FD Wiper Motor Alternative?
 

Hey all,

Is there an alternative to the FD (LHD) wiper motor? I've come across a few old threads here and there, but nothing concrete.

Has your motor failed or is it just slow?

Vince

I've been thinking the same thing.

I believe the wiper motor new is NLA. RHD motors are mirror image so they won't work.

I'm wondering if there's a specialist somewhere that does rebuilds on wiper motors, seems like there would be for the classic car crowd.

My wipers are REALLY slow at this point but I haven't dug too deep into it, don't know if it's a problem with it not getting enough voltage (bad wiper switch or ground) or just the motor being tired. My wiper switch is new-ish, I replaced it probably 10 years ago and the car isn't a daily.

Dale

every Mazda uses a motor that looks similar to the FD, maybe the Rx8 one would work? stay away from the miata motor, its slow too

As a joke, a buddy of mine and I did a "wiper race" between my FC and his FD. It seemed like the FC was faster. This was years ago, and FC parts aren't so common anymore.

FYI the FC wiper motor is a direct bolt in, but the wiring is different or the FC one I mistakenly bought is dead as it doesn't move when plugged in. Also not a permanent fix but I've noticed if you loosen the magnet screws a bit and rotate one way or another a smidge it seems faster. I saw that on an youtube video and scoffed at it, but it actually worked. The FC magnet at a glance is a bit thicker. Also on the FD wiper assembly, there are very thin washers at the wiper splines. My assembly moved much more freely without them. I am not sure how detrimental it would be to permanently remove them. Dust may get gunked up in there and eventually cause more binding.

My wipers have been slow for a while so I apply RainX a couple times during the driving season here…just in case. As luck would have it a couple years ago I got caught in some rain about an hour from home. Maybe it was just me but I went ahead and ran the wipers and they seemed to go a little faster the longer they ran.

I also keep a lot of rain x on. My motor is very slow. My FCs always seemed "normal" so I figured this was just an FD issue. I am interested in any replacements also.


I wouldn't be surprised if Ray knows. I could try to call him later.