power steering

[steveb330]

should the power steering motor moan quite loud when turning the steering wheel. i realise that you are sat quite close to the engine bay but its groaning quite loud ????

[Tigger, Eeyore & Roo]

Judging by the photo in your profile it seems that you have one of the supercharged Cooper S's. If that's the case, you certainly should get a loud whine from the power steering motor, it's one of the wonderful characteristics of the Mk I new MINI's

It's absolutely nothing to worry about and it can be enjoyed along with the wonderful whine of the supercharger belt when the engine's under load!

Welcome to the site by the way!

Tigger.

[KenL]

Is it only doing it when close to the end-stop?

I haven't notice mine making any noise.

[ZZTOP]

This is very common.....Expect it to fail though. A lot of MCSs power steering's have failed. I hear its due to the position of the power steering cooling fan (underneath and behind the engine). This gets one too many knocks and its goodbye power steering. If you look under the front of the car, its easy to see, it look like a big version of the fans that used to be on the INTEL chips.

Mine comes and goes (MCS 03), its out of warrantee and it costs a bomb to fix, so I try to keep it going without getting the new bits.

Have it checked fixed before warrantee it over..

[Tigger, Eeyore & Roo]

Quote: Originally Posted by KenL (original)

Is it only doing it when close to the end-stop?

I haven't notice mine making any noise.

You won't, your Mk II new MINI (R56) uses a different type of power steering that has lost the characteristic whining noise that all of the petrol powered Mk I's (R50-53) had.

Tigger.

[KenL]

Yes Tigger, I was aware of the difference when I picked up my R56. The R50 (mine was 2002) sounded terrible when you were driving at low speed. R56 is silent.

The original poster complained about a moan, not a whine

[steveb330]

Thanks guys for the replies. Great site

Steve

[bjw408h]

How much is the post-warranty cost to replace a power steering motor? Mine is starting to cut in and out after 44,000 mi and 52 months. Is it $500, >$1000 parts and labor?

(I see elsewhere here on mini2 a quote of $1000. Is that commone experience or a guess?)

Thanks in advance!