2003 Mini Cooper Steering Problems

Which parts fail

• Hydraulic power assist › Pump
  12
• Hydraulic power assist system
  5
• Electric power assist system
  3
• Column
  1
• Rack and pinion › Rack
  1

Components named in complaints (power steering, steering column, rack and pinion).

Mileage when the problem started

• Under 25k
  21%
• 25k–50k
  1611%
• 50k–75k
  4228%
• 75k–100k
  4027%
• 100k–150k
  4228%
• 150k+
  75%

Owner reports

Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2003 Mini Cooper owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).

The contact owns a 2003 Mini Cooper. The contact stated that while operating the vehicle, the steering wheel was difficult to turn in either direction. The contact stated that the steering wheel malfunctioned, making the steering wheel easy to turn, causing severe oversteer while making a turn in either direction. The contact stated that the failure was due to a faulty power steering pump, and installed as part of the NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V660000 (STEERING). The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that after turning off the vehicle, the power steering pump remained running, causing the battery to drain. The cause of the failure was not yet determined, and the vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer and local dealer were notified of the failure but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 230,000.

The contact owns a 2003 Mini Cooper. The contact stated that while driving approximately 35 mph and making a right turn, the power steering malfunctioned and the steering wheel suddenly became difficult to turn in either direction. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who diagnosed that the power steering pump and fan needed to be replaced and the intake and return power steering lines also were faulty and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The contact was informed that the vehicle was not included in the NHTSA campaign number: 15V660000 (Steering). The contact indicated that the vehicle had experienced the same failure listed in the recall. The failure mileage was approximately 134,000.

My 2003 Mini Cooper was affected by the 2015 electrohydraulic steering assistance recall. Mini did the repair at 79, 322 miles in 2016. In November 2021, at 98, 000 miles, the car began having intermittent power steering loss. The power steering might disappear for under a minute, or it might return for mere seconds. There is no warning when the power steering goes out, so you have to assume that it is not going to respond with the electrohydraulic steering assistance feature operating. As of today, it has been completely offline for 3 days (although it did come back on for about 5 seconds yesterday). Without this feature operating properly, the car can be extremely difficult to steer.

The contact owns a 2003 Mini Cooper. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V660000 (Steering); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel was firm, and the vehicle was difficult to maneuver. No warning lights were illuminated. The dealer was made aware of the failure but failed to confirm if the parts were available for the repair. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to call the service center directly. The failure mileage was unavailable. Parts distribution disconnect.

No air or blower or heat to defog windshield. Water in driver-side foot well. Power steering intermittent fault. Engine continues running and panel gauge lights remain on with ignition off and key removed.

Lost power steering with burning smell and lots of smoke. As evidenced on the attached document, the engine wiring harness was burnt. The car could have lost all power. The repair bill was $4097.91. I was without a car for weeks with no loaner car offered. National Mini Cooper denied that this was an issue. There is now a pending recall. The new parts might also need to be replaced. I was driving on the highway when this occurred.

My car was brought into the dealership for an oil change and rear brake repair on Tuesday (June 26, 2007). Wednesday evening (June 27, 2007) the car was driven 15 minutes, parked for almost an hour, then driven a mere 30 seconds to change to a different parking spot. Walked away for a minute and noticed smoke coming from the front of the car. Upon opening the bonnet, there was flames coming from the underside of the engine. The first attempt at using a fire extinguisher temporarily put out the fire, then it re-ignited which the fire department was then called to put it out safely. The car was brought the next morning (June 28, 2007) to the dealership and was not looked at until the next day (June 29, 2009). The diagnosis was the steering pump failed, upon which it overheats causing the fire. …

On sep 5, 2010 around 2:40 pm, I parked my 2003 Mini Cooper in front of the lowe's store in san bruno, ca and went inside for shopping with my wife. After 20 minutes later we heard a store employee called 911 for the smoke/fire came out from my car. I went out the store immediately and saw the firefighters were about to put out the smoke. The firefighters opened the hood and heard the noise under the car. Next, they disconnected the car battery and the noise was gone. The Mini Cooper was towed to the auto repair shop for the diagnostics. Here is the diagnostics result: "inspected vehicle and found the power steering inoperative. Inspected power steering pump and wiring. Found wiring melted and the power steering pump failed. Found over current damage due to power steering pump failure causing battery light to illuminate. …

On the date of incident I parked my car in a wells fargo bank parking lot after going to the gym. Upon returning to my car an individual who had parked next to me informed me that "your car is smoking" I looked and white smoke was coming from under the hood. I opened the hood to inspect it and saw white smoke which smelled electrical. The individual who noticed smoke came out of her SUV to help. She and I looked and she informed me that she saw a small flame coming from under the engine. I saw it and extinguished it with a bottle of water I had. I then heard an electrical spinning/humming as if something was still electrically charged. The smoke then began to intensify and got so out of control I was tempted to call 911 but then I thought to disconnect any power to the car by disconnecting the battery. …

I parked my car in a parking garage after driving approximately 20 miles. I walked to a dentist down the street for an appointment. While at the dentist I get a call that went to my voicemail that my car (while parked with the engine off) was on fire and was filling the parking garage with smoke. Upon receiving the message I rushed home to find that the fire was already out, but the smell of smoke was still very strong. I noticed that the inside indicating lights of the car were on as if the key was in the ignition of the car. I immediately disconnected the battery and inspected the car to find the source of the fire. Upon inspection I found that the flames had come from behind and slightly below the motor. …

Related recalls

NHTSA investigations

Steering complaints in other Cooper years