MR2 power steering problem?

[gasman]

yesterday when i went to a friends place i drove my sw20 and parked up and then when i left i noticed that the power steering was quite heavy and the p/s check light was on.

when i drove there it was fine but some how crapped out while parked up. when i got home later i had a nosey round the ps comp and relay and didnt notice any obvious signs of something wrong and also checked the fluid levels.

started up the car and then it started to work again.

is this a sign that something is on its way out?
it was parked up on a relatively steep driveway, at my friends place. would this have something to do with the problem?

[MR2SIK]

Sticky relay I think, seems rather common, just turn the key from off to acc about 20 times quickly, usually sorts it, did it to me a few years ago, been fine since

[gasman]

what is the problem with the relay? do teh contacts get worn or something?

is it possible to open it up and give thecontacts a bit of a clean to clear out all the soot and crap the builds up?

[Adamal]

I'm not sure what the problem is, but it'll happen, you do that, and it doesn't usually come back. Well, not on a frequent basis

[iOnic]

They just get sticky over time. The only real permanent fix is a replacement relay.