X350 Aluminium body 2,7 Diesel on 56000 miles. This saga started back in January 2015: I noticed a whine with engine speed. Obvious between about 25 to 50 mph. Noise disappears above that speed. I was convinced it was the turbo(s). My Indy had no idea what it was so I have lived with it for above a year. Now, in March 2016, I still have this whine; no worse than it was initially. After a couple of people (and my wife who is deaf) commented on it, I decided, as my Indy was no help, to take it to a main dealership.
I asked the girl on the desk if someone could have a look at my car as it "had a strange whine." A mechanic, without speaking to me took the car for a test drive. When he came back he took it straight into the workshop. 10 minutes later he came to see me and said the problem was the steering pump. They had tracked it down using a kind of stethoscope on various rotating items on the engine and he said the steering pump stood out immediately; possibly the bearings giving up. I explained that this probably wasn't imminent as the noise had been there for some 14 months.
He told me that the cost of replacing the pump would be £740 for labour and parts but suggested that I just keep running it.
Anyone have any thoughts on this? Is there a way of proving the noise is from the pump by running the engine without the steering pump belt fitted, or does it also drive other things?
I shudder to think about shelling out £700+ to change the pump and finding it no different.