Interesting the difference between mine and yours. With my 18º and 10 psi i see no kr. I know that is my limit though because if i go to 19º i see kr, its low but its still there. Yeah i bet that would whine!
Are you talking about the coolant holes that flow to the TB, if so then yes those have been plugged. I didnt see any signs of coolant leaking around the lim gaskets either.