Steering Noise problems of the 2003 Mini Cooper S

Power steering issue which Mini USA reached an agreement with ntsb to avoid a recall by providing an "extended warranty. " spoke with Mini service department and informed them my steering pump was making noise and had gone out intermittently twice. They informed me that due to the fact this was not an official "recall" but rather an extended warranty, the steering unit would have to catastrophically fail before they were permitted to replace it. What kind of a safety board is the ntsb that would allow such an agreement to be reached wherein someone has to be put at risk to drive a vehicle to catastrophic failure of a steering unit, potentially resulting in accident, bodily injury or even death, before they would compel the automaker to repair the vehicle to make it safe? this is absolutely ridiculous!!! I am supposed to continue driving a vehicle with a known problem in the steering, putting myself, family and others on the road at risk awaiting "catastrophic failure" . . . . . . . Not knowing when, where or under what circumstances that is going to occur? Mini USA & BMW you will never get another penny from me and I encourage everyone to actively boycott their products & dealerships!.

Turning from a left hand turn lane on to a side street as I have done at least 4 times a day for over 10 years, I lost all power and the ability to control the vehicle. In the middle of the turn the loss of power, the loss of steering, and the loss of brakes caused me to run into the curb. This accident resulted in the right front wheel and assembly being replaced. Not long after getting my Mini Cooper S the hesitation of the accelerator when stating off in first gear began. I was told by the service rep at the Mini dealership that there was no fix for this problem. I've had too many near accidents because of it. Going back as far as 2005 I have complained about my steering and the noise it makes. The whole steering unit has been replaced 2 times, yet in 2009 I experienced a total loss of power while traveling at speeds of 65 mph. The power loss was electrical even though my engine was still running. The final outcome was Mini replaced the alternator and battery. I've complained time and again yet with no help unless it's coming out of my own pocket. Since owning this Mini Cooper S I've spent nearly 6000. 00 in repairs. Because of the interdependent nature of the asc/dsc on the vehicles braking, electronics, and even starting acceleration from a stop; has this feature been properly studied as the culprit for the many and varied problems this particular car has? in the uk there is a blog called watchdog that has 180 people who posted between February and April 2009 that all had the same problem with the power steering that I and hundreds of others have reported. How can such a serious problem go unresolved for so long. There is no doubt that this problem alone falls under the united states code for motor vehicle safety (title 49, chapter 301).