Wipers Don't Work...

[Mike Abild]

I just bought a 1973 240Z... I can't get my wipers to work. Any step-by-step directions to troubleshoot? When I turn the switch on there's no response, no sound, nothing. Otherwise, all electricals seems to work. Also, does anyone know what type of automatic transmission fluid to use for a '73 automatic?

Thanks... new to this site.

Mike Abild

[EScanlon]

Mike:

First off, you'll have to identify whether your car has the intermittent wiper option or not. Take a look at your combination switch, and tell us if you have 2 or 3 white dots for the Wiper Switch Knob portion. If you have 2, then you do NOT have intermittent wipers, 3 dots means you do (1st dot is the intermittent position, and AFAIK it is not an adjustable wipe cycle).

Next, check the obvious:

The fuse (2nd one down on the left side of the fuse box, 20A).

Connection to the motor in the engine bay, up by the hood latch. Should be easy enough to disconnect, and re-connect to ensure that there is a fresh contact between the spade connectors.

Connections to the combination switch, underneath the clamshell plastic that surrounds the ignition lock, combination switch and T/S switch on the steering column.

If the fuse looks ok, you might still remove and replace or at least do a continuity check on it. Those glass fuses many times will look ok, but actually have lost the connection to the end caps internally and essentially be bad.

Lastly, have someone put their ear close to the Cowl panel (the one with the ventilation holes just in front of the windshield), as you turn the key to "Run" (no need to run the engine) and turn on the windshield switch to it's fastest setting. If they hear the motor, but the wipers don't move ... it's a different problem. If they don't hear anything we still need to trace that the motor is getting electricity.

Check those items out first.

Enrique

[beandip]

Just regular ATF . I use Castrol multi-vehicle .

[Mike Abild]

Thanks Enrique! I definitely have three dots, so I guess I have intermittent wipers... I'll work through your "checklist," starting with the fuse. I pulled it the other evening and it looked okay, but very unusual - the fuse inside the glass tune looked like a saw blade... odd. I'll replace it, just in case. Thanks for your help. I've also ordered a Haynes manual to help guide me through some of these questions...

Mike

[Ramses]

Nooooooooooo,

Haynes manuals stink. So do Clymer. Do yourself a favor and buy a shop manual. I had some major electrical issues with my '73 and the only help I could get was purchasing a photocopy of a shop manual. Definately a life savor.

If there is a clicking noise under the dash on the passanger side then the relay is either bad or connected wrong. After you have done everyting that Enrique said, you could remove or bypass the electircs of the car and see if the motor itself is bad. All you need is a ground wire and a hot wire. Make sure that your fingers aren't anyway near the mechanism...better yet, remove the wiper motor and test it on a table.

[Mike Abild]

Thanks for the tip, Ramses... I got my Haynes yesterday and you'd need a pretty high-powered magnifying glass to read the electrical diagrams. I'll look for a shop manual. By the way, I took Enrique's step-by-step instructions and got my wipers working yesterday... tuns out it was the fuse. Also, got it through the Texas safety inspection (woo-hoo) and got it titled at the Tax Office (a pain - the ownership had passed through probate in California). So, I'm legal and on the road!!! Next project: changing the transmission and differential fluids...

[Ramses]

After the holidays, it would be nice to get together and compare z's. I live close to downtown Houston.

[EScanlon]

Mike:

Glad you got it working.

For those who might read this thread later, the reason for asking about the intermittent versus non-intermittent wipers is that the relay that controls the wipe cycle is usually mounted ON the motor itself and not on the kick panel and as a result causes people to confuse the accessory relay with it.

Mike, there are also a couple of posts regarding how to make the wipers function better, do a search and you'll find tons of information.

Enrique

[Ramses]

I stand corrected

[EScanlon]

Chuck:

That wasn't my intent at all.

There are several relays on the kick panel, and depending on the year of car they vary as to type and location. I've myself been bitten by that fact alone. This is sometimes half the fun in Z-Car Carchaelogy.

Case in point, I have a separate Intermittent Relay Switch for the Pre-73 vehicles which houses the relay within the epoxy box it's contained in.

Also powering the wiper motor can be a challenge by itself. It takes more than a pair of wires to get it to work properly, and depending on whether it's intermittent or not.....

For those who may wonder what I mean by more than 2 wires to power the motor, best as I've been able to decipher the schematic, the Blue/Red wire feeds 12v+, and needs to ground through the Blue/White AND EITHER the Blue or the Blue/Yellow, and this is for the non-intermittent motor.

I don't currently have my bench set up to test this, but as soon as I do I'll post a better explanation.

E