 Weird sound coming from passenger side - power steering pump?
Hello, back in May my Contour started making a grinding / whining noise while driving around 40, 50 mph. It would start when I went into left turns and seemed to be coming from the front passenger side, somewhere over the wheel. It started getting worse over the summer, and while it still grinds / whines (not high pitched, though, sort of a deep heavy whirring sound) when I make left turns, there's now a humming noise all the time, every time I go around 40 mph or more.
At first I thought it was tire wear, so I changed my front tires but there was no change. The constant hum is loud enough that I can't hear when to switch gears (some genius at Ford decided that they wouldn't put a tachometer on a manual), and the left turn noise pretty much appears any time I move the wheel even a hair to the left. Somebody told me the power steering pump, but I want to make sure that's what it is before I dish out a couple hundred dollars at the mechanic. Thanks for any suggestions! | 
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