'96 850 wagon - rear wiper stuck?!

  • Thread starter Thread starter Atif I. Chaudhry
  • Start date Start date
A

Atif I. Chaudhry

The rear wiper on my '96 850 wagon no longer moves.

I checked the fuse and it is fine. I thought it might be the wiper
stalk, but I can still use it to control the front wipers. If I press
the rear window wash, fluid flows, but the rear wiper doesn't move.

Does this mean the wiper motor is gone? How hard and expensive is this
to fix?

Is there any other possible cause for this?
 
It could be the motor that's the problem, but it's also possible that there
is a loose connection between the motor and the wiring, or a broken wire -
sometimes the wire breaks where it passes from the body to the rear door
(near the roof hinge on my V70, which is very similar to the 850)
Considering that that part of the wiring harness gets bent every time you
open and close the tailgate, it's surprising the wiring doesn't fail more
often.

So check the wiring and connections first. If they are OK, and it does turn
out to be the motor, it isn't that hard to replace, but buying a new part is
quite expensive. (I live in the UK, and ALL Volvo parts are expensive!). As
the rear wiper motor is not safety critical, I'd try to pick one up
secondhand on E-Bay first for a car that's nearly ten years old.

Hope this helps

Bill
 
Bill said:
So check the wiring and connections first. If they are OK, and it does turn
out to be the motor, it isn't that hard to replace, but buying a new part is
quite expensive. (I live in the UK, and ALL Volvo parts are expensive!). As
the rear wiper motor is not safety critical, I'd try to pick one up
secondhand on E-Bay first for a car that's nearly ten years old.
Click to expand...

I took a Volvo wiper motor apart one time and found the only problem was
that the gear grease had gotten on the electrical contacts. There is a
simple cover over the contacts. After removing this cover and a couple
minutes cleaning up the electrical contacts, the motor was fixed for
another hundred thousand miles.
 
Atif I. Chaudhry said:
The rear wiper on my '96 850 wagon no longer moves.

I checked the fuse and it is fine. I thought it might be the wiper
stalk, but I can still use it to control the front wipers. If I press
the rear window wash, fluid flows, but the rear wiper doesn't move.

Does this mean the wiper motor is gone? How hard and expensive is this
to fix?

Is there any other possible cause for this?
Click to expand...

Common to all Volvos are seized pivots, both front and rear. This is
really bad if the wiper is not in the parked position because the motor
will be trying to park the wiper all the time the car is on, whether the
wiper is switched on or not. If you try to move the wiper arm back and
forth a little, the seizing is obvious if you can directly compare it to
a good one.

--
Mike F.
Thornhill (near Toronto), Ont.

Replace tt with t (twice!) and remove parentheses to email me directly.
(But I check the newsgroup more often than this email address.)
 
Talked to the local Volvo mechanic and said that it is most likely that
the motor seized.

He claimed that it would take about 1 hour to fix and involves removing
the rear inside panel of the door. He quoted me $60 and said I could
make an appointment and wait while they do it, or I could just wait
until I am bringing it in for its next service/oil change.

Is it really bad if the rear wiper isn't in the parked position? Should
I manually force back to the park position? (It is almost there now)

Can I fix it myself and save the $60?

Thanks for all the info so far!
 
Same thing here with the fuel filler central locking relase mechanism.

An hour or so in the sunshine disasembling, cleaning and reassembling
and a good squirt of WD40 brought it back to life.
 
Atif I. Chaudhry said:
Is it really bad if the rear wiper isn't in the parked position? Should
I manually force back to the park position? (It is almost there now)
Click to expand...

You may have solved the problem. It may have stopped in a position
where it won't restart. Maybe GENTLY nudging it back and forth when it
is "on" will help it make contact and start up again. It is a long
shot, but they do have a dead spot sometimes. It could be dirt on the
contacts or a crack in the metal.
 
Atif I. Chaudhry said:
Talked to the local Volvo mechanic and said that it is most likely that
the motor seized.

He claimed that it would take about 1 hour to fix and involves removing
the rear inside panel of the door. He quoted me $60 and said I could
make an appointment and wait while they do it, or I could just wait
until I am bringing it in for its next service/oil change.

Is it really bad if the rear wiper isn't in the parked position? Should
I manually force back to the park position? (It is almost there now)

Can I fix it myself and save the $60?

Thanks for all the info so far!
Click to expand...

If the rear wiper isn't in the parked position, then the motor will be
stalled, which is a good way to burn it out. So not only will you need
a new pivot, you'll need a new motor too. Some motors subject to this
seem to have no trouble after this happens, some are dead, and some quit
a couple of days later. The ones that quit shortly after a new pivot
has been installed makes for great customer relations!

--
Mike F.
Thornhill (near Toronto), Ont.

Replace tt with t (twice!) and remove parentheses to email me directly.
(But I check the newsgroup more often than this email address.)
 
I turned on the rear wiper and then gave it a gentle nudge and sure
enough with a little "help" it works.

I then set it to the interval setting, helped it get back to the start
position, and ran back and turned off the rear wiper. This should leave
it in the parked position, right? To protect the motor from burning
out?
 
Atif I. Chaudhry said:
I turned on the rear wiper and then gave it a gentle nudge and sure
enough with a little "help" it works.

I then set it to the interval setting, helped it get back to the start
position, and ran back and turned off the rear wiper. This should leave
it in the parked position, right? To protect the motor from burning
out?
Click to expand...

Yes, now the motor is not powered, so won't suffer any (more) damage.

--
Mike F.
Thornhill (near Toronto), Ont.

Replace tt with t (twice!) and remove parentheses to email me directly.
(But I check the newsgroup more often than this email address.)
 
Hello Atif:

As I recall you live in my area, Central NY.
I turned on the rear wiper and then gave it a gentle nudge and sure
enough with a little "help" it works.
Click to expand...

That's a good sign and indicates that the rear wiper motor is still
OK. Most likely problem is that the pinion shaft is getting "stiff"
due to water intrusion and lack of lubrication. Removing the control
arm assembly and dosing it liberally with PB Blaster or a similar
product and then working it back and forth by hand should solve the
problem.
I then set it to the interval setting, helped it get back to the start
position, and ran back and turned off the rear wiper. This should leave
it in the parked position, right? To protect the motor from burning
out?
Click to expand...

Leave it turned off and you should be OK--but be sure not to
accidentally turn it on. New rear wiper motors are over $200 and are a
dealer item only.
Ahhh..I can say with certainty is was not anyone at Alan Byer Volvo
who told you that--but have a good idea who did.
$60 for what he says takes one hour? THat may be what a flat rate book
says for this task, but now I know who the shop in question is and I
have ZERO confidence in his skills.

In the Syracuse area there are only one or two guys who are true Volvo
specialists. One worked for the local dealer for years; the other
worked for Volvo in Sweden and is superb but basically retired now.


Keep ijn mind that any COMPETENT shop can do nearly all the service on
your vehicle, but for some things the dealer is the shop of choice.
Don't force it, just leave it where it is for now.
Yes, it's a REALLY easy fix and I'll be happy to help you and show you
how to do it if you have an hour and are not too far from Dewitt NY.

I have all tools required and the job at hand actually takes about 15
minutes if one has to replace the wiper motor but should take less on
your car. I only ask you to set aside and hour as we will do it slowly
and I'll explain it to you step by step.

No charge involved; I simply like meeting other local Volvo owners who
wish to learn more about taking care of their cars.

I'm located less than ten minutes from Shoppingtown Mall, in the
Woodchuck Hill Road area.

My email address is: [email protected]

Remove the "nospam" part of the address to contact me and I'll give
you my phone number when you mail me.

Atif, please note that I'll not be able to do it this weekend as I'll
be at my place in Old Forge and then out of town until Friday
afternoon June 25th.
Only true if power goes to the motor.

So not only will you need
Wiper control assembly and pivot runs about $110 at the dealer and is
generally a dealer only item, but IMHO if the wiper has not been run
with a stiff or frozen pivot things should be OK

Regards,

Doc
 
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