Travelling Wiper!

[MalcolmH]

Hope you're all well. Any ideas please for discouraging the single wiper on my '88 Excel SE from wiping the top of the bonnet??!!

The problem isn't with the spindle, the location & operation of which seem fine. But rather the wiper arm staying (or not!) securely attached to it without straying. No matter how tight I do up the nut, after a couple of cursory wipes it's wiping the top of the bonnet again! I say nut - it's currently the nut and at least one washer, out of fears the spindle thread might have failed.

Even shifting the 'park' position to halfway up the passenger screen makes no difference. Two or three wipes and it's back down scraping the scuttle top. It's reached the point where I daren't take the car out even in light drizzle. Just can't see anything through the screen. A mate suggested super-glueing the nut to the spindle, which seems a bit extreme.

Any ideas/help appreciated

[John]

I suggest checking the spline is good on both spindle and wiper arm. If thats all good I can only guess the problem is slippage bewteen wiper motor and wheel box. I rebuilt my wiper motor and posted some pictures which may help you;

viewtopic.php?f=27&t=9335

Good luck

Cheers John

[Hawaiis0]

Gently scratch out the spline grooves, then try wrapping some wire wool around them for extra grip.

[MalcolmH]

Thanks, John… and Stu (am I remembering right?).

Though I wish it were otherwise, in truth I’m not a rebuilding the wiper motor kind of guy. With an issue like this, a short-term fix - that might give me even just an hour or so of stress-free driving in the rain - is more up my street. So although I’m away from the car for a week or so, soon as back I’ll be getting out the Stanley knife & wire wool!

When I had Excels back in the 80’s, even when nearly new the lone wiper was always a bane. The high (or low!) spot was a very dark night on a then-unlit section of the M25 in stair-rod rain, when the wiper suddenly stopped mid-screen.

I can still picture the couple of minutes of literally blind panic, with my hand at full stretch out the window trying to clear a 3-inch vertical strip at far edge of the screen with the demisting rag, while my other hand steered (and also somehow indicated) across 2 lanes of frighteningly heavy traffic to reach the hard shoulder!

That was a motor fail, on a then 2-year-old Excel. The replacement motor also failed a few months later, that time - thankfully - in not so risky circumstances.

[MetBlue]

. If that's all good I can only guess the problem is slippage between wiper motor and wheel box

Good observation John.
I'd suggest marking the end of the spindle then you'll quickly know if it's the wiper on the taper slipping or something more drastic. - let's hope for the former.

My fear for though is it's the wiper wheel box. Either the gear could be free on the spindle (my suspicion), or the gear is terrible worn.

Tony

[John]

l put some threadlock on the wheelbox nuts to make sure they didn't slacken off over time. As you say could also be the gear or the cable. Getting to the motor isn't as bad as my pictures suggest, I removed the centre dash which was completely unnecessary! Could have just taken out the instrument panel, you live and learn...

Malcolm, hopefully a clean of the splines will sort it.

Cheers John