steering whining noise

hey all

my power steering seems fine only when i turn the wheel sharply i notice its slightly louder. I topped up the p/s fluid, but still a quiet noise like "wind" i hear. And i think the feel of the wheel is a little softer then before too. When my friend( a mechanic) and i first checked the Regal out in March at the dealer he told me the high pressure power steering line is need of replacing soon. Wonder if that soon is now!? But im not that skilled to know what that is. But it never was a problem only until about 2 weeks now. Don't notice any leaks otherwise. And why is the p/s resorvoir so hidden?? U need a funnel and flashlight just to see what ur doing!!! Any ideas would be appreciated. :D

Yes, GM put the pump in a bad area but all of us with the 3800 experience the same thing when trying to check fluid level. Changing the pump out is no fun either. The noise may be due to the cold weather since the level is OK. There are two lines: pressure and return which feed over to the rack and pinion system.

Another thing to consider since it doesn't sound that bad is using an additive in the interim such as Sea Foam. Also check your tire pressure or increase it a little to help decrease turning resistance.

If the whining noise persists I would say it is time for a new pump.