2006 MINI Cooper steering problems

“Electronic power steering pump issue/failure. The steering wheel was so stiff when I tried to go right that I physically could not turn the wheel. This is extremely dangerous & it happens without warning. No lights come on. You are left in a moving vehicle, without much of a way to control the direction you need it to travel in. From what I have learned, it seems an extended warranty was initially offered, & then a forced recall was issued on the, 1st Gen, 2002-2005 Mini Coopers. Only part of the vehicles with these issues were included in the recall. I have the same size 1.6 engine, & the exact same electronic power steering pump that comes with the issues & failures that I have in my 06. I have seen it on vehicles up to 08. This is absolutely unacceptable. This is a documented manufacturing defect & design flaw that has been continually allowed to endanger people’s lives. I am unsure how BMW managed to only recall part of the vehicles with these electronic power steering pump issues. I contacted BMW who told me there were no extended warranties or recalls on my vehicle.”

“Power steering pump grinding. This was a recall on the 2002-2005 model but not the 2006. The same issue is happening with this car that happened with the recall vehicles and I would expect bmw to fix this problem. Thanks”

“The contact owns a 2006 Mini Cooper. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the steering wheel was significantly difficult to turn. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 139,000.”

“Power steering pump went out while driving the car. Car was extremely hard to steer. Almost hit a guard rail. Had the car towed home and then to a garage. This is a known problem with Mini Coopers from year 2002 to 2006. Websites and Mini Cooper Forums are loaded with Power Steering Pumps failing. No warning. Pump was confirmed to be the problem by an independent garage that only services high end german cars. Power Steering Pump was diagnosed to be bad on 8/04/2022. Car has a little over 60,000 miles on it.”

“The electro-hydraulic power steering system stopped working on my 2005 Mini Cooper. The was a recall for 2002 to 2005 mini power steering pump failures but the problem continued thru 2011 because the fix that mini Cooper came up with was inadequate. The essentially put a band-aid on the problem and left car owners holding the bag. I, in fact, had the auxiliary pump that mini came up with replaced and the power steering problem continued because their fix was no good. I have an appointment with the Mini Cooper dealership to look at my car in about 2 weeks. They've told me that I'm not covered by the recall even though they ordered a recall of 86,000 cars for the problem in 2015. Not having power steering in any vehicle is very dangerous. The problem first occurred and remains after 2 years. The problem was reproduced by an independent repair service that I have used for years.”

“I DROVE THE CAR EARLIER AND IT WAS FINE. I RETURNED HOME AND THEN HOURS LATER TRIED TO PULL OUT OF MY DRIVEWAY TO FIND I COULDN'T TURN THE STEERING WHEEL. THANK GOODNESS I WASN'T DRIVING WHEN IT WENT OR I WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN ABLE TO TURN THE WHEEL. APPARENTLY AFTER READING ONLINE QUITE A BIT THIS IS A PROBLEM AND THERE IS NO RECALL OR EVEN A CAMPAIGN OR BULLETIN. THIS IS GOING TO BE A VERY EXPENSIVE REPAIR. DUE TO THE SAFETY ISSUE ALONE I'M FRANKLY SHOCKED. APPARENTLY BMW DEALERS ARE CLEANING UP DUE TO THE EXPENSE OF THE REPAIR. I'M LOOKING AT A MINIMUM OF $1500. APPORX 60% OF VEHICLES HAVE HAD THIS ISSUE.”