Floppy wipers

[JumboBeef]

The wipers on my 1991 110 are getting worse.  They flop around and if the screen is very wet, they will 'drop' off the the bottom of the glass and if the screen is only a little bit wet, they will stop about 12" short of the bottom of the screen!  Also my intermittent wipe is a bit random!  Sometimes it will work, other times it will give me 3 and a half wipes (wipers stop in the middle of the screen), 2 wipes, then 4 wipes, then 5 and a half wipes, then a normal wipe etc etc.

How do I fix these two problems please?  Do I need to take the dash out to get to the backs of the wipers?  What about the intermittent problem?

Thanks.

[anaxemurderer]

Could be two things.

the wiper arm clips over a knuckle type thing which has splines to keep it straight, these splines can wear out. This knuckle fits onto a shaft and is secured with a grub screw, this can also wear out. I had both problems, one on each side. by the way its probably not called a knuckle but that will do!

The knuckle can be replaced and new grub screw used, this would probably solve both. If your tight (like me) then drill out the grub screw (mine was jammed) and replace with a pointier one (i used ay old nut). Putting a bit of soft copper wire over the splines on the knuckle then pushing the arm back on sorted the other one.

All can be done from outside in half an hour

Hope that is obvious.

Nick

[JumboBeef]

Thanks,

I have already tightened the knuckle, but the slackness goes deeper: ie, the knuckle itself is floppy.

(I've had this 110 for more than three years and it has always been like this, but it is getting worse.  About time I fixed it!)

[V8MoneyPit]

You are likely to have wear in the wiper wheelboxes and wiper rack. A quick fix (if it hasn't already been done before!) is to disconnect the rack from the wiper motor, remove the wiper arms, then gently pull the rack out. When the 1st wheelbox stops turning, rotate it 180 degrees. Then carry on pulling the rack out and do the same with the 2nd wheelbox. Then rotate the rack through 180 degrees and push it back in again. Reconnect it to the wiper motor and replace the wiper arms.

This way you will be running on the unworn parts of the gears and rack.

HTH.

Alternatively, you could just replace the parts. The wheelboxes are about £15 each and the rack is less than £10.

[JumboBeef]

Thanks!

How do I get to the wheelbox and rack etc?

[jimthelandyman]

take the top bit of the dash off it only takes a couple of minutes. Your intermittant problem will probably be inside the wiper motor if you take the cover off you will see a gear inside if you take the gear out and look on the back you will find a lug that is used to press a switch in the wiper motor assembly, when the gear has turned 1 full circle it will press the switch and it will stop, in your case it has either worn away or the gear shaft is not secured properly and thisallows the lug to ride over the switch without pressing it properly.

[JumboBeef]

Thanks!

[JumboBeef]

Well, I spent four hours doing this ten minute job yesterday..............and the result is still the same!  (I turned everything through 180 degrees).

(I've had this 110 for more than three years and it has always been like this, but it is getting worse.  About time I fixed it!)

Oh well, I'll look again in another three years  :lol:

[V8MoneyPit]

Have you looked at the arms themselves? The pivot where you lift them off the screen, right next to the spline, wears. This translates into a lot of movement at the blade which drags behind when nearly dry and flys off the screen when wet.

[JumboBeef]

Yes, I looked at them (drove small nails into the gaps and they are rock solid).  I'll just have to live with the flop!

[V8MoneyPit]

I'll just have to live with the flop!

Now there's a phrase you don't hear every day  :shock: :lol:

[DogVanMan]

Refreshingly honest, that.