wiper arm parking position

deian · Post by **deian** » 08 Apr 2006, 14:43

When my wipers are 'parked' they always come up that little bit more. I'm not sure how low down they are supposed to be when parked, but when in movement they have always reached lower down before moving back up.

So after adjusting the passenger side blade up a bit so it doesn't hit the body work (obvious scratch/digging marks) they both seem like they could do with 'parking' lower down, the splines the wiper arms sit on don't seem to be fine enough for fine adjustment, it is either in the middle of my tax disc or hits the body work on full swing downwards. So is there something else I can do to adjust this (movement of both), for instance, is there a sensor somewhere on the linkages below the surface that detects when/where it's parked? or an universal link that could be moved on some finer splines?

Any help would be greatly appreciated, the last thing I want to do is dig so find it's not so straightforward.

Thanks

AndersDK · Post by **AndersDK** » 08 Apr 2006, 14:56

Sound to me that the "brake" function of the wiper is not working.

All wiper motors have build-in a switch-over contact set that allows the +12V feed to be disrupted and then a microsecond there after shortcircuit the motor windings. This has the effect of the motor windings working as an electromagnetic brake - very effectively instantly stopping the wipers moving.
This change-over switch works in conjunction with the dash control switch - such the motor windings shortcircuiting is not enabled when wipers are to run continously.

Check the cabling and connectors to the wiper motor - also the dash switch may be burned out in one of the contac sets - replace it then.

deian · Post by **deian** » 08 Apr 2006, 16:52

Thanks Mr Anders, again you had the answers, to which i had different ideas to.

citronut · Post by **citronut** » 08 Apr 2006, 18:21

its not quite how Anders explained it,in reality there is two 12v supplys one is switched on and off by the switch on the dash the other is disconected by cotacts in the wiper motor gearbox as soon as the mechanisum returns to the end of its travel at park,if your wipers are going to the end of travel then starting to go back up again,this means someone has set the short arm which is directly on the motor spindle in the wrong place,other than this and moveing the position the arms are on there spindles there is not any other adjustment
regards malcolm

Oystercatcher · Post by **Oystercatcher** » 09 Apr 2006, 21:07

My '98 Xantia had a similar problem from new.

I found that the crank on the *motor* was one spline out, you could see that it rotated past the point where the wipers were at their lowest before stopping. The other symptom was the driver's wiper was not parallel with the screen edge at it's highest point like my previous Xant.

All I did was remove the nut and turn the crank to the right point. It is possible to do this without removing the plastic scuttle, just make sure you don't drop the nut. You will have to move the wiper arms on their splines afterwards.

Perhaps yours was assembled by the same bloke that did mine?

WELSHVIKING · Post by **WELSHVIKING** » 09 Apr 2006, 21:38

Mine was the same on my xantia hdi, i simply undid both nuts and carefully prised both wipers of there shafts and reposistioned them slightly lower down....perfect and no problems at all after.