Testing Windshield Wiper Motors

[Mav]

Just looking at pic above, my 2 yellows are together on black plug at motor but shouldnt matter right? thanks again.

[LockDoc]

Originally Posted by Mav

Just looking at pic above, my 2 yellows are together on black plug at motor but shouldnt matter right? thanks again.

That wouldn't make any difference.....

LockDoc

[Mav]

I bench tested motor per your instructions, everything worked fine, put in pickup and all I get is a click when I turn the wiper switch on. If I depress switch for washer pump it runs (low and high). Its a new switch and I tested the 3 wires to switch for continuity, (all good). Where would you go from here? thanks Lockdoc. Mav

[LockDoc]

Originally Posted by Mav

I bench tested motor per your instructions, everything worked fine, put in pickup and all I get is a click when I turn the wiper switch on. If I depress switch for washer pump it runs (low and high). Its a new switch and I tested the 3 wires to switch for continuity, (all good). Where would you go from here? thanks Lockdoc. Mav

Did you check all of your ground straps as I suggested in the thread you originally posted? I included a link to the ground strap thread. If the cab isn't grounded correctly the motor may not work right.

The new switch could possibly be bad. Is the new switch mounted in the dash? The switch has to be mounted in the dash or the motor wont work because it grounds through the switch housing. You could put the old switch back in and try it.

LockDoc

[Mav]

Yes on ground straps, passenger side block to firewall was loose, and switch is solid in dash, got new switch before I got very far with this cause I had no idea what was wrong, haha I still dont! Anyway old switch was doing almost the same thing but the washer wouldnt shut off even when you released switch, It wont take long to go back and try the other switch though, like what have I got to lose?

[Mav]

This is really grasping at straws, the bezel for switch is off and set screw is backed off on plastic knob, they cant possibly have anything to do with grounding of switch, can they?

[LockDoc]

Originally Posted by Mav

This is really grasping at straws, the bezel for switch is off and set screw is backed off on plastic knob, they cant possibly have anything to do with grounding of switch, can they?

No, that wouldn't have anything to do with it.

If you have a jumper wire with alligator clips on both ends clip one end to the wiper motor (you will need bare metal to clip it to, but not the mounting bolts) and the other end to a good ground on the back of the dash (clean metal) then turn it on and see if it will work. It is very important to have bare metal on both ends.

Let me know what happens.

LockDoc

[Mav]

Tried the old switch and the ground wire, (scraped paint off housing) and went to emerg. brk. housing and trans. stick (both bare) no change.....

[Mav]

I cant come up with anything except 2 bad switches.

[LockDoc]

Originally Posted by Mav

I cant come up with anything except 2 bad switches.

Does your wiring look the same as the picture in post #67, except the two yellow wires are on the black connector instead of the brown one? Are the light blue and dark blue wires the same as the picture above?

LockDoc

[Mav]

The brown plug has a lt. blue and a yellow to washer, black plug has 2 yellows and a dk. blue , then a black is by itself to wiper motor, switch has lt. blue, dk. blue and black.

[Mav]

Difference in mine and #67 pic is my 2 yellows are on black plug and my dk. blue and lt. blue are reversed (I have lt. blue in brown plug to washer and dk.blue is in black plug to motor.

[Mav]

Will check this in the morning, thanks for all your help, Mav

[Richard2112]

Excellent write up. I will be referring to this in the future.

[LockDoc]

Originally Posted by Mav

Difference in mine and #67 pic is my 2 yellows are on black plug and my dk. blue and lt. blue are reversed (I have lt. blue in brown plug to washer and dk.blue is in black plug to motor.

Try changing the wires around so it is like the picture...

LockDoc

[tutone]

Locdoc, I got mine going this morning, albeit temporarily. (Waiting on a reliable new switch). Mine was doing exactly as MAV's was after my dash pad change out . It turned out to be a combination of two things. RUST in the fuse holder. I could not see it but when I removed the fuse, it was there nonetheless. My switch was not making good contact either so I cleaned it and tested it. I could not make the wipers work with a home rig of an aftermarket toggle or push/pull off /on switch either. It must take a HARD ground to operate them. One thing about electricity for sure is, you have to have an uninterrupted path to ground no matter whether it is a negative system like wipers or a positive ground like a starter. Once I wrapped my head around the way they work, the rest was simple. Thanks for such an informative thread.

[Mav]

Was just ahead of you, I switched the blue wires, good news is it works, bad news is so does washer pump, wont shut off till I turn switch to off.

[Mike_The_Grad]

I have an issue that I've yet to find an answer to let alone anyone with the same scenario.
I rewired my 72 c10 with an American autowire kit back in 2014. Tonight after making the 30 mile trip home in the rain and my wipers on high. I reached up under the dash to try and track down some back feed noise I'm getting coming out of the Kenwood speakers. The damn wiper motor case was cookin hot! Almost burnt the back of my hand it was so hot.
Some history, I bought the truck back in 2004 from my ex's dad. He said that the washer pump started pumping after he hit the wiper switch and it pumped the reservoir dry. So he disconnected the washer pump. Jump ahead to 2014 and I rewired the entire truck. I completely forgot about the washer pump issue. I never noticed a noise or any issue for that matter. But about a year ago I was messing with the wiring under the dash and the damn wiper motor was hot. So I read up on the wiring and decided I could pull the dark blue wire from the wiper switch and the washer pump connector but still have wiper function.
So that's what I did and it worked fine.
So, tonight I replaced my instrument bulbs with LEDs and the old thermal flasher relays with new LL Novita Electronic Flashers. The old flasher relays were grounded to the damn fuse panel. It took my about 20 minutes to disconnect the 2 flasher relays, resulting in completely breaking the old relays and extracting the broken terminal ends with small needle nose pliers. Installed the new LEDs and flashers and everything was fine.
Until I got home and reached up under the dash to find the damn wiper motor super hot again!
So I pulled the washer pump feed that connects to the washer pump and jumps to the wiper motor, I now only have the single black connector along with the light blue and white lead connector plugged into the wiper motor. The wipers work in both slow and high settings. But the damn case is still cooking hot.

ANY THOUGHTS?

I could care less about the washer pump functioning but the wipers HAVE TO WORK. I just don't wanna damage anything by just having the wipers and no washer pump...

[LockDoc]

Originally Posted by Mike_The_Grad

I have an issue that I've yet to find an answer to let alone anyone with the same scenario.
I rewired my 72 c10 with an American autowire kit back in 2014. Tonight after making the 30 mile trip home in the rain and my wipers on high. I reached up under the dash to try and track down some back feed noise I'm getting coming out of the Kenwood speakers. The damn wiper motor case was cookin hot! Almost burnt the back of my hand it was so hot.
Some history, I bought the truck back in 2004 from my ex's dad. He said that the washer pump started pumping after he hit the wiper switch and it pumped the reservoir dry. So he disconnected the washer pump. Jump ahead to 2014 and I rewired the entire truck. I completely forgot about the washer pump issue. I never noticed a noise or any issue for that matter. But about a year ago I was messing with the wiring under the dash and the damn wiper motor was hot. So I read up on the wiring and decided I could pull the dark blue wire from the wiper switch and the washer pump connector but still have wiper function.
So that's what I did and it worked fine.
So, tonight I replaced my instrument bulbs with LEDs and the old thermal flasher relays with new LL Novita Electronic Flashers. The old flasher relays were grounded to the damn fuse panel. It took my about 20 minutes to disconnect the 2 flasher relays, resulting in completely breaking the old relays and extracting the broken terminal ends with small needle nose pliers. Installed the new LEDs and flashers and everything was fine.
Until I got home and reached up under the dash to find the damn wiper motor super hot again!
So I pulled the washer pump feed that connects to the washer pump and jumps to the wiper motor, I now only have the single black connector along with the light blue and white lead connector plugged into the wiper motor. The wipers work in both slow and high settings. But the damn case is still cooking hot.

ANY THOUGHTS?

I could care less about the washer pump functioning but the wipers HAVE TO WORK. I just don't wanna damage anything by just having the wipers and no washer pump...

I would say that the armature is dragging on the windings. I would just replace it....

LockDoc

[Mav]

Cant fix my own so might as well try yours lol. If pump isn't working right you could be turning it all the time and heating up wiper motor, try removing pump (2 quarter inch screws) and see what happens.

[Mike_The_Grad]

Thank you guys for your input! That's why I love this site.

MAV,
Sorry to hear that. I appreciate the suggestion, and will try it. I've gone through just about every system on the truck except the wipers/washer pump stuff. Might as well be a rubix cube that makes the wipers work...lol.

LOCKDOC,
I appreciate your reply. Thank you. Honestly I am completely clueless as to how the wiper/washer pump operate. I have both the F.S.M. And F.A.M. But I have never removed the wiper/washer assembly. Even when I rewired the truck I didnt pay much attention to what was what under the dash, especially since everything worked as should when I was finished installing the kit. But now I accept that it's on the list of things that should be serviced after 45 years.

From what I have read on this site is that a washer pump rebuild kit is a crapshoot and some folks opt for a newer style pump and relocate it accordingly. Is there any real benefit in swapping to a newer style pump? I don't mind keeping the setup O.E.M. But I'm not opposed to a different setup either. I'm mostly concerned with longevity, reliability, and ease of installation. (Unless it really is worth the extra work for a better setup.)

Living in Southern California, the weather is pretty much consistent year round. It's the few odd days when it isnt that I want to be prepared for.
Rain-X can only do so much.

[LockDoc]

Originally Posted by Mike_The_Grad

Thank you guys for your input! That's why I love this site.

MAV,
Sorry to hear that. I appreciate the suggestion, and will try it. I've gone through just about every system on the truck except the wipers/washer pump stuff. Might as well be a rubix cube that makes the wipers work...lol.

LOCKDOC,
I appreciate your reply. Thank you. Honestly I am completely clueless as to how the wiper/washer pump operate. I have both the F.S.M. And F.A.M. But I have never removed the wiper/washer assembly. Even when I rewired the truck I didnt pay much attention to what was what under the dash, especially since everything worked as should when I was finished installing the kit. But now I accept that it's on the list of things that should be serviced after 45 years.

From what I have read on this site is that a washer pump rebuild kit is a crapshoot and some folks opt for a newer style pump and relocate it accordingly. Is there any real benefit in swapping to a newer style pump? I don't mind keeping the setup O.E.M. But I'm not opposed to a different setup either. I'm mostly concerned with longevity, reliability, and ease of installation. (Unless it really is worth the extra work for a better setup.)

Living in Southern California, the weather is pretty much consistent year round. It's the few odd days when it isnt that I want to be prepared for.
Rain-X can only do so much.

If you are going to replace the wiper motor anyway you could go ahead and put a kit in the pump. The thing to keep in mind is that anytime a vehicle has sat for a long time without the wipers/washers being used or a new kit is installed in the pump, the whole system has to be primed before the pump will pump any fluid. I use a turkey baster to prime the system while the pump is pumping. Also, while the system is apart blow through all of the hoses and squirter nozzles with an air hose. Do not blow air through the pump, you could rupture the diaphram in the pump. (and blow backwards through the squirter nozzles) Oh, and don't forget to clean the small strainer screen inside the washer tank.

If you decide to go with the external pump there are instructions on here for wiring it to the original wiper/washer switch.....

LockDoc

[msg]

Originally Posted by LockDoc

If you are going to replace the wiper motor anyway you could go ahead and put a kit in the pump. The thing to keep in mind is that anytime a vehicle has sat for a long time without the wipers/washers being used or a new kit is installed in the pump, the whole system has to be primed before the pump will pump any fluid. I use a turkey baster to prime the system while the pump is pumping. Also, while the system is apart blow through all of the hoses and squirter nozzles with an air hose. Do not blow air through the pump, you could rupture the diaphram in the pump. (and blow backwards through the squirter nozzles) Oh, and don't forget to clean the small strainer screen inside the washer tank.

If you decide to go with the external pump there are instructions on here for wiring it to the original wiper/washer switch.....

LockDoc

I dont mind replacing with a kit, but is it too difficult to test what I have now while its not installed on the truck? Currently the wiring harness hasnt been installed yet.

I watched this video on the replacement but this one is a 67 chevy van but its installed on the van while testing. The intro is creepy, but past that its informative.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUax433B3Bw

[msg]

Originally Posted by LockDoc

If you are going to replace the wiper motor anyway you could go ahead and put a kit in the pump. The thing to keep in mind is that anytime a vehicle has sat for a long time without the wipers/washers being used or a new kit is installed in the pump, the whole system has to be primed before the pump will pump any fluid. I use a turkey baster to prime the system while the pump is pumping. Also, while the system is apart blow through all of the hoses and squirter nozzles with an air hose. Do not blow air through the pump, you could rupture the diaphram in the pump. (and blow backwards through the squirter nozzles) Oh, and don't forget to clean the small strainer screen inside the washer tank.

If you decide to go with the external pump there are instructions on here for wiring it to the original wiper/washer switch.....

LockDoc

I checked out post 95 on testing the pump and I would like to try the kit replacement. I see you mention the turkey baster to prime it with which I will do. Question though, is there a similar way to test the pump with the jumper wires while I have it on the bench vs in the truck?

[ThreeQuarter]

Score another win for this 10yo thread. Helped me work through two mis-wired connectors and a poorly-grounded switch. Thanks Leon!