So long story long... I took my Volvo in for a transmission issue. Solenoid went bad. Got replaced. Car is fine... mostly.

Transmission shop did the work, and since I got the car back it made a squeaking noise whenever I'd turn the steering wheel, and I had some additional road noise in the cabin. So I did my research and read about the rubber boot that leads from the steering wheel into the engine bay through the firewall. That is indeed where the sound is coming from.

But here is my problem... There is some sort of continuous metal ring, blue plastic ring with a split in it, and a black sleeve on the shaft. They're definitely not supposed to be the way they are (picture to follow) but I don't know how they're actually supposed to be. My theory is they dropped the sub frame to get to the trans, and that somehow yank on the steering column, pushing this bushing assembly thing up and out of where it does belong and into where it doesn't belong. Halp!