FYI

For all of those experiencing "whinning" problems with their power steering on Town & Country Vans (particular application is a 2003 3.8L model).

Before doing anything expensive try this replacing the power steering pump fluid resevoir. It was about $25 at the dealer and half an hour of work.

The "whinning" issue is probably caused by the screen in the reservoir being plugged up. The dealership told me their was not a filter in there. Techinically they were correct, the screen/filter is built into the reservoir and cannot be removed. I verified the screen location by cutting the top off my old reservoir. The screen was at least 75% plugged and cannot be completely cleaned even with a flush. This prevents the power steering pump from getting enough fluid on the intake side of the pump and causing the whinning. Replaced the reservoir 2 years ago and have not had any noise issues since.

I know that pumps, rack and pinions, and other items have been replaced. Those items still could be your issue, but they are a lot more expensive to replace than replacing the reservoir first.

John

yup very common problem