ZX wiper problem

ZXdanslamaison · Post by **ZXdanslamaison** » 01 Mar 2003, 02:19

Any feedback appreciated on this one!
Car - ZX 1.4 R reg
For a few days now my windscreen wipers have been faulty. When I turn the car on it takes a few seconds before the battery light comes on very faintly (it then stays on for the duration). The rear wiper does not work at all, and when I use the front wipers in single sweep mode the wiper only goes as far as the time I hold down the stem - it sticks in the middle until I hold it down to get to the right side again. During this operation the battery light glows brighter until I get the wiper back to its left hand side position.
I would think automatically that its just my battery giving out, however nothing else appears to be affected apart from a weird incident where the central locking refused to work for a couple of minutes.
There is a a bit of a "coincidence" though..... This all happened a day after I fitted a new Sony CD HiFi (during which I blew a 30amp fuse by touching the live to the earth doh!). However this works fine and doesn't seem to affect the problem, the wipers react in the same way regardless of whether its on or not.
Can anyone help? Thanks in advance for any comments, I am a bit mystified by this one and I rarely have to do anything to the car as its been so reliable.
cheers
Al

jmd · Post by **jmd** » 01 Mar 2003, 05:35

It looks to me that you accidentally disturbed the wiring to the wipers.I can only advise that you check over the wiring, and connections in the area of your recently fitted Sony CD.Good Luck

jeremy · Post by **jeremy** » 01 Mar 2003, 08:13

Are you saying that the red charge warning light is on all the time your engine is running and glows brighter when the wipers are operated? - if so all your problems are due to your alternator having failed.
To be specific its probably the control unit which can be replaced separately and probably costs around £25 - if you can get one. Other wise replace the whole thing.
First its worth checking a few obvious things like its drive belt and connections. If you've got a meter measure the batteryvoltage - i expect you will find its around 11 volts with the engine turned off and with the engine running doesn't improve much. If all is well it will be 12.7 volts with the engine off - rising to aroung 13 or a bit more when charged.
You can always try charging the battery from an external charger and see the difference until it runs down again.
With proper voltage restored you will be amazed to find your door locking and wipers all function like new!
jeremy

ZXdanslamaison · Post by **ZXdanslamaison** » 01 Mar 2003, 15:45

Thanks guys. If you're right about the alternator, then do I have to replace it immediately? Are we talking a gentle decline in performance or is it likely to fail at any given opportunity?
cheers

jeremy · Post by **jeremy** » 01 Mar 2003, 16:24

Depends on the precise fault in the alternator. I have found duds in circumstances where they have been not working properly for a long time like years rather than days. You must also consider the increased load you are placing on other components which stall (like your wipers), do not glow at full brightness (halogen lamps) and whatever it may do to your sound system and any computers (probably not much).
What does surprise me is that you are not complaining of bad starting, - does the engine turn fast or is it turning just fast enough to start and leaves you thinking "I've got away with it again?"
Jeremy

ZXdanslamaison · Post by **ZXdanslamaison** » 01 Mar 2003, 16:43

It starts OK.
a couple of weeks ago I left my lights on in the car park at work. Upon returning around 45 minutes later to find that the battery was completly dead with absolutly nil response when I tuned the key. My mate says he thinks it would only go flat so quick if was't holding a decent charge anymore. Could this be the source of my problems? (I would have mentioned it before, but I assumed that batteries either do work or don't). Unfortunately I don't have a volt meter to test it.
Thanks

jeremy · Post by **jeremy** » 01 Mar 2003, 19:50

I don't think there is much wrong with your battery. firstly if it is on the way out the car will function normally with the engine running as a sound alternator will keep it at full voltage. If the battery is not being charged fully its capacity is obviously less than it should be - hence your rapid run-down when you left the lights on. In fact the battery is very sensitive to charging voltage and in the ZX diesel book Haynes describe the open circuit of a fully charged battery as 12.7 volts, half charged at 12.6 and discharged as 12.5. This voltage would be measured after the battery has been standing for an hour or so to allow any fluctuations caused by charging to go.
Have a look at the zx ignition light thread for a source of cheap alternators.
Many a good battery has been replaced only to produce a temporary improvement and a return to the previous state when it runs down.
Jeremy

MarkS · Post by **MarkS** » 02 Mar 2003, 14:45

Completly different approach, but are you sure you have not crossed some wires somehow when you fitted the stereo? Maybe, just maybe, the problems are a result of some wires being crossd/pinched etc and are feeding back into each other, bit like a bad earth?? bit vague I know.