the Final Wiper Motor Question

[bstandley1]

I ordered and received a replacement wiper motor from Finish Line and just installed the motor ... got a couple of electrical questions ... I'm replacing my old single throw toggle switch with the Lucas switch for two speed wipers with park. My old set up has the 32 and 46 wires going to the toggle switch; when I pulled the old motor, there were two wires connected to it ... a yellow wire connected to the upper left post and the ground wire connected directly below it on the left. The instructions that came with the motor shows the upper left post as the past speed connection and the lower left post as the slow speed. Until the motor fried, the old wiper motor worked fine as a one speed no park affair...

Here are my questions:

Can I join the 32 and 46 wire as my new fused hot wire then run two separate leads from it, one to the ignition feed on the motor, the other to the ignition feed on the L-35927 wiper switch?


Was my old set up (hot to the fast speed, ground to the slow speed) the correct way to wire up the motor?

Appreciate any and all assistance!

Bob

[bstandley1]

I really hope this is my final question. Anxious to find out if my wipers would now work, I threw caution to the wind and wired up the motor and new switch according to Finish Line's instruction. I did use the existing power supply to power both the motor and the switch .... had partial success; both speeds of the motor worked ... but no park. Think I need a dedicated non switched power source to make the park work.

Phase two: Buoyed with my initial success, I install one of the wipers on the cowl and turn on the switch .... trouble! the lower part of the blade travels off the windshield at the bottom of the sweep. I adjust the angle of the blade, turn on the switch ... and the bottom of the blade travels off the windshield at the top of the sweep. Bummer!

I'm thinking its either the linkage or the wiper head assemblies. Anyone have any experience with this kind of problem?

Thanks for your help ....

Bob

[twanita]

i assume you have the angle and length of the blade correct. it takes some messing with. no room for error.
if you seem to be chasing your tail i bet the worm gear on the linkeage is not engaging the gear completely on the wiperam stud. you can tell by leaving the arms off and when running the motor try to stop the stud with your fingers using a rag for protection. if you can make it skip teeth you have to take plate off under dash and do some bending. i had do do this on mine when new.

[bstandley1]

Thanks Jim,

The angle and length of the blades were unchanged; I'll check out the linkage in the morning and see how it goes. While I was stewing over the problem, I went internet surfing and found a UK site for a Lucas wiper motor dealer, Stafford Vehicle Components. http://www.s-v-c.co.uk/SVCWIPERS.HTM They have quite a bit of good information on the wiper motors and linkage and mention that the wiper rack is an item that wears out. Fortunately, the rack is fairly inexpensive (less than $20 at Moss Motors) so if the linkage adjustment doesn't solve the problem, I can take a shot at replacing the rack. BTW, have you ever replaced one?

Thanks again for your help and I'll let you know how it goes. The weather has been too nice to have the car torn apart....

Bob

[bstandley1]

Jim,

I tried the "grap the wiper stud" technique and I didn't find any slippage on either one. My next attempt at a solution was to take the plates off the wiper heads and take a look. It appeared that there was no alignment problem so after scratching my head for a while, I attempted to swing the drivers side wiper through it's range of motion and it appeared that the arm was too short. Once I figured out that the blade length could be lengthened, I added about 2" of additional length and snapped it on the wiper stud, turned on the wipers and the blade stayed on the windshield!

I'm pleased that it worked ... but for the life of me, I don't understand why the previous setting with the old motor worked fine for the past year and one-half. I just measured the new wiper arm length from the approximate center of the wiper stud to the actual end of the arm and came up with 9 3/16". I'd appreciate a sanity check; would you or any of our fellow owners mind checking that dimension and letting me know. Once I sort this one out, the next task will be to figure out why my new two speed plus park wiper switch doesn't park the wipers ....

Bob

[RJacobsen]

Bob, It sounds like the new motor has a longer stroke than the old one. If you look at the info from the website link you posted you will find that the lucas motors had several different gears available. the gears work like a crankshaft and operate a connecting rod that pushes and pulls the wiper drive. I'm not sure, but it might be possible to install the old gear in the new motor. the main difference will be the pin location on the gear. Hope this helps.

[bstandley1]

Rod,

Thanks for your input. I installed the gear from my old motor in the new one (it's a 120 Degree gear). The motor that Finish Line provides has no gear drive; removing the old gear simply requires the removal of a clip on the outside of the motor.
That's what really baffling me..... BTW, while I was installing the new motor, I accidentally pulled off the fast speed wire connector from the motor. After unsuccessfully trying to reconnect it by the psychic "touch" system, I pulled the motor ... again! ... , reconnected the wire and reinstalled the motor.

My next trick will be to figure out why my $43 Lucas Wiper Switch doesn't park the wipers. I wired it up in accordance with Finish Line's wiring diagram, but when I turn the switch off, the wipers immediately stop. My dread is that the park switch in the new motor is defective .... and I'll have to pull the motor again. The horror!!! In any event, the new switch stays; I had to enlarge the hole in the dash to make it fit.

Bob

[RJacobsen]

Bob, The only other answer would be that you switched the right and left wheel boxes, does the other side not travel as far as it did before ? If thats not it then it has to be be Black Magic. Anyway, the next time you drive to Reno, Don't go when its raining.

[twanita]

yes, it measures about 9". then about a 140 degree angle on the arm which extends another 5 3/4 " to the tip of the arm. i think the 427 style parks to the driver side when off. one trick i used was a white correct-a-type pen to mark the range of motion on the stud at both extremes. jog your ignition switch with the wiper motor on to check those extremes before you attach the arms. it might help save your paint job. jim o.

[bstandley1]

Rod,
It must be Black Magic; I didn't switch the boxes and I'll think twice about driving to Reno in the rain again!

Jim,
Thanks for checking the measurements. I used some masking tape stuck on the end of the wiper stud to measure the range of motion. Here's a case where I benefited from the wiper switch not parking the wiper. I could advance the wipers in minute increments without turning off the ignition. I ended up with the drivers side arm approximately 9 1/8" long and the passenger side 8" long. Both wipers now stay on the windshield! Life is good ...

Bob

[pseim]

Bob,
We're up in Seattle for the next couple of weeks. Are you going or have you been to this big car show scheduled in Puyallup for July 14-16?

[bstandley1]

Paul,

I wasn't aware of any impending car shows. Do you have any details?

Bob

[pseim]

Bob,
The event is sponsored by Goodguys Rod and Custom Association (www.good-guys.com).
They are talking 2000 plus hot rods, customs and classics. It will be held at the Western Washington State Fairgrounds in Puyallup.