I bought a 2005 MINIcooper in Sept 09 with 61,450 miles. Several months later the steering "cut out" as I turned a corner. I took it to our mechanic who couldn't find anything wrong & said that it may just be that a speck of dirt that got into the system. It happened a couple more times and I assumed that the "dirt" was working its way out. Then I had a dramatic incident where not only did the steering suddenly and unexpectedly cut out, but there was tremendous "drag" on the system and it took all my might & main to turn the steering wheel. Trying to make a right turn I found myself in the opposite lane. I took the car back to the mechanic who eventually got the car to fail for him. He told me to go to a MINIservice center who could deal with the faulty electronics. I called MINIof America to ask for assistance in making the car "right" but I was told that cars break, that it is beyond the 50,000 warranty and that if the car was unsafe, I should have it fixed. The rep said that "maybe" they would pay for part of the problem after it was diagnosed. I then spoke with a mechanic at a MINIservice center who knew immediately what was wrong. He said this is a common problem with minis before 2007 ----first the problem is intermittent, then the electronics completely fail. Paying for maintenance and repairs for a car that I own is my responsibility but I believe that a car manufacturer is obligated to put out a safe car. If this is a design error, then the company should make it right. When I turn the wheel, I need to trust the electronics to respond -- because my life and the lives of my passengers depends on it. I think that MINIshould be required to insure that the computer that governs steering operates properly. At present I have a car that sits driveway because it is too dangerous to drive. I am making a trip to a city that has a service center in two weeks and I am hoping that MINIcorrects this problem with no expense to me.

- Williamsport, PA, USA

Nothing specific to lead up to failure power steering will intermittently fail, and occasionally be restored nothing has been done to correct the failure.

- Glendale, AZ, USA

Intermittent complete loss of power steering. Now is no longer working. Has caused very serious situations and potential accident.

- Atlanta, GA, USA

The contact owns a 2005 MINICooper. While driving at approximately 20 mph, the power steering failed without warning; the steering wheel became extremely difficult to turn. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealership where the contact was informed that the steering assembly overheated which caused the failure. The vehicle had not been repaired at the time of the complaint. The contact planned to call the manufacturer. The current and failure mileages were approximately 42,000. Updated 11/05/10. Updated 12/7/10

- Cranston , RI, USA

2005 MINICooper S; while driving at highway speed 60 mph going around a bend on the highway complete failure of power steering car was very difficult to maneuver and almost crashed into median.

- Berwyn, IL, USA

I was driving on the highway when I noticed my steering felt "tight". it was difficult to navigate a curve. I tried to pull into a rest area when I realized I had almost no steering ability. I was able to turn the car by using both hands. I almost crashed on the ramp. It was a very scary experience. The problem is still there. I spoke with the dealer. It is my power steering pump. It is a very expensive repair and it seems there are lots of complaints. I am very glad I did not have to do any emergency turns, I would not have been able to steer the car. This could have been a disaster.

- Metuchen, NJ, USA

Owner parked MINIcooper at store went inside. While in store, heard over intercom that her vehicle was on fire. She went outside and saw flames underneath front of vehicle. Fire went out before fire department arrived. Investigation found that electro-hydraulic power steering system wiring had overheated and burned only - nothing else ignited. The damage was consistent with the previous ea analysis EA07-011 pertaining to 2002-2003 MINIcoopers.

- Seekonk, MA, USA

The power steering on my 2005 MINIcopper S foes out intermittently which could potentially cause a terrible accident. I refuse to pay more than 1,000euros (since I serve overseas) to fix a "known" problem that BMW MINIchooses to ignore despite the valid complaints from all over the world....

- Apo, AE, USA

2005 MINICooper convertible with approx 78,000 miles. About a week ago the power steering failed with no warning during commute. Took car to regular local foreign car mechanics. Power steering was working when they examined so could find no problem. Day car was returned power steering failed again on afternoon commute. Consistently has failed once car warms up. Took to MINIyesterday with power steering in full failure mode. Dealer says it is fan which cools power steering pump. While dealer maintains they have rarely seen this problem online search of MINIrelated sites as well as article printed in uk daily mail shows that this is a very common problem with this year car.

- Kingwood, TX, USA

2005 MINIcooper power steering pump failure, while making a turn, without notice my power steering pump failed my vehicle has aprox. 80K miles on it. MINIis remanufactuing the pump with design improvements this tells me they know something is wrong with the original pump, they should be made to repair the original pumps fee of charge not the $800 they want just for the pump. This is not an isolated incident.

- Clayton, NJ, USA

1. steering under normal driving conditions 2. power steering assist motor cuts in and out, making control difficult and unpredictable: Steering gets heavy so additional force is applied but then the power assist 'reactivates' causing dramatic oversteer. First occurred at approximately 60000 miles, turned car on/off steering was fine. Re-occurred at approximately 100000 miles and has become more frequent. 3. mechanic has suggested replacing assist motor.

- Pasadena, MD, USA

Sudden and unexpected failing of power steering function while routinely driving the car. Car is very hard to steer as a result. Ten + incidents of this. Dealer and manufacturer are aware of defective power steering pump. Pump was replaced at a cost of about $900. No more problems since.

- Portland, OR, USA

2005 MINICooper S. approximately 63,000 miles. October 22, 2009. I had just gotten home from work and parked in the garage. Going in the house I smelled something burning. After a couple minutes of investigating in the house, I decided to go back into the garage, and find that it is a little smokey. I open the garage door and back the MINIout onto the driveway. Now there is smoke streaming from under the hood. I can hear spinning/clicking noises coming from the engine compartment. I open the hood and see flames coming out of the back of the engine, below the exhaust manifold. I emptied 3 fire extinguishers into the engine bay and it was still burning. Called 911. By the time the fire department came, the fire had burned itself out. I was extremely fortunate that I went back into the garage within minutes to investigate, otherwise it could've been a huge car fire and potentially fire damage to the garage and house as well.

- Fremont, CA, USA

On Monday morning, October 12, 2009, I was driving to work on the freeway (280 South, daly city, ca). I was driving my 2005 MINICooper. I was in the fast lane on a slight curve in the road, and suddenly my steering wheel completely locked up. I had to immediately apply the brakes to keep from veering into the left barrier, and use all my strength regain control of the vehicle and adjust to speed and steering control to get safely off of the freeway. This was an extremely dangerous and frightening situation that could have very easily ended in a serious accident. Especially since I was traveling at high speed (65 mph) in the fast lane of a busy metropolitan city with cars also traveling at high speed all around me. I've done some research and have found that power steering failure is a documented issue with the make and model of my car, and that in addition to multiple complaints, your organization, NHTSA, has opened an investigation into such claims (NHTSA action #'s from public record: PE07022 and EA07011). My friend, who is also a MINIowner, had this very same failure happen to him, and recommended that I file a formal complaint with you (as he did). I understand BMW attempted to address this issue in the 2002/2003 production models, but this issue continues to occur in subsequent production years: Mine (2005) and this person (2004): bit.ly/3hlz5A. the power steering mechanism needs to be recalled. Me, my passenger, my dog, and anyone else driving near me could have been seriously injured if not killed had I not been able to maneuver my disabled vehicle to safety by brute force. Please help me and any others who might come across this problem avoid a possible catastrophe. It will not help much to replace this part with another faulty part that will also fail in the future. A recall must be issued. Please let me know what course of action I can take now to get my car running in a safe, mechanically sound condition. Thank you.

- San Francisco, CA, USA

2005 MINIcooper S convertible. Just over 50,000 miles. Today, whilst driving to lunch, my power steering failed. There was no warning, it just quit, mid-drive. The car is now very difficult to steer. This could have easily caused an accident. Looking online, I see that this is a common failure, yet there have been no recalls. www.mini2.com/forum/first-generation-faults-fixes/49527-important-have-you-had-power-steering-pump-failure-please-vote-yes-no.html.

- Lexington, KY, USA

Wife was driving her 2005 MINICooper and said that several minutes after starting her drive, the power steering began acting erratically. The power steering assist would go cease when she was turning a corner, forcing her to muscle the car in unassisted steering mode. Then, the power steering would kick in, resulting in oversteer in the middle of the turn, requiring quick correction. I was unable to replicate the problem when she returned home that day. However, the next day, the power steering was no longer functioning at all. Concerned about driving the vehicle in that condition, we took it to be repaired. Since the car was no longer in warranty (only 32,500 miles, but >4 years old) we did not take it to the dealer for service. Our repair shop diagnosed the problem as a failure of the power steering pump fan, which in turn led to a failure of the power steering pump. He said the layout of these items was poorly designed, increasing the chance of failure and that he thought MINIhad modified the layout in subsequent years. Total cost for the repair was $1,650.

- Eagan, MN, USA

Power steering pump fan seized. Per dealership and independent mechanic, most common MINIrepair. Problem is that seized fan motor continues to draw power which drains battery. Had to have car jumped by aaa to get it started to bring in for repair. Now all the dashboard electrical functions are malfunctioning: No speedometer/tach/gas gage read out. In excess of $2K to fix plus already paid $400 for new power steering fan and battery, hoping that was all that was needed.

- Minnetonka, MN, USA

Intermittent (twice within 40 minutes) power steering failure. First occurrence while turning a corner, continued until I pulled in to make a call to the dealership. Once I restarted the vehicle to take it back to the dealership, the power steering was apparently working normally again. While telephoning the dealership that it was working again, the power steering went out again and remained nonfunctional until parking the car. An hour later, back in the car to take it to the dealership, power steering again appeared to be functioning normally until arrival at the dealership, where they can not duplicate the system failure, where it remains to date.

- Kansas City, MO, USA

Driving home the power steering locked up. Got the car parked. Next morning the car was dead. Nothing worked. Towed car to repair shop. Mechanic called and said car must go to the dealer. Had car towed to dealer. 1st estimate from dealer was $2350 for a new power steering pump, power steering harness and a new battery. Car remained at the dealer until today 6/19/09. Total for the work performed was $1058.39 which included a $99.95 grease oil and filter.

- Winthrop, MA, USA

Regular driving at around 6pm at about 40mph around a bend, complete power steering failure, the car became very heavy to steer, with no prior warning, and no warning lights. Almost caused an accident as the car failed to steer. Nothing has been done, the warranty has been over for 3 months and MINIare saying a goodwill repair might be available, but will not do a free diagnostic, help us get to a dealership or promise anything beforehand. A new power steering pump is likely needed, as per the evidence of the european recall, and other MINIdriver testimony.

- Huntington Beach, CA, USA