Steering Squeal, Read On!!
 

Had this ugly sound while turning for sometime. Flushed the PS fluid and replaced the filter, but problem persisted. Suspected the 'donut' bushing at steering column and planned to have it replaced.

However, it turned out to the be lower balljoint. Don't ask how I found out!
Worth looking at to avoid embarrassment and greater financial loss.

Uh oh, the ball joint seperated? Hope it didn't do that while you were driving any faster than 10 mph.

Thank God I was not! It was scary but am glad I was driving and not my wife. After wasting half a day and $300 plus later, I was back on the road.

It however left a small dent in my fender where the tire landed. As I look back, it could have been a major accident.

Have heard of this as a major possible failure on E/C models. How do you tell if they are near to possible failure? Any signs?

Like I said, it is the steering noise. Also, any clunk sound in the suspension should be taken seriously.

Jack up the car and put a giant pair of gooseneck plyers on the ball joint. If it moves, it needs replacement. If the boot is torn, it needs replacement. If you can't get a gooseneck on it you can load and unload the wheel but this is usually more difficult to tell. They are worth checking and will be obvious way before they break.