Groan when turning right at low speeds

[chairmankaga]

Since it's not a FWD car there's no CV joint, which is usually what I think of when I hear this sound. It only happens when it's cold (not necessarily ambient temp, just that when I'm first leaving in the morning or at the end of the day). Only when turning, and as far as I can tell only when turning right. It goes away when I straighten the wheel.

I'm thinking wheel bearing/hub, maybe just a wobble on the spindle? Worn tie rod ends? There's no steering slop though. Steering rack? My PPI indicated a slight leak. It's barely noticeable though.

Any thoughts?

[Ilya]

It's likely power steering.

All of the other stuff would do it regardless of time of day or if you just started the car or been driving for 12 hours.

[DS2009m35x]

I had a groan when turning right. dealer reported a leak 1000s of miles earlier but said to just keep topping the fluid. Ultimately it was a bad steering rack. Replacement was approx $2200 as I recall. There was a known issue with the racks thus there's a new PN for them.

[chairmankaga]

Ugh. I had the rack in my old CRV replaced for about $600, with me providing a remanufactured rack from PartsGeek.com. Total bill was about $1100, or half what the dealer quoted. I figure I'll end up going the same route here.

So what PS fluid should I use? I figure the Nissan stuff is exactly the same as Infiniti branded bottles, but 2/3 the cost. I also seem to recall that in most Japanese cars it's essential to use the manufacturer approved fluid and not a generic alternative.