Detroit, MI — November 05, 2015 — Mini Cooper and Cooper S vehicles with model years between 2002 and 2005 could be at risk of a failure that cuts off power steering, shocking drivers suddenly and perhaps prompting an accident.
The case goes back five years and has generated nearly 340 complaints, as drivers reported both accidents and even fires breaking out within the cars themselves. Dealers will make repairs to the power steering to fix the issue once the remedy effort begins in December, and the entire action will concern 86,018 autos, according to Automotive News.
This recall comes after negotiations between the manufacturer and the government, with the latter insisting on a recall based on previous evidence of damage. While the defect doesn’t disable steering completely, it could cause drivers to lose their control as they are operating their vehicle. The systems in these cars are currently protected by a 13-year warranty, which means those of the older vehicles would end this year.
Another Mini Cooper recall was also issued in October, concerning problems with air bag deployment in the passenger side. Consumer Affairs’ James Limbach described this action.
“Due to a manufacturing error, the front passenger air bag may not deploy properly in a low speed crash,” Limbach noted. “Thus, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 208, ‘Occupant Crash Protection.’ ” The remedy for this problem won’t begin until November 20, and will see dealers replacing the defective module, which is potentially in both four and two-door vehicles. This recall includes 6,073 cars.
