Wipers

[Fisher85]

I have a 1998 Cavalier, and the windshield wipers have gone nuts. When I shut them off, instead of going down, they move to the up position. All other modes work fine. I kind of forced them down, but next time I turned them on, they went back to the up postion on shut off. Any ideas?

[89Sunbird]

Sounds like a wiring problem. My dad's Silverado has the same problem. If it is still under warranty, I suggest you take it to the dealer!

[Tookie]

The wiper motor assy has a "parking" function that has most likely gone out of position with respect to the wipers. This might happen if the motor shaft of the wiper motor has slipped past the main gear connected to the wipers connecting arm. This is a sign that either has worn to the point of servicing or replacement.

[cdru]

I just fixed mine this weekend that had the same problem. You'll have to remove the wiper transmission assembly. General steps are:

1. Turn wipers to the "delay" setting. Let them stop. Turn off ignition.
2. Remove plastic caps covering nuts holding wiper arms on. Remove nuts.
3. Remove wiper arms
4. Remove 5 (IIRC) plastic pins holding the plastic trim covering air intake and wiper assembly. The center pin pulls straight out and the base then can be removed.
5. Gently lift the plastic cover out. It's slipped under the windshield seal so be careful.
6. Remove 3 bolts holding transmission assembly to the car.
7. Lift out and disconnect power.

With it out, flip it over. You should see a spring loaded mechanism attached to the motor with a single screw in the middle. On the bottom of that mechanism, there is a metal latch. Normally the motor spins in a direction where the latch does not catch on the bracket that sticks up. When you shut off the wipers, the motor spins in an opposite direction, catching on the bracket, forcing the assembly to disengage and bringing wipers back down to their park position.

On my wipers, the metal spring that forces that latch out had broken. So when it would go in reverse, it would never catch. I went to a junk yard and got a new transmission. On the replacement transmission, the spring was there, but it still didn't catch. The bracket it catches on had to be bent back in ever so slightly.

With everything working correctly, there should be a 4-8mm gap when in the stopped (but not parked) position between the latch and the bracket. If there isn't, losen the center screw and carefully lift it off slight and turn the assembly (don't turn the shaft) until the gap is between 4-8mm.

Tighten everything back up and reinstall. Process is the reverse of above. Before putting the plastic cover back on, toss the wiper blades on and check to make sure things are working correctly.