Four problems related to battery dead have been reported for the 2005 Mini Cooper. The most recently reported issues are listed below. Please also check out the statistics and reliability analysis of the 2005 Mini Cooper based on all problems reported for the 2005 Cooper.
The contact owns a 2005 Mini Cooper. While driving 60 mph, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. When the vehicle was turned off, the contact noticed that the electric fan kept running. The following day, the vehicle failed to start. The battery was dead. When roadside assistance arrived, the battery was jumpstarted and the fan remained active. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the power steering pump and the power steering fan needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 67,000.
Intermittent power steering failures while car is in motion. One minute power steering functions, next minute, no ps at all. Power steering pump continues to run even when engine is off and key out of ignition. After returning to vehicle, battery is dead as a result of continuously running pump or fan.
In September 2012 I noticed a loud fan noise that wouldn't turn off. The car was also overheating. I noticed that it was very hard to steer the car, but I thought that was due to the overheating. Mechanic determined failed cylinder head gasket in 11/2012. The radiator was replaced and the thermostat was replaced. In 11/2012 the water pump was also replaced. In 12/2012 the battery had to be replaced. In 06/2013 the heater core was replaced. I believe that these issues are directly related to the loss of power steering and the associated fan failing, which caused the car to overheat and the battery to fail. Please see nhsta complaints 10453158, 10444328, 10379750, 10442431,10379459 for similar cases of these same issues related to the failure of power steering and the associated pump.
Intermittently and rarely, when the car first starts, the power steering does not work. It is very difficult to move the steering wheel at all, and there is no apparent effect on the wheels of the car. Each time this has happened, I have immediately turned off the car and restarted. Restarting the ignition has been enough to regain the power steering. After this happened between 5 and 10 times over the past year, I realized it was a pattern and decided to lodge a complaint. I also realized that the louder-than-ordinary steering fan noise might be another symptom of problems with the power steering. In mid-September 2011, the car battery died. The steering fan was very loud. I now wonder if the battery failure was due to the steering fan, although no one at the dealership commented on the very loud fan that was extremely noticeable when they restarted the car.