Liam Pettit

Hello, I have tried my best to search and see if anyone has had a issue similar to this but have had no luck, so my apologies if I missed it. When I bought my 1983 Rx7 GS the wipers were super slow and didn't really work, about a month in and they quit completely. But I had bigger issues to fix. Well fast forward about 4 months and I decide I would like to not have to worry about if it's going to rain or not. So I go through the whole process of rebuilding my wiper linkage but was never able to free up one of the shafts, I ended up damaging the threads and had to get a new one. I found a brand new rebuilt wiper linkage system on ebay and got it, absolutely amazing, everything turned freely and was well lubricated. After uninstalling and reinstalling like 8 different times to get the alignment perfect they worked! Well for about 2 weeks... They started to stutter a little bit but now are stuttering so much so they cant even move on the glass, but if I pick them up they move perfectly fine and super fast. My first thought was the blades rubber was worn out so I replaced those and no luck. At this point I am completely running out of ideas of how to make these little guys go. If I lift up a tiny bit they'll go, it almost seems like they are being pushed down to hard. I also cleaned the hell my windshield like twice and had no luck. My last ditch effort was to put on rainx but that only made it worse. I have spent a ridiculous amount of time on this little problem to only fall on my face again. Any help would be much appreciated. Also my wiper arms look to be in near perfect condition (not bent or broken).

Thank you so much for any input,
Liam Pettit

P.S if this is in the wrong place please let me know and I will remove it ASAP.

Ta-Aikah

So you're saying they move just fine when you hold them off of the windshield? What about if you hold them and put a little load on the system? Very, very light pressure on the arm AGAINST the direction it's trying to swipe.

If you hold them up and put a little resistance to the motion and it slows down or stops again, I'd bet it's something to do with the wiper motor itself.

Liam Pettit

I just went and tested this, if I put very little pressure they still able to push through just fine, but if I put a fare amount of pressure they do stutter. If it is something with motor I believe I am kinda screwed as I can not find a replacement motor anywhere. I thought it was the motor when they were moving really slow (not the rack) and searched everywhere to try and get one, even tried an FC motor and it didn't fit or work.

Thank you for the reply!

Ta-Aikah

You're absolutely sure that nothing is binding and causing the issue? What about the wiper arm pivots themselves? Do you happen to have a multimeter/voltmeter? You can use it to make sure you're getting the proper voltage to the motor.

Generally, if the motor is binding, it would create a lot of heat, blow a fuse, that type of thing. The fact that it works pretty well unless there's a load does make me think it's the motor.

I'll test mine tomorrow and see if they act the same way yours do with a bit of pressure.

Even if it is the motor, there's always an option.

Liam Pettit

I'll test the voltage tomorrow to make sure it's getting enough, but I'm pretty sure nothing else is binding. I almost wonder if the nut that connects the motor to the wiper linkage is either stripped or not tight enough because it is also ruining the alignment. I tried to tighten it earlier and couldn't get any tighter without the assembly moving but I'm sure I'd be able to give it another try. The pivots are also in great condition but, I do have the blades tightened down pretty tight. That could be a cause but I don't want those to slip and ruin the new pivots. The motor seemed to be really strong when I had it off but that could just be my take.

I'll report back the voltage either tomorrow or tonight if I decide to go have another go.

Thank you again!

Ta-Aikah

The nut on the wiper pivots only holds the arm down tighter on the taper. I don't see it causing any binding.

It only really needs to be tight enough for there to be no play between the wiper arm and the pivot so it doesn't jump splines.

As far as I know, the wiper motors hardly ever have issues themselves. Check voltage and we'll go from there.

Liam Pettit

Alright so I just went and tested it and I'm reading 6-7 volts. I don't use multi-meters much but it's the first setting on there so I assume it's volts. That's also what I've heard about the motors so I'm hoping for the best.

Ta-Aikah

The symbol for DC voltage should look like this:

If that's the setting you were on and you're reading 6-7 volts. That's the issue. The motor isn't seeing a proper 12v for whatever reason. Loose connection, wire starting to break, etc.

Liam Pettit

Thanks for including the symbol for clarification, and it is indeed still reading 6-7 volts. I pulled off the connectors cleaned them and tried again with no luck. I have zero clue on where to even begin on this problem. This wire leads straight into the firewall so I guess I'm gonna have to pull apart the dash. Any ideas on what to do next?
Thanks again for all your help.

yeti

iTrader: (1)

Could it be the combination switch? I don't have a manual nearby but what about jumping the switch and applying 12v to the circuit? I don't know about s2 or s3 models but there are a limited amount of relays in my SA. If the contacts are bad in the combination switch maybe cleaning them up a bit and adding a relay to the mix will be best? You could probably get away with not needing to replace the switch then.

Watch this be one of the few circuits with relays..

Ta-Aikah

Simplest things first, for sure. You could jump everything and apply 12v from the battery to the wiper motor and that would confirm whether or not it'll work properly with a load.

If that's all good you could make sure you're getting 12v in and out of whichever fuse supplies power to the accessory wiper motor. If you aren't even getting 12v into the fuse then it's in issue before the fuse. If you're getting 12v in and not out. It's probably a fuse issue.

If you're getting 12v in and out, it's an issue further down the circuit. Like the combination switch, as yeti said.

KansasCityREPU

iTrader: (9)

A motor shop can rebuild it. There is a shop near me that rebuilds all kinds of electric motors for farming equipment. They do starters, alts, etc. They rebuilt my alt. I'm sure there are some in your area if needed.