My wife's '05 3.0i (80K mi.) started making the funky grinding sound when turning (oddly more when turning right than left). Checked this forum and then the reservoir which was all but empty. The shorter 'radiator return hose' was weeping at the connection to the reservoir. It had leaked enough over the years to create a crusty mess on the alternator. Based on what I learned in this thread and the fact that the hose itself seemed to be in great shape, I decided to just change out the hose clamp.

It's tight down there so in addition to the usual intake shroud plastics, I had to remove the boot that comes up from the throttle body and connects to the mass air flow sensor to gain access. I used a narrow (1/8") flat bladed screwdriver to carefully spread the crimped factory hose clamp enough to slide it down the hose where I could use tin snips to sever/remove it. A new clamp (one for hoses up to 7/8" diam. is best) and some cleanup of the hose and crusty alternator and reassembled without incident. I refilled the reservoir to spec, then started the motor and did two full lock turns in each direction per instructions in the Bentley manual and rechecked the level. I'll check it in a day or two to confirm that the leak has stopped, but feel confident that I got it.

We had a cooling system failure (cracked expansion tank, thermostat) and while it was at the dealer they identified a list as long as my arm of things that it needed. Nearly $6K for the list, which included nearly $1K to replace weeping power steering hoses.

I find it offensive that the dealer doesn't seem to have any diagnostic skills and instead chooses to use a shotgun/replace everything approach to repairs that is wasteful and espensive as hell. Not sure how many hoses were included in the $1K estimate, but only one $45 hose was showing signs of leaking and it was the most accessible one to replace. No way the repair estimate should have been that exorbitant. Had it been more reasonable I might have been inclined to let them do the work while they had the car.

Thanks to all who posted here with their experiences. It was truly helpful.

Ron