whine when cold... gearbox?

[bmw9818]

ive had a whine when cold, it wasnt as bad when i first drove it after the build, but now its a bit more pronounced,

its only when its cold though..... after it warms up it stops whining

but ive left my car for two days and discovered a small puddle under my gearbox...

my garage is full of shit and its too cold to work outside, i did a fresh refill of gbox oil a few months ago, and judging by the puddle its not leaking too much, if the oil drops to about a litre could that damage it ?!

im not 100% if the whine is the gbox as my pas reservoir also has a strawberry milkshake like apperance, even though the pas lines, reservoir etc and rack were disconnected and drained, then refilled only a few months back...

[Brianmoooore]

If the oil is the PAS reservoir is frothy, you are drawing air into the system, which will tend to make the pump whine.
If air can leak into the PAS system, then oil can leak out, so chances are that's what's on your floor.