grumbly whine in 1st & turning

[Captain_Birdseye]

... when cold. Seems to be related to power steering but could be gear/box problem? What should I check? Many Thanks.

[ChrisHC]

My power steering groans horribly when I first use the car after a period, no idea why and it soon wears off.

[Yeti]

disconnect the fan belt to stop the pump turning to see if the noise stops if not its something else . if so I would look at a fluid change.

[Brianmoooore]

disconnect the fan belt to stop the pump turning to see if the noise stops

Probably a better idea to remove the steering pump belt!
Fan belt off to check for alternator and water pump noise.

[Contours]

Sounds like a loose power steering belt. The steering shudders/grumbles initially after start up until the pump builds up pressure and is then ok while driving. This behaviour repeats until the belt is sufficiently tightened. Have a look anyway.

[Captain_Birdseye]

Thanks chaps. By the by the steering always makes a high whine on full lock.

[Brianmoooore]

By the by the steering always makes a high whine on full lock.

This is normal - the pressure in the system increase dramatically at full lock, which is why you should never maintain full lock for more than a few seconds.

[Captain_Birdseye]

Thanks chaps, everything looked fine so I had a fluid change done and as you can guess it fixed the problem.