Three problems related to steering have been reported for the 2007 Mini Cooper S. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
I was driving roughly 30 miles and hour when the power steering went out on me in a turn. Almost hit oncoming traffic prior to stopping in the middle of the road. I drove it to a nearby parking lot where it sat for two weeks before a local mechanic could look at it. I was quoted at over $1,500 to fix the part because the whole electronic power steering control box has to be replaced due to the way it was manufactured.
I was driving on a windy road when with no warning my power steering went out and forced me into on coming traffic. Luckily I was able to regain control and move to the shoulder. When I turned off the car and restarted it, the power steering was working, but stopped again at my home. The ignition key was extremely hot to the touch when I removed it.
Mini cooper electronic steering lock system critical malfunction - car with only 57,000 miles receives critical message on navigation screen telliing driver "to drive to a safe location and turn off ignition and be aware that car is unlikely to be able to be restarted. " driver is left to cope with this critical situation and repair even though Mini cooper has acknowledged the existence of this critical problem by discontinuing the installation of the electronic steering lock on its later models as they could not correct problem. Mini refuses to recall earlier models and will not reimburse owner for costly repair once critical malfunction occurs. Web reports have alerted drivers that steering wheel has locked while car is being driven making earliler models unsafe to drive but Mini has displayed a complete lack of concern for safety of its customers.