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Finally got around to trying to figure out why my rear wiper won't work. It seems if I remove/replace the fuse and turn the ignition switch on, then press the button, I hear something moving (at least once, the wiper got pushed into the window frame and held there) and then it stops. I thought maybe I could just loosen the wiper arm, let the motor park and the tighten it and it would work, but it didn't. Subsequent presses of the button do nothing, until I repeat the entire procedure (but oddly, the fuses aren't blowing).
I did notice that the wiper motor was fairly hot, when I touched it after this experiment.
I assume there is some sort of lockout which prevents the motor from running with the hatch up? Also, should I be able to turn the motor by hand when it's not powered? (I can't).
There may be a lockout on the later cars, but on the 78 I can run the motor with the hatch open, no problem. Mechanically, the coupling is designed so that if you have the motor running or parked in any position with the hatch open, then close the hatch, the coupling will re-engage itself. If the motor is getting hot with no load(hatch open) then make sure it sees 12V. A poor connection will increase the current and cause the motor to heat up. Or the motor maybe on its way out, but if it works now there is a good chance it can be taken apart and refreshed.
If there is a lockout, you should be able to bypass it with the hatch open by pressing on the switch that lives at the bottom of the hatch receptacle.
I must not have had the ignition switch in the right position when I tried the hatch open trick before...it works fine that way. My motor and switch actually seem fine. However, when I close the hatch and press the switch, the coupling that is attached to the motor seems "spring-loaded," and instead of driving the wiper arm, it pops off of the pin, then on the back swing catches the pin on the edge of that coupling plate and rams the wiper up against the plastic moulding on the side of the window. It can't move any farther, so it stops, but that's why the motor was getting hot I think...it was still trying.
Is that coupling plate thing (no idea what it should be called...the part mounted to the motor) supposed to be able to be pushed down like that? With the hatch open I can manually swing the wiper arm through it's full motion, so I don't think it's putting up too much resistance.
The lower plate is spring-loaded. That's what allows it to engage as I described above. Normal resting position is shown below, not sure if I have a better pic.
It sounds like your wipers were mounted to the spindles incorrectly. If your lower coupling looks like the pic above, remove the wiper arms and then line up the dog on the hatch coupling with the slot in the lower coupling. Close the hatch and cycle the motor. If all is well, reinstall the wiper arms with the hatch still closed, blade parallel to the left edge of the window. Test. Open beer.
My lower coupling looks like that. Just eyeballing the upper coupling and wipers, it seems correct. The pin looks like it is aligned with the slot, but when the lower coupling moves, rather than pushing the wiper, it get's pushed down and the pin pops out. I'm not sure how else the wipers could be installed? I guess maybe I can remove them to see if they are perhaps creating too much resistance?
It does close all the way, and latches. Now, when I unlock it, either with the key or the electric release, I still have to get my fingers in there and pry it up...it doesn't pop up like I would normally expect...but I don't know if that's an issue, or if all these cars are like that. But I would think the fact that it latches implies it's sitting low enough?
Maybe it's not engaging then. Does your hatch close all the way? If the latch is worn the hatch sits too high and that coupling won't engage.
This...
My sleeve was worn out in the lower latch and wasn't keeping the hatch down tight enough. Once I replaced the sleeve...the wiper lever engaged. However, the nuts were lose that holds the wiper arm the the wiper transmission...so I had to snug them up (when it was in the park position) and it works great now.
I would remove the wiper arm while you are messing with it, to eliminate more binding and possibly creating a new problem. Just watch the wiper transmission (that runs through the hatch) after hitting the switch and look at its movement without resistance. If you can get it moving back and forth without issue, l believe it should wiper three cycles, if it does this...then put the wiper arm on in the park position and see wht happens.
I'd say if there is about a quarter inch gap or less when your hatch is closed...it should be closed tight enough. And yes...you have to pull the hatch open...it does not pop up like a 944. Once you get it about four or five inches open, then it should raise under its own power (shocks). This is the way the operation is explained in the manual, too.
I'll have to watch your video, DSL here...so it may be a while before you ever hear from me again...lol
Btw with the hatch open and just observing the lower plate, it seems to effortlessly go through two cycles. Not sure why it doesn't do the full three, but I'd be perfectly happy with two (or one) lol...
Like I say...I would remove that wiper arm and watch things after hitting the switch. It sounds like it should work, but the arm isn't positioned right or something.
That's what I will try next. It seems like it's lined up, but not really catching in the slot, then when the plate comes back around it catches on the edge, rams the wiper into the side of the window, and seizes up because it can no longer move. For reasons not yet clear, the path of least resistance is to push the spring-loaded lower bracket down a bit while turning, rather than to simply move the wiper arm.
06-04-2015, 03:34 PM
Rear Wiper issues
