Tiered windshield wipers
#1
Tiered windshield wipers
My windshield wipers on my 86 xj6 are tired. They will move about 6inches up the window then stop. If you give them a hand they will continue all the way back to home position then stop at the 6 inch up mark again. Is there a fix for this or do I need to find some replacement motors. I say motors because is there 2? One for each arm? How do you get to them? Do you take the dash pad off? I've taken of the grill on the cowl but the re is nothing in there.
#2
#3
there is one motor only in the XJ Series 3 body-style and it is located on the side of the battery in Left Hand Drive cars. Is your car Left Hand Drive? then it should be there.
Start by removing the wiper arms;
inject a couple drops of 3-in-1 oil (ACE Hardware) into each wheelbox shaft.
remove battery to remove wiper motor. Once you have the motor freed from it's bracket and electrical connector plug, pull it away pulling with it the cable that goes into the car's Cowl.
Clean old grease and re-Grease the cable thoroughly, re-insert the cable into the tube it came out of and keep pushing it gently without kinking it or stressing it, you will see the wheelboxes moving as the cable passes under them. It is a very greasy job.
This should improve the wiper speeds, but don't expect modern efficiency, these wiper motors are lame and lazy even from new, they are the one complaint of all XJ owners since 1968. Cable wiper systems are obsolete, the pantograph systems used in modern cars are the best but there is no room in these cars to install a pantograph wiper system. Not saying you cannot, but it would require some serious modifications, cutting sheet metal, etc.
The next step if no improvement, is to check the wiper switch itself, especially if it is stopping erratically, they do wear out and lose electrical contact. The trick is to get a hand behind the switch wiring plug and push / wiggle each wire as the switch is ON and engine is running, to see which one is causing the issue.
Start by removing the wiper arms;
inject a couple drops of 3-in-1 oil (ACE Hardware) into each wheelbox shaft.
remove battery to remove wiper motor. Once you have the motor freed from it's bracket and electrical connector plug, pull it away pulling with it the cable that goes into the car's Cowl.
Clean old grease and re-Grease the cable thoroughly, re-insert the cable into the tube it came out of and keep pushing it gently without kinking it or stressing it, you will see the wheelboxes moving as the cable passes under them. It is a very greasy job.
This should improve the wiper speeds, but don't expect modern efficiency, these wiper motors are lame and lazy even from new, they are the one complaint of all XJ owners since 1968. Cable wiper systems are obsolete, the pantograph systems used in modern cars are the best but there is no room in these cars to install a pantograph wiper system. Not saying you cannot, but it would require some serious modifications, cutting sheet metal, etc.
The next step if no improvement, is to check the wiper switch itself, especially if it is stopping erratically, they do wear out and lose electrical contact. The trick is to get a hand behind the switch wiring plug and push / wiggle each wire as the switch is ON and engine is running, to see which one is causing the issue.
#4
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Walnut Creek, California
Posts: 6,796
Received 2,399 Likes
on
1,880 Posts
Springer:
I got a kick out of the title to your post. I expected something
completely different.
A couple of decades ago, I bought a very nice 85 Ford short bed F150 4x4. Black with silver and blue graphics. Lots of catalog sourced add'ons.
Each wioer arm had two blades, parallel to each other!!! But, worn out. So, ,I went to the nearby CARQUEST. Friendly counterman
No can do. One each will do just as well. Less strain on the motor and gears. Made sense. got a fresh pair.
Hence the "tiered" wipers were replaced...
Oh, it also had a "light bar" ala "roll bar" in the bed. Garish, useless,
and restricted load space. Dumped it first off. Friendly junk man pleased. Junk man a customer of my son.
Carl
I got a kick out of the title to your post. I expected something
completely different.
A couple of decades ago, I bought a very nice 85 Ford short bed F150 4x4. Black with silver and blue graphics. Lots of catalog sourced add'ons.
Each wioer arm had two blades, parallel to each other!!! But, worn out. So, ,I went to the nearby CARQUEST. Friendly counterman
No can do. One each will do just as well. Less strain on the motor and gears. Made sense. got a fresh pair.
Hence the "tiered" wipers were replaced...
Oh, it also had a "light bar" ala "roll bar" in the bed. Garish, useless,
and restricted load space. Dumped it first off. Friendly junk man pleased. Junk man a customer of my son.
Carl
#5
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: Dural, Northwest Sydney. Australia.
Posts: 40,716
Received 4,065 Likes
on
2,914 Posts
Interesting thread on tired wipers......on my series 2 they are horrible, they don't swing enough across the screen and seem short bursts of useless energy.
Know I know a good clean up and check may help, but are the series 3 compatible and better? Or is their an upgrade?...nothing worse than getting caught in some rain and can't see anything in front.
Know I know a good clean up and check may help, but are the series 3 compatible and better? Or is their an upgrade?...nothing worse than getting caught in some rain and can't see anything in front.
#6
I hate to say that until this thread came up, I never knew we had cable-driven wiper systems. That's crazy to me. I just never had cause to go tearing into that system (not that my wipers are fast, just that there were always more important issues to take care of). I can't believe that's the system Jaguar chose to use.
Jess
Jess
The following users liked this post:
Daf11e (09-19-2016)
#7
As per Jaguar practice they simply used standard Lucas parts that (in the case of wiper systems) were also found on old MGs ,Triumphs and various and sundry British cars of that period 1955 - 1990 or so. Functional but old school and kind of clunky. Make sure you have good seals where the wheel boxes are ....maybe yours have some rust/dirt in those areas.
The following users liked this post:
Daf11e (09-19-2016)
Trending Topics
#8
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: Dural, Northwest Sydney. Australia.
Posts: 40,716
Received 4,065 Likes
on
2,914 Posts
there is one motor only in the XJ Series 3 body-style and it is located on the side of the battery in Left Hand Drive cars. Is your car Left Hand Drive? then it should be there.
Start by removing the wiper arms;
inject a couple drops of 3-in-1 oil (ACE Hardware) into each wheelbox shaft.
remove battery to remove wiper motor. Once you have the motor freed from it's bracket and electrical connector plug, pull it away pulling with it the cable that goes into the car's Cowl.
Clean old grease and re-Grease the cable thoroughly, re-insert the cable into the tube it came out of and keep pushing it gently without kinking it or stressing it, you will see the wheelboxes moving as the cable passes under them. It is a very greasy job.
This should improve the wiper speeds, but don't expect modern efficiency, these wiper motors are lame and lazy even from new, they are the one complaint of all XJ owners since 1968. Cable wiper systems are obsolete, the pantograph systems used in modern cars are the best but there is no room in these cars to install a pantograph wiper system. Not saying you cannot, but it would require some serious modifications, cutting sheet metal, etc.
The next step if no improvement, is to check the wiper switch itself, especially if it is stopping erratically, they do wear out and lose electrical contact. The trick is to get a hand behind the switch wiring plug and push / wiggle each wire as the switch is ON and engine is running, to see which one is causing the issue.
Start by removing the wiper arms;
inject a couple drops of 3-in-1 oil (ACE Hardware) into each wheelbox shaft.
remove battery to remove wiper motor. Once you have the motor freed from it's bracket and electrical connector plug, pull it away pulling with it the cable that goes into the car's Cowl.
Clean old grease and re-Grease the cable thoroughly, re-insert the cable into the tube it came out of and keep pushing it gently without kinking it or stressing it, you will see the wheelboxes moving as the cable passes under them. It is a very greasy job.
This should improve the wiper speeds, but don't expect modern efficiency, these wiper motors are lame and lazy even from new, they are the one complaint of all XJ owners since 1968. Cable wiper systems are obsolete, the pantograph systems used in modern cars are the best but there is no room in these cars to install a pantograph wiper system. Not saying you cannot, but it would require some serious modifications, cutting sheet metal, etc.
The next step if no improvement, is to check the wiper switch itself, especially if it is stopping erratically, they do wear out and lose electrical contact. The trick is to get a hand behind the switch wiring plug and push / wiggle each wire as the switch is ON and engine is running, to see which one is causing the issue.
Does anyone know if the series 2 are the same? I can't seem to find any info.
#9
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: Tehama County, California, USA
Posts: 25,666
Received 9,470 Likes
on
5,470 Posts
The following users liked this post:
Daf11e (09-20-2016)
#10
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: Dural, Northwest Sydney. Australia.
Posts: 40,716
Received 4,065 Likes
on
2,914 Posts
#11
Wioper boxes are below the wiper arms
Taking off the wiper arms and the top piece will only allow you to see the tops of the boxes... take off the dash pad and you can see then two the box(es) clearly.
Removing the wiper motor with the cable attached (the wiper arms have to be off the car) - will let you pull the cable out of the two boxes. Then the tops can be turned to assure there are no binds... lubing can take place easily.
Removing the wiper motor that is behind the battery (LHD) is easily done.
My biggest complaint on the S1 are the wiper motors not turning faster.. I thought the UK got lots more rain than So Cal -- the wipers should have been made to work better. When I changed my brushes in the motor it worked "as best as possible"... still much slower than a modern car.
Get the parts or service manual to know where the wires are located and the attaching bolts... plus the instructions for the R&R are located in there...
Removing the wiper motor with the cable attached (the wiper arms have to be off the car) - will let you pull the cable out of the two boxes. Then the tops can be turned to assure there are no binds... lubing can take place easily.
Removing the wiper motor that is behind the battery (LHD) is easily done.
My biggest complaint on the S1 are the wiper motors not turning faster.. I thought the UK got lots more rain than So Cal -- the wipers should have been made to work better. When I changed my brushes in the motor it worked "as best as possible"... still much slower than a modern car.
Get the parts or service manual to know where the wires are located and the attaching bolts... plus the instructions for the R&R are located in there...
The following users liked this post:
Daf11e (09-20-2016)
#12
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: Dural, Northwest Sydney. Australia.
Posts: 40,716
Received 4,065 Likes
on
2,914 Posts
The following users liked this post:
yarpos (09-21-2016)
The following users liked this post:
Daf11e (09-21-2016)
#14
The mechanism never changed from 1968 through to 1992 ! Having once owned an XJ6 for 14 years from 1988, I can confirm the wipers are a poor aspect of the car, realy heavy rain overwhelms them and the washers are pretty much useless as well. However they rarely if ever fail.
The one thing that did change was the motor was changed to a permanent magnet type but I don't know when, however my early Series 3 had the permanent magnet type which is a round magnet housing. The motor in the drawing is an excited-field type.
The one thing that did change was the motor was changed to a permanent magnet type but I don't know when, however my early Series 3 had the permanent magnet type which is a round magnet housing. The motor in the drawing is an excited-field type.
The following users liked this post:
Daf11e (09-21-2016)
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)