Wiper motor not operable

I am having a problem and am hoping someone can help point me in the right direction.

The wipers are not functioning. When I go to use them (either by turning them to an on-position or by trying to use the washer) I just get a click noise similar to trying to use a starter with an insufficient battery charge.

So I go to the junkyard and pull every comparable GM wiper motor there. Swap each of them in one at a time, makes no difference.

Open up the factory service manual and it explains there are two connectors- connector C1 & C2. C1 controls the wiper motor and C2 controls the washer pump. The one that controls the wiper movement has 2-3 pins depending on whether its the basic or pulse (aka delay) system. White wire in each connector should be hot when the key is in the acc/run positions. The multi-function switch turns on these systems by giving them a ground.

Multi-meter confirms both connectors have +12 volts in the right places, a good ground connection when the system is supposed to be running. There is a diode in each connector, both test good.

Thinking maybe the wiper arms are binding I try it again with the wiper arm crankshaft disconnected. No success there either.

What are the odds all the motors i pulled were shot? Is there a bench test procedure? Am I overlooking something simple?

 

Bypass the wiring and give the motor power and ground straight from the battery. If the motor doesn't run, I'd say it's shot?

 

Ok I tried wiring up the motors by hand by running +12v to each middle pin of both connectors, and then tried giving the remaining pins a ground one at a time and then all together. Could not get any of the motors, including a known good one, to work off the car like this.

So I tried putting a different motor on the car and this time when I would hit the windshield washer, it would actually move the wipers & do the washer fluid cycle. Thought I had success.

Except the motor would not bring the wiper arms down to park and the wiper motors would not work on any speed setting (only washer cycle worked).

I try throwing another known-good motor in and this behavior cannot be replicated and it does nothing.

So I know the system is not physically binding because it was able to do a washer cycle, but that only worked with 1 (of 4) motors (2 of which are known to be good).

Multifunction switch failure?

Normally electrical problems don't stump me this bad but one of the prior owners butchered the heck out of the wiring when he removed the CCC system. God only knows what could be screwed up between the motor & the stalk.

 

I'm not getting fluid, but wipers work! Is it the pump? or something else? Thanks.

 

If you're not getting fluid it could be that you're out of fluid, or the hoses between the wiper motor & fluid tank are clogged internally.

The pump for the washer fluid is part of the wiper motor assembly. The motor assembly can be disassembled & rebuilt and you can buy a new washer pump module to put in it (think dorman might make them).

Or it could be clogged after the pump but before the window.

I need to pull the pump off of one of my junkyard motors to throw it in a friend's car (pump on that one died).

On the plus side these motors are just 3 bolts & 1 nut. But I am starting to get tired of constantly installing & removing them. ou:

 

It would help if you listed your application. Is this a square wiper motor 64-67 non parking or the round type, 68 and up?
I recently had a similar issue on my 67 3 wire wiper motor and the washer bellows had ruptured and allowed washer fluid to enter the motor housing and seized the assembly. Replacement was the only solution.
However your issue sounds electrical.... Good luck

 

A wiring schematic would help you a bunch. That way you could trace the wires to see just what was butchered. It would also inform you as to which contacts on the motors are supposed to be hot, so you can off-car test the used ones.

 

Its been half a year and I am still having problems with these damn wiper motors.

I tried a rebuilt A1 Cardone model with delay. It worked great! Until I went to use the washer feature. The pump gave out before it could build up enough vacuum to pull the washer fluid out of the reservoir and to the nozzle on the windshield. Soon after that, the pump motor itself crapped out on me. $150 rebuilt wiper motor, dead in less than a day.



It came with a warranty but I was so fedup I went back to trying used ones out of the junk yard. Found one that worked. Thought everything was fine. Then a few months later the park-switch went and it would be on max-speed 24/7. Sigh. Here we go again.

Take the A1 Cardone back and get another one. It too dies under the same circumstances right after installation, lasted less than a day. Best I can figure the washer fluid pump needs to be primed but there is no procedure for this in the factory service manual.

So I am thinking maybe A1 Cardone just does a bad job rebuilding these wiper motors. The used ones out of junkyards tend to be bad or nearly bad by now (30-some years and 150k or so later) but if they lasted that long, maybe the authentic GM ones are better.

RockAuto carries a AC Delco remade wiper motor, GM's P/N for this being 22110871

But is that a delay equipped or no-delay version? And what kind of a warranty does AC Delco include on them?

Something so simple should not be this hard!