10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 10 / 7
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 2 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 75,582 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.
« Read the previous 20 complaints
The contact owns a 2004 MINICooper S. while driving approximately 40 mph, the steering wheel became very stiff and difficult to turn. The contact also stated that the steering wheel was stuck in a partially turned position but the vehicle continued to drive straight forward. The vehicle was towed to the contacts place of residence and was neither diagnosed nor repaired for the failure. The failure and current mileages were 105,683.
- Philadelphia, PA, USA
2004 MINICooper 110K miles lost power steering wheel control, very dangerous.
- Dover, NJ, USA
Power steering assist in my 2004 min Cooper failed while driving on highway.
- Neew Hyde Park, NY, USA
I was driving on the freeway and my power steering suddenly went out-hard to steer car. I own a 2004 MINICooper.
- San Francisco, CA, USA
@ approximately 85K miles power steering failure intermittently became an issue on 2004 MINICooper S. @ 95K miles power steering became complete failure.
- Aloha, OR, USA
The power steering unit in my 2004 MINICooper has been acting strange for several months. It would sporadically cut off making the car difficult to steer. This has happened several times while the car was in motion. Luckily, all of the incidents happened when the car was moving slow. Now the car has no power steering at all. It completely failed today. Our MINICooper only has 43,000 miles on it. Imagine if I was driving over 30 miles and hour and the power steering cut off! I feel like the car is very dangerous to drive. I am very nervous about parking the car since the power steering is intermittent, I hope that it doesn't cut out when I turn into a parking space, which would increase the chance of hitting a parked car. I have contacted the dealership and got a quote for $1200 in parts alone. Adding the labor will bring the grand total to $1400.
- Virginia Beach, VA, USA
Power steering got tighter and tighter making it really hard to turn in small corners (which are everywhere in big cities). It turns out the be a well-known issue which is power steering fluid leak. It almost got me into accidents/property damage due to tight steering.
- Jersey City, NJ, USA
2004 MINICooper power steering randomly stops working making the vehicle extremely hard to steer. Emergency maneuvers would be impossible. Must shut the vehicle off and restart to get steering back, which is not easy to do in many situations. Will work most of the time but fail once per day or so. My mechanic has ordered a new power steering pump and fan from BMW which he says is the fix for this well documented problem. If a light person was driving the car when this happens I seriously doubt they could keep the car on the road due to the arm strength required to continue steering the car. Problem could happen at any speed.
- Richmond, VT, USA
My car keeps having intermittent power steering failure. There have been no events leading up to the failure, it has been quite spontaneous, always while I am driving. I have had more than 10 instances, some extremely dangerous as I am in the middle of making a turn when the failure occurs. Nothing has been done to correct the failure as of yet; I am planning to take my car to the dealership once I have the money to do so.
- Louisville, KY, USA
Power steering pump failed to work, it worked off and on for a short period. I am in the process of replacing it.
- Arvada, CO, USA
I own a 2004 MINICooper S and lost the power steering while driving on the highway. There were no leaks detected but the ps canister was empty. The MINIwas purchased new from crown MINIin richmond, va. We are the only owners of the MINIMy wife is afraid to drive the MINInow and we wanted to report the problem as soon as possible. I have received no help from MINIafter sending them an email and calling them.
- Staunton, VA, USA
The contact owns a 2004 MINICooper S. the contact stated that while driving approximately 40 mph, he suddenly had a loss of power steering with out any warning. The steering became very difficult to maneuver after the failure. He was able to continue driving after restarting the vehicle. The vehicle was not inspected by a dealer and it was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and advised him that there was a tsb but no related recalls. The failure and current mileages were approximately 109,000. Updated 04/15/11
- San Carlos, CA, USA
Failed component 1: lower control arm bushings diagnosed at dealership as bad and oil leak is due to faulty O ring. Failed component 2: power steering total failure. Dealer stated this was due to poor design of steering pump fan (poor placement of the fan). Dealer stated there was a possible recall regarding power steering failure due to this poor design possibly pending. Work to repair these failed components has not been completed pending a dealer recall. The car is not drivable.
- Sioux Falls, SD, USA
After starting the MINIwhich is parked in a parking garage, I noticed the steering wheel was very difficult to turn, as if the power steering wasn't working. This had happened once before, but that time the problem went away after a few minutes. It was approximately 70 outside, and the power steering fluid was full. I drove the car to do errands, approx 10 miles round trip, and the problem persisted even after turning off the car and letting it sit for a few minutes while I went to the store. The steering functioned when I used a lot of force to turn the wheel, but I was worried about safety if I had to swerve or turn the wheel quickly for any reason; I would be unable to do so.
- Raleigh, NC, USA
While driving my 2004 MINICooper S, the power steering failed while making a turn at low speed. Without the power steering, it is hard to steer during low speed. After turning off engine and restarting, the power steering came back. But the power steering pump seems to be on all the time with a humming noise even after the engine is turned off. Which leading to the draining of the battery. The battery gave out after a couple jump starts. As of 2/15/2011, I have disconnected the power to the power steering pump and fan. Because I cannot afford of the high cost of replacing the power steering pump and cooling fan. I have not replace them yet. I still have these parts.
- San Francisco, CA, USA
Power steering in 2004 MINICooper almost completely locks up with no warning whatsoever. No warning lights or other visual indicators depict the status of the power steering fluid or overall steering system. Ability to steer car changes instantaneously from full "normal" control to nearly impossible to parallel park (at extremely slow speed) or make a basic 90 degree turn (at any relevant speed). Makes the car dangerous and stressful to drive.
- Orange, CA, USA
Complete failure of steering column, it locks up during driving, can barely turn the wheel. This happens randomly during driving, even on a straight road not making any turns. Have to force car over onto shoulder and restart the car. Nothing bad has happened yet, but very dangerous when driving with kids in the car. All fluid levels check out, no warning lights about steering failure.
- Tigard, OR, USA
The contact owns a 2004 MINICooper. The contact stated that power steering failed intermittently. The failure occurred without any warning. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic who stated that they could not find the cause of the problem. The vehicle was still being inspected. The current and failure mileages were 130,000.
- Friendswood, TX, USA
Purchased a used 2004 MINICooper from a dealership. 7 weeks after purchase the steering became increasingly difficult at times in the last 24 hours. Taking it on Monday but the "steering" isn't covered under their 9 month, 9000 mile warranty. Taking it in to the dealership on Monday for their service dept to take a look at it. Hoping it's covered but I doubt it.
- Shelton, WA, USA
- Tucson, AZ, USA