Winshield Wiper Help!!
 

So, in a moment of brilliance, I decided that there definitely would not be a layer of ice under the nice white powder on my windshield this morning. Consequently, I hit the wipers, and they didn't budge (so I turned them off immediately).

After scraping and heating the windshield, I hit the wipers again and they budged maybe a half-inch, and went back down. I got out of the car, and with a slight nudge, they'll go up on their own w/ the motor (independent of each other), but they still won't go up on their own.

Is there a clutch between the motor and the arm that's frozen, or did a bolt get loosened or what? Please tell me I didn't fry the motor by trying to run them w/ ice on the windshield!! I don't think I did since they still TRY to move.

Oh, and if you think it is fried, what is the parts cost for a new motor? (I assume it's a straightforward no-instructions-necessary installation).

Thanks guys,
Rich

Time for Rain-X!
(cheapest mod. available)

I had the same problem, took it to my local mechanic. He told me that it was just a loose bolt, tightened it, and we are good to go. He did it for nothing! I am not sure how he did it, but I would guess that it is not too tough.

Cheers,

O

Wow, someone brought one of my posts back from the dead!

Yeah, I actually did the same thing -- I just tightened 2 bolts down that hold the wiper arms to the motors. Took about 2 minutes. I sent that out that day at work because I was sitting in my office having nightmares of having to buy new wiper motors!

But thanks for the response anyway!

This just happened to me (snow in Williamsburg, VA?!?!) and my drivers side wiper is loose. Can anyone tell me which bolt I have to tighten?

I'm gonna go with #4 on this pic:
http://dcauto.gotdns.com/illustration/index/957420884

Any help is appreciated?

Yep, that's the one. But, before tightening it, it's best to remove the bolt and pull the arm completely off and inspect both the arm and the post to be sure the splines aren't stripped. If they are, you'll need to replace them. Assuming they're not, replace the arm so it's in the normal OFF position and tighten bolt #4 - BE SURE YOU DON'T OVER-TIGHTEN IT, it's just there to keep the arm from raising off the splines on the post.

Thanks lil B. Can always count on you for extremely detail information!