My whining Volvo

My 2000 V70XC is whining so loud I can’t hear my wife! It whines when I turn the wheel, so we thought it was the belt to the power assist, which we changed. But that did not solve the problem. We would change the power assist or the rack, but those are expensive and we don’t want to just guess. And the odd part is it doesn’t do it when its cold, only when its really warmed up (after about 30 minutes of driving). It makes the noise only when the wheel is turned, and the steering feels a little sluggish but not hard. Help!

From your discription, it does sound like the power steering pump. You can d something to check it yourself.

Warm up the car and with a long screwdriver stick against the pump, the handle against your ear. Have the wife turn the wheel and listen if the whining comes from the pump.