Power Steering Failure

[WillM]

Oh well. We've had our mini a little over a week.- 2004/ 51K miles. We've had no problems and had checked everything I could. Yesterday was our 34th wedding anniversary and we were driving out to a winery for music/dancing/food/ and fireworks. All was working fine. I pulled into a gas station to fill up. Filled up the mini. Cranked it up, no steering. It was like driving a tank. Took it back to the house and got into our trusty FORD and made the most of our night....did I just say trusty FORD?   Anyway, since this happened all of a sudden, no warning signs in the 1300 miles we've put on the mini; could this be a fuse or something? I looked in the fuse box but could not find it. Oh, the fluid level is fine. I know that there are a number of threads on other forums about the p/s pump failures and I've read most of them. I was just hoping that this could be something a bit simpler.
thanks for the help,

edit:
I started it up this morning - sat overnight, still no p/s. I checked the fan...it is not turning. But is it supposed to run when everything is cold? I can't seem to make a determination if the pump is running? I would assume it's not if I don't have p/s.Will

[bamamini02]

I found this on NAM, I hope it is just the fuse.

[/size]5 amp fuse# 39 in the interior fuse panel, this powers the control unit in the pump.
The 100 amp, fuse #4 in the engine compartment fuse panel, is for the main KL30 power to the pump.

[WillM]

From what I've found, the main fuse i located on the bottom of the engine compartment fuse box.  I'm trying to figure out how to get to it.  I've loosed up the fuse box so that I can access the bottom, but looks like I have more to go.  What a bummer!

[WillM]

Here's what I've done so far.  I've checked every fuse, includingthe 100amp fuse under the engine compartment fuse panel.  All are good.  Looks like the pump is bad.

[Panda]

Yikes!  That's no way to begin your MINI motoring!    Are you going to replace it yourself or did you have a shop in mind?  There are a couple of shops here in Montgomery that work on MINIs, but I've had no experience at either.

Panda

[WillM]

 
I found the problem while beginning the process of removing the pump.  I removed the fan, removed the back bolts, moved to the connectors and found that the main power connector on top of the pump was loose.  Looks like the pump and fan had been replaced because the harness clip was not reseated and the main plug was not secure.  It had vibrated loose, so I lost the steering. I got it back now....I'm so happy!
YEAHHHHHHHHH!!!

[Panda]

Good Work!

Panda

[WillM]

Thanks Panda,
On the upside, I feel pretty confident that both the pump and fan had been recently replaced.  So I shouldn't have to deal with the issue for a while

[bamamini02]

   Great News!!!

[Panda]

Hey Will,

We're driving up to Lake Jordan tonight to watch the fireworks.  I think the set-up will be near the dam, but we're going over to the public boat ramp parking near Camp Chandler.  Would love to meet you and your wife and MINI there.

Panda

[WillM]

Sorry we couldn't make it.  by the time I saw the post, my wife was horizontal on the couch!  I think we're going to try to make the monday night gathering next week.  We would definitely like to get together.  Thanks for the offer.
Will

[Panda]

Will,

As it turned out, we didn't get there either.  We made it as far as the Tallapoosa River on 231, and saw traffic parked in both lanes for as far as we could see.  I don't know if there was an accident or if that many other folks had the same idea, but either way, we made a U-turn and watched fireworks on TV.  Oh well. 

Looking forward to seeing you on the 12th,

Panda