Help understanding wipers

[stevets]

1984 GL 2WD.

Just got this going after several parked years. When I turn the key to ON, rear wiper comes on and front wipers operate. When running, rear wiper continues running and I cannot turn it off but the fronts no longer work.

No mention in Bentley anywhere about rear wiper - or at least not in the wiring diagram. Or perhaps I missed it?

Front and rear share switch and so presumably relay?

Is it possible relay is junk?

Sure would be nice to have a clean fix on something.....like plugging in a new relay!

PS - tried to crack open the rear hatch panel. What evil SOB invented those fasteners?

[Zeitgeist 13]

I often discuss stuff I don't know or understand, so with that in mind...I think the switch is the only means of tying together both wipers, since I believe they each have their own relay. I would investigate the switch
_________________
Casey--

'89 Bluestar ALH w/12mm Waldo pump, PP764 and GT2052
'01 Weekender --> full camper
y u rune klassik?

[Steve M.]

For the time being pull the relay or the fuse for them.
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This free advice is worth exactly what you paid for it.

There are seven days in a week. Someday is not one of them.

[dhaavers]

I also am a non-expert discussionizer and I'll prove it now:

Another common denominator is the ignition switch, a known weak link.
How are your radio, headlights & dash blower working these days ...???

- Dave
_________________
86 White Wolfsburg Westy Weekender
"The WonderVan"
<EDITED TO PROTECT INNOCENT PIXELS>

[dabaron]

i'm deep into my dash and trying to resolve a wiper issue. the rear wiper is most likely a relay that is stuck. the front, probably the relay or switch.

if you pull the connector off the wiper switch, you can use a jumper to by-pass the switch. your wiring diagram should detail the connector and what you need to jumper to make it operate the wipers.

you can bypass the relay as well. page 97.59 has the front wiper stuff. for the rear wiper, page 97.101 might shed some light.

i'm lucky that i have a spare Vanagon to verify relays and such. maybe you need to buy a second Vanagon for testing too.
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1991 Vanagon GL Camper
i had no idea i wanted to be a mechanic
"burnin oil and cookin coils" -- Destructo

BiWerks Design, LLC

[stevets]

First move was to replace the ignition switch. Seemed like it can be the source of much confusion and prone to failure so I just went ahead and installed a new one.

No radio installed and the dash blower does not work. I think it may have a headlight relay kit as there are 2 relays mounted above and to the right of the fuse/relay bar.

Nothing but time so I'm going to remove the dash and get nipple deep into the electrics - not my strong suit.

"maybe you need to buy a second Vanagon for testing too."
I still haven't decided if buying the first one was a good idea and yet there is something appealing about your suggestion.

[dabaron]

[Zeitgeist 13]

People who know what they're talking about make me nervous.
_________________
Casey--

'89 Bluestar ALH w/12mm Waldo pump, PP764 and GT2052
'01 Weekender --> full camper
y u rune klassik?

[Wildthings]

Don't expect the controls on a Vanagon to work logically, after thirty years of Vanagon ownership I still have to give various Vanagon controls a bit of extra thought when I go to turn something on or off or want to adjust something.

[dabaron]

[Chris Beebe]

Well, these posts made me laugh so I figure this is about the best place to start.
My '85 Vanagon's wipers stopped wiping (but I could hear the motor running), so thinking the best, I took the dash off. Of course, this was not the answer but I learned a lot anyway. Eventually, I found that the nut holding the wiper connector arm to the motor was loose. I tightened it down, but now the wipers don't stop at the bottom of the motor/arm cycle. In other words, if I adjust the wiper arms on the spindle (front of the van) to where they want to live when "off", and turn the wipers on, the wipers cycle down below the windshield and up to the middle of the windshield instead of staying fully on the windshield through their cycle. If I set the wiper arms to stay on the windshield through their cycle, they stop in the middle of the windshield.

I suspect that when I tightened the motor spindle nut down, it wasn't cycled properly. The wipers were where they wanted to live when I tightened down the motor spindle nut. I've tinkered around with both places of adjustment (motor spindle and wiper spindles) without success.

All other electrical in the van works fine.
the wipers work in unison and at the proper speeds (my '84 is super slow, but that's for another day).

Can someone please enlighten me on the proper sequence of Westy love I need to shower on this ol' gal?

TIA - Chris
_________________
'84 Westy 2WD
'86 Syncro/EJ25 Westy
'82 Fiat 124 Spider
'76 Lancia Beta Coupe (sold)
'73 MG Midget
'19 VW Alltrack
'89 F250 Rescue Rig

[djkeev]

I suspect you are correct!

Back to the wiper motor!
Loosen that arm and reconfigure.

Dave
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Ghia
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=392473

Vanagon
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=6315537#6315537

Beetle
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=482968&highlight=74+super+vert

[bobhill8]

It's possible that the wiper arm is not fully seating on the spindle and/or the splines are filled with crud. Have you watched the GoWesty video?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pqk--uQUQ8w&t=3s

[Chris Beebe]

Thanks for jumping in, Bob and Dave.

I did pull the wiper arms off and inspected/cleaned the connection to the wiper splines per the GW video. Both sides looked good so I reset the arms on the spindles. With the motor spindle nut loose, I can move one arm manually and the other moves in unison, so I believe that the assembly is good back tot he motor. The motor runs fine, and drives the wipers as expected.

To put it in the terms of this thread, the wipers are parking in the middle of their swing cycle instead of at the bottom of it. This happens no matter when I turn the wipers off - they don't stop exactly when I shut them off, as has been discussed here. They keep running to their consistent parked position in the middle of the windshield. I would expect that if I adjusted the arms to where I want them to park, they would start their upward motion from there and return there when I shut them off.
_________________
'84 Westy 2WD
'86 Syncro/EJ25 Westy
'82 Fiat 124 Spider
'76 Lancia Beta Coupe (sold)
'73 MG Midget
'19 VW Alltrack
'89 F250 Rescue Rig

[Wildthings]

Lift the arms from the windshield and cycle the wiper motor. From the front looking at the car the shafts should park in the far counter clockwise position. If not you need to loosen the nut on the wiper motor shaft, pries the arm loose, and turn it 180° and then retighten the nut.

Now go to the hardware store and get two 7mm stainless steel washers. Now position the drivers side wiper so that when the motor is running it clears the windshield gasket on the left side of the van by 1-2 inches, the drivers side wiper should park with the blade parallel to the bottom of the windshield. Put the 7mm washer on the shaft first and then the original 6mm washer and then the nut. Install the passenger side washer so it rides an inch or so higher than the driver's side on and install the washers and nut. The nuts need to be tighter than you might think, but don't break off the threaded part of the shaft.

[djkeev]

And once fixed and tightened, never Never NEVER turn on the wipers without first brushing away the snow and lifting each blade to assure they are not frozen to the glass.

Did I say NEVER?

Dave
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Stop Dead Photo Links how to post photos

Ghia
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=392473

Vanagon
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=6315537#6315537

Beetle
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=482968&highlight=74+super+vert

[Chris Beebe]

Dave, did you go to Catholic school?

I can't believe how easy that was! More ginko, please! My work flow, so I can refer to it again when I forget:

1. Cycle the wipers and note the bottom of the cycle.
2. Loosen nut at the wiper motor. It's a blind reach, after removing the glove box and the flex heater duct, but doable. Do not loosen the nuts at the wiper arms just yet.
3. Set the wiper blades where you noted the bottom of their cycle, wherever that is.
4. Tighten the nut at the motor spindle.
5. Remove the nuts at the wiper arms/spindles and clean out any stripped material. If the spindle and/or arm socket are stripped, install a 7mm washer under the stock wavy washer when replacing the wiper arm (per GoWesty video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pqk--uQUQ8w&t=3s ) but don't tighten the nuts - leave the arms loose.
6. Set the wiper blades/arms where you want them to park, at the bottom of their cycle.
7. Tighten the nuts on the arms/spindles and enjoy your handiwork!

Thanks All!
_________________
'84 Westy 2WD
'86 Syncro/EJ25 Westy
'82 Fiat 124 Spider
'76 Lancia Beta Coupe (sold)
'73 MG Midget
'19 VW Alltrack
'89 F250 Rescue Rig

[SyncroHead]

FYI, Here's a detailed post on the wiper electrical circuits and relay.

https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=734374&highlight=wiper+relay

Jim Davis
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