23/2013 | 55000 | 1 | |
| Power steering went out making vehicle very difficult to control. was told by mini dealer $1500 to replace. *tr | |||
| 01/23/2013 | 55000 | ||
| Power steering went out making vehicle very difficult to control. was told by mini dealer $1500 to replace. | |||
| 01/03/2013 | 117000 | 1 | |
| While driving the vehicle, at any speed, the automatic power train does not shift gears properly. it will shift up, and down, and not engage the proper gear. the vehicle transmission will wind-up, then jump into a gear. at times, the vehicle will not shift out of first gear. *tr | |||
| 01/03/2013 | 117000 | ||
| While driving the vehicle, at any speed, the automatic power train does not shift gears properly. it will shift up, and down, and not engage the proper gear. the vehicle transmission will wind-up, then jump into a gear. at times, the vehicle will not shift out of first gear. | |||
| 09/24/2012 | 85277 | ||
| I was slowing down to make a left hand turn and all of the sudden the power steering went out on it. being a front wheel drive car made it extremely difficult to turn. had someone with less arm strength been in the driver's seat they could have hit oncoming traffic head on and killed someone. | |||
| 06/05/2012 | 38500 | ||
| I purchased this vehicle about a month ago in a private sale. a few weeks ago, the mini developed a strong power steering whine. this is not the electrical buzzing noise typical of these models but a noise heard above the engine at all speeds or in neutral regardless of whether you turn the wheel. several days ago, the steering began to stiffen up especially when parking. yesterday, it failed entirely and this was while driving! now, i'm a 6' 180 lb male and was able to react and wrestle it safely but i'm thankful that my 5' 100lb wife was not behind the wheel. make no mistake this is a safety issue that the manufacturer refuses to address!! just research the problem and you will see hundreds (probably thousands) of complaints across the globe about the same thing and it appears to be primarily 2001-2007 models. other countries have mandated a recall but not the safety conscious u.s. which surprises me greatly. when other major manufacturers have listed recalls for things like seat belt anchors that could crack or air bag switches that could corrode why the heck isn't a mini cooper recall done for power steering systems that are failing? if you value your family's safety, do yourself a favor and steer (no pun intended) clear of this vehicle. i will be dumping this t urd as soon as possible. my family is too important to waste on a fad car. | |||
| 05/14/2012 | 78000 | ||
| Executing a left turn and all of a sudden the power steering went out. was unable to control the car due to the fact that i was not expecting this issue. damage front right side of car against curb. i have learned that this is a serious problem. this issue needs to be addressed on a recall! | |||
| 04/13/2012 | 108000 | ||
| Purchased 2006 mini cooper s brand new at a mini dealer in boston. the vehicle has 108k highway miles. i had serviced the vehicle at the dealer until warranty ran out and transitioned to a national car care chain. i began to notice the vehicle slipping between second and third gear when traveling in stop and go traffic. i brought the car to my regular mechanic and they indicated that i should bring it to a transmission shop. delivered the car to the shop and have been informed that my cvt transmission had failed and would need to be re-manufactured. i was also informed that my power steering pump is leaking and failing. the power steering fan had seized and was likely the cause of the power steering failure. the mini dealership quoted me over 10k for the transmission replacement only did not inquire about power steering and there were no programs for customers in this situation. this cost is more than the car is worth. the transmission shop will do the repairs for 6k. | |||
| 04/17/2012 | 62000 | ||
| Power steering failed completely upon warm engine re-start. the smell of overheating components is in the passenger cabin. | |||
| 04/12/2012 | 65000 | ||
| The power steering went out while my wife was driving home making driving extremely difficult. having only 12 miles to travel she drove home fighting the steering all the way home when she arrived home i open the hood and could smell and see smoke from what i have discovered to be an electrical melt down on the power steering pump. the entire wiring connectors are melted and ash and un usable. we were lucky the car did not catch fire. however there is clear evidence the wires were on fire. | |||
| 04/17/2012 | 62000 | ||
| Power steering failed completely upon warm engine re-start. the smell of overheating components is in the passenger cabin. | |||
| 04/12/2012 | 65000 | ||
| The power steering went out while my wife was driving home making driving extremely difficult. having only 12 miles to travel she drove home fighting the steering all the way home when she arrived home i open the hood and could smell and see smoke from what i have discovered to be an electrical melt down on the power steering pump. the entire wiring connectors are melted and ash and un usable. we were lucky the car did not catch fire. however there is clear evidence the wires were on fire. | |||
| 04/17/2012 | 62000 | ||
| Power steering failed completely upon warm engine re-start. the smell of overheating components is in the passenger cabin. | |||
| 04/12/2012 | 65000 | ||
| The power steering went out while my wife was driving home making driving extremely difficult. having only 12 miles to travel she drove home fighting the steering all the way home when she arrived home i open the hood and could smell and see smoke from what i have discovered to be an electrical melt down on the power steering pump. the entire wiring connectors are melted and ash and un usable. we were lucky the car did not catch fire. however there is clear evidence the wires were on fire. | |||
| 03/02/2012 | 49000 | ||
| Power steering fails when engine is turned on. also occurs while driving. mechanic stated that the power steering pump failed. | |||
| 03/14/2012 | 40600 | ||
| My 2006 r53 only has 40,000 miles and out of nowhere the steering became periodically stiff. after persisting for 2 weeks, it has become incredibly hard to move the wheel and the pump seems to have cut out completely. it is much stiffer then any car with manual steering that i have ever tried, rendering my mini totally undriveable. somehow the cooper s is not included in the recall from transport canada? ( http://wwwapps.tc.gc.ca/saf-sec-sur/7/vrdb-bdrv/search/recalldetail.aspx?lang=eng&rn=2012029 ) | |||
| 03/02/2012 | 49000 | ||
| Power steering fails when engine is turned on. also occurs while driving. mechanic stated that the power steering pump failed. | |||
| 03/14/2012 | 40600 | ||
| My 2006 r53 only has 40,000 miles and out of nowhere the steering became periodically stiff. after persisting for 2 weeks, it has become incredibly hard to move the wheel and the pump seems to have cut out completely. it is much stiffer then any car with manual steering that i have ever tried, rendering my mini totally undriveable. somehow the cooper s is not included in the recall from transport canada? ( http://wwwapps.tc.gc.ca/saf-sec-sur/7/vrdb-bdrv/search/recalldetail.aspx?lang=eng&rn=2012029 ) | |||
| 03/02/2012 | 49000 | ||
| Power steering fails when engine is turned on. also occurs while driving. mechanic stated that the power steering pump failed. | |||
| 03/14/2012 | 40600 | ||
| My 2006 r53 only has 40,000 miles and out of nowhere the steering became periodically stiff. after persisting for 2 weeks, it has become incredibly hard to move the wheel and the pump seems to have cut out completely. it is much stiffer then any car with manual steering that i have ever tried, rendering my mini totally undriveable. somehow the cooper s is not included in the recall from transport canada? ( http://wwwapps.tc.gc.ca/saf-sec-sur/7/vrdb-bdrv/search/recalldetail.aspx?lang=eng&rn=2012029 ) | |||
| 12/13/2011 | 58458 | ||
| My power steering is going in and out. i might have it, and drive another minute its not working. the car only has 58740 miles on it i have had it checked out and the pump seems to be the problem. mini says there is not problem with their steering pumps but when i go on line and check there seems to be a lot of others having the same problem at the same approximate milage mark give or take a few. this is over a thousand dollar fix. is mini going to wait until there are enough accidents before they admit there in problem? i have checked the fluid and the fan all is working and fine. it's just the malfunctioning pump. | |||
| 01/14/2012 | 41822 | ||
| Complete power steering failure occurred while i was driving around a street corner! i was traveling around 15 mph(not very fast) and i was fortunate not to have an accident. there was absolutely no warning and took me by surprise. | |||
| 10/03/2011 | 31500 | ||
| My wife noticed an unusual electrical humming noise that rapidly became progressively louder coming from somewhere in the engine compartment when the car was running. very quickly it became harder and harder to steer until it felt like there was no assisted steering at all. she has not been able to drive it since. recently went to a mini dealership to have it checked out with the result that they said the pump did indeed fail. no recall has been issued as of yet, even though this seems to be a widespread problem. | |||
| 05/21/2011 | 32000 | ||
| A problem developed with the steering wheel of my mini cooper s (2006). the problem started somewhat gradually, over a period of several days to a week, during which the wheel became more and more difficult to turn. my vehicle has never been in an accident or in any sort of incident. it has less than thirty-five thousand miles on it. i took my mini to an authorized mini-cooper repair facility who informed me that the knock (sp?) sensor and steering motor had failed and needed replacement. this was at a cost of approximately $2,000.00 dollars, however it did not resolve the issue. the steering wheel continues to be sluggish and difficult to manuever. it is my belief that whatever is wrong with the steering is a design flaw, as no car with less than thirty-five thousand miles on it should exhibit such a strange and critical failure. | |||
| 05/07/2011 | 37600 | ||
| Sudden complete loss of power steering. several days after the original battery failed and was replaced, there was a continuing sound like a fan or electric motor running constantly. this noise continued until the power steering ceased completely during a parking maneuver. after the steering failed the previously noted noise stopped. | |||
| 05/23/2011 | 68514 | ||
| Exiting the freeway engine lights started flashing and i immediately lost steering. took all my strength to steer it to safety. some smoke coming underneath. local mechanic reported that the cooling fan for the hydraulic power steering had stopped and everything had over heated. multiple wires and components completed melted. local mechanic declined to fix and told us to take it to bmw/mini to fix. they refused to acknowledge defect and we are still trying to get it repaired. | |||
| 05/04/2011 | 36661 | ||
| The power steering failed 2 days ago on my 2006 mini cooper s with only 36,600 miles. it's a known issue & yet bmw/mini refuses to address it. i was very fortunate that it happened in a parking lot & not on my daily highway commute or during my recent vacation. | |||
| 03/12/2011 | 76620 | ||
| On saturday afternoon, 12 march 2011, a loud, high-pitched humming or whining, serious-sounding noise developed while i was driving, the loudness (and/or the pitch) of the noise would change when i turned the steering wheel. i checked the power steering fluid level, which was ok. the night of sunday, 13 march, i left the car at atlantic motorcar services of wiscasset, maine 04578, which specializes in mini and other european vehicles. the following morning i described the problem and asked them to check it out. atlantic found the power steering pump (epas) is defective. they replaced the epas assembly (part # 32 41 6 778 425) at a cost of $1212.49; and bled, flushed and filled the system (ps service kitbg $99). this resolved the problem. | |||
| 01/10/2011 | 64000 | ||
| 2006 mini cooper s: power steering failure intermittent failure of power steering--at first. very frightening experience. very dangerous. now there is no power steering. i've never had such an experience in any automobile. i investigated this experience online and find a number of similar experiences. i'm very troubled by such a flaw in the engineering of this vehicle. | |||
| 07/10/2010 | 40000 | ||
| Power steering fan about to fail, was advised to replace to prevent power steering pump failure. independent mechanic made the assessment and advised the repair. this is known issue in 2004-2006+ minis and am reporting to make sure there are enough data points and consumer reports of the incidence. | |||
| 11/09/2010 | 61245 | ||
| Power steering pump. complete failure while operating vehicle. | |||
| 12/15/2009 | 39900 | ||
| 2006 mini cooper s jcw gp first time in 2008 just noticed fan would come o more often and power steering whined louder. dealer at main line mini replaced. second time in 2010 steering wheel fet like it lost power but regained during occassional turns. dealer claimed it was due to aftermarket parts (camber plates) but then replaced it anyways cause main mechanic drove it and noticed play in steering. | |||
| 08/26/2010 | 50000 | ||
| After pulling into my driveway and going inside the house for a few minutes - we noticed a very chemical/plastic smell. we quickly found it was coming from outside, only to find our 2006 mini s spewing black smoke from under the hood. there was a fire, found to be caused by the power steering cooling fan failing, and causing the power steering pump to overheat and start on fire. i have found numerous blogs and complaint pages on this problem. i haven't the money to repair this problem at this time, and so the car still sits. this seems to be a problem the manufacturer is responsible for, even after warranty. preventably replacing the parts is also a ridiculous thing to expect vehicle owners to do. | |||
| 12/15/2009 | 39900 | ||
| 2006 mini cooper s jcw gp first time in 2008 just noticed fan would come o more often and power steering whined louder. dealer at main line mini replaced. second time in 2010 steering wheel fet like it lost power but regained during occassional turns. dealer claimed it was due to aftermarket parts (camber plates) but then replaced it anyways cause main mechanic drove it and noticed play in steering. | |||
| 08/26/2010 | 50000 | ||
| After pulling into my driveway and going inside the house for a few minutes - we noticed a very chemical/plastic smell. we quickly found it was coming from outside, only to find our 2006 mini s spewing black smoke from under the hood. there was a fire, found to be caused by the power steering cooling fan failing, and causing the power steering pump to overheat and start on fire. i have found numerous blogs and complaint pages on this problem. i haven't the money to repair this problem at this time, and so the car still sits. this seems to be a problem the manufacturer is responsible for, even after warranty. preventably replacing the parts is also a ridiculous thing to expect vehicle owners to do. | |||
| 12/15/2009 | 39900 | ||
| 2006 mini cooper s jcw gp first time in 2008 just noticed fan would come o more often and power steering whined louder. dealer at main line mini replaced. second time in 2010 steering wheel fet like it lost power but regained during occassional turns. dealer claimed it was due to aftermarket parts (camber plates) but then replaced it anyways cause main mechanic drove it and noticed play in steering. | |||
| 08/26/2010 | 50000 | ||
| After pulling into my driveway and going inside the house for a few minutes - we noticed a very chemical/plastic smell. we quickly found it was coming from outside, only to find our 2006 mini s spewing black smoke from under the hood. there was a fire, found to be caused by the power steering cooling fan failing, and causing the power steering pump to overheat and start on fire. i have found numerous blogs and complaint pages on this problem. i haven't the money to repair this problem at this time, and so the car still sits. this seems to be a problem the manufacturer is responsible for, even after warranty. preventably replacing the parts is also a ridiculous thing to expect vehicle owners to do. | |||
| 12/15/2009 | 39900 | ||
| 2006 mini cooper s jcw gp first time in 2008 just noticed fan would come o more often and power steering whined louder. dealer at main line mini replaced. second time in 2010 steering wheel fet like it lost power but regained during occassional turns. dealer claimed it was due to aftermarket parts (camber plates) but then replaced it anyways cause main mechanic drove it and noticed play in steering. | |||
| 08/26/2010 | 50000 | ||
| After pulling into my driveway and going inside the house for a few minutes - we noticed a very chemical/plastic smell. we quickly found it was coming from outside, only to find our 2006 mini s spewing black smoke from under the hood. there was a fire, found to be caused by the power steering cooling fan failing, and causing the power steering pump to overheat and start on fire. i have found numerous blogs and complaint pages on this problem. i haven't the money to repair this problem at this time, and so the car still sits. this seems to be a problem the manufacturer is responsible for, even after warranty. preventably replacing the parts is also a ridiculous thing to expect vehicle owners to do. | |||