I have a 1998 Dodge 3500 SLT Laramie Diesel supercab Dually.
   I bought the truck new and it really has been a good truck so far. I has
only 90 thousand Kilometers. (Canada here)

 In 2000 I took the truck to the Dodge dealership as I had  a whine in the
power steering pump that would be very loud when I started the truck on cold
mornings  (-10-20 Degrees Celcius). The power steering pump would whine when
the truck sat idling until after about 2-3 minutes or so. It sounded like
the pump was being "bottomed out " or the pump was low on oil. The Dodge
dealership said that these trucks come from the south with heavier oil and
we should be using a lighter oil up here in Canada to deal with colder
temps....so they drained the steering pump and put in a lighter synthetic
oil for the cooler temperatures. I thought the problem was fixed as the
sound went away for about 5 years... Now I get a whine when I turn too
sharply and can feel it in the steering wheel without "bottoming out". It's
not even cold outside yet....It goes away when I am driving straight and
making slow turns...but when I turn sharp it really does whine... Oil levels
are good.

   My question is this:....is this power steering pump on it's way out?...
If it is I have time to replace it myself....any tests that a guy can do
with this pump? winter is fast approaching us and I don't want to get caught
out in the cold....Thanks for any constructive replies... Jim