[SPClark]

102,600+ miles on my early '03 S.

Original steering pump replaced at 64K miles, 18 months back.

This morning, steering pump quit after an hour's normal commute. Later today I had some errands to run, pump was working again.

Got home (44 mile drive), shut off the ignition, STEERING PUMP STILL RUNNING.

Checked under hood fusebox, pulled every relay & fuse but pump runs on.

Pull cover off inside fusebox, pull every fuse & relay, pump still runs.

Got desperate (I have an appointment at the dealer in the morning - called earlier thinking pump was going bad) so pulled a wrench out & disconnected (-) terminal of battery from ground strap.

Pump stops.

QUESTION: In the morning, if I reconnect the (-) strap to the battery, will my MINI start & run or will the software be wiped by then?

[stevesace]

it will run fine no matter how long its been disconnected. the pump sounds like it has failled again, it may require the pump harness aswell, as the connector can corrode quite badly from water ingress.

[SPClark]

Nice to know there are techs watching here ....

Yes, dealer replaced pump, again & as it was less than two years since it went the first time the new one was free.

Thanks for the tip on the harness as well. As I don't do my own mechanics-work, I can only hope either BMW engineered a rubber boot-protected connection there, or that the dealer wrench's have figured out a bit of silicone sealer at the interface does a world of good keeping the connection alive.

We're in a Midwest U.S. climate and the pols like to heap TONS of salt on the roads when there's even a hint of snow or ice forming, so stuff like this can be worrisome.

[marcelogarcia]

I had the same problem this morning, did exactly the same things (fuses, etc) had to disconect terminal. Was your problem fixed, I´m worried because any tech evan at BMW may asure me that the PS pump is failing, they say it´s is probably the problem but not 100% sure. Could it be something electrical? or the fan? becuase it only fails when weather is hot.

[SalemMINIDriver]

You probably saved your car by disconnecting the battery. My '04 MCS caught fire two weeks ago when the ABS/DSC actuator continued running following a short drive. I would assume that a similar failure of any electrohydraulic component would result in the same outcome. If yours got to a point where white smoke was beginning to appear, then you were VERY close to seeing flames.

[MiniService]

Quote: Originally Posted by SalemMINIDriver

You probably saved your car by disconnecting the battery. My '04 MCS caught fire two weeks ago when the ABS/DSC actuator continued running following a short drive. I would assume that a similar failure of any electrohydraulic component would result in the same outcome. If yours got to a point where white smoke was beginning to appear, then you were VERY close to seeing flames.

Its a common problem, they just run until they kill the battery

[SPClark]

Quote: Originally Posted by marcelogarcia

Was your problem fixed? <snip> Could it be something electrical? or the fan? becuase it only fails when weather is hot.

Yes, it's electrical at root; the pump relay(s) I think are inside the pump housing somehow and end up failing the older they are and the warmer the conditions under which any given MINI is living. In your case I'd say replace the pump as the relay, once it begins to show signs of failure, won't last long.

I've had my '03 S now for 3-1/2 years, racked up over US 106,000 miles - so far - and have had the pump fail twice in the exact same manner. The first time I was still under the 50K warranty limit, the second time it was replaced no charge as the 1st replacement (not a MINI factory part) was warranteed by the dealer for 2 years.