Stoty Posted March 24, 2011 Report Posted March 24, 2011 My girlfriend has a 2004 Sunfire, and her wipers just literally stopped working, mid-sweep. I checked the fuse, and checked to see if something got lodged, preventing the wipers from going. Any ideas as to what might be causing this? Also, not sure if this is normal or not, but while the car is off, I am able to literally move the wipers manually. Any help is much appreciated!
BillM Posted March 24, 2011 Report Posted March 24, 2011 (edited) Wiper relay or the wiper motor itself. Edited March 24, 2011 by BillM
irishfield Posted March 24, 2011 Report Posted March 24, 2011 (edited) Also, not sure if this is normal or not, but while the car is off, I am able to literally move the wipers manually. Did you do that before or after they stopped working.. Wiper "park" switch is stuck open and the motor thinks they're home. It can also be the multi switch on the signal light actuator if her car has one. My '98 GMC was $560+ for that dang thing + labour. Edited March 24, 2011 by irishfield
ecmilley Posted March 24, 2011 Report Posted March 24, 2011 if you can move the arms without much resistence chances are the wiper transmission is broken, this isn't uncommon, also the motor may have burned out or lost its ground all are common issues
cuzza Posted March 24, 2011 Report Posted March 24, 2011 If you can move them by hand, I'd be checking the linkage between the motor and the wipers, I'm not familiar with the Sunfire but alot of them are ball and socket or shaft and circlip type arrangements and you may just be able to pop it back together.
Fisherman Posted March 24, 2011 Report Posted March 24, 2011 (edited) Jeez it's only a Sunfire and a girlfriend, take out the windshield, give her a helmet and goggles, she'll be the cool one on the road. Might also be the small circuit board that the trucks had issues with. Edited March 24, 2011 by Fisherman
Stoty Posted March 24, 2011 Author Report Posted March 24, 2011 Wow, thanks guys! I moved them AFTER try stopped working, LOL
bdox Posted March 24, 2011 Report Posted March 24, 2011 You should get her to activate them and see if you can hear the motor making any kind of noise. that should narrow it down to a couple options.
pidge Posted March 24, 2011 Report Posted March 24, 2011 Can you hear the motor working??? If so I'd check what "Cuzza" has said. Pop the hood and start looking around the winshield area for screws that hold the cowl. The hood may have to be lowered again to fully remove the cowl, but once its removed you'll get acess to the linkages. Like Cuzzy said it may just need to be poped back on. My old truck did this a few times and I finally had to replace the linkage. Cheap part, cheaper if you can do it yourself. Good luck.
fishcrisp Posted March 24, 2011 Report Posted March 24, 2011 turn the wipers to the on psoition.. take a hammer and hit the wiper motor.. i bet u it will start working again. I had a truck back in the day and from time to time thats what i had to do
Billy Bob Posted March 24, 2011 Report Posted March 24, 2011 (edited) Just tell her to drive it on SUNNY DAYS....like a motorcycle...LOL Consider yourself luck if that's all it is for NOW....my son had a 2002 Sunfire and the head gasket went and the fuel pump was going...(had given him problems before)....one repair shop where he went to college offered him $1000.00 for it...LOL....... Good Luck, you're going to need it in the future... Edited to add: Try what FishCrip said... Bob Edited March 24, 2011 by Billy Bob
Pikeslayer Posted March 24, 2011 Report Posted March 24, 2011 (edited) I think the car is broken. You may want get a new girlfriend. Slayer Edited March 24, 2011 by pikeslayer
dhickey Posted March 24, 2011 Report Posted March 24, 2011 my jetta did that about a month ago. i could hear the wipper moter. no movement with the wipers. there are several linkages in there . it only takes one of the main ones close to the wiper moter to wear out . my mechanic got the right part from the auto wrecker ant the whole deal only cost 90 bucks. and no agrivation.
Jer Posted March 24, 2011 Report Posted March 24, 2011 The wiper motor on my parent's 1978 Delta 88 gave up on me once in the middle of a rain storm. Knowing GM, it may still be the same part...
pics Posted March 25, 2011 Report Posted March 25, 2011 This happened to our old cavalier. Try to find the ground wire from the motor then check where it is grounded to the firewall. Unscrew it , sand the metal parts that are rusty, then put it back together. If that doesn't work, well....... If it has one of those circuit boards,(I doubt it does) they can be fixed as well. Remove the board and use a dollar store magnifying glass to find small cracks in the solder. Get a small soldering gun and re-melt the affected areas. The full size chev trucks had these and many people were stuck buying new parts when they could be fixed in 10 minutes..........
Daplumma Posted March 25, 2011 Report Posted March 25, 2011 This happened to our old cavalier. Try to find the ground wire from the motor then check where it is grounded to the firewall. Unscrew it , sand the metal parts that are rusty, then put it back together. If that doesn't work, well....... If it has one of those circuit boards,(I doubt it does) they can be fixed as well. Remove the board and use a dollar store magnifying glass to find small cracks in the solder. Get a small soldering gun and re-melt the affected areas. The full size chev trucks had these and many people were stuck buying new parts when they could be fixed in 10 minutes.......... Ditto.The old Astro vans had this issue.If the linkage moves freely It may be a toasted linkage.Either way a new girlfriend is in order. Joe
Tarzan's Jane Posted March 25, 2011 Report Posted March 25, 2011 And if you don't get it fixed for her ASAP...then a new boyfriend is in order. (Just sticking it back to the ones that suggested a new girlfriend) Seriously though, this is a test to see just how handy you are. If you really want to keep her you got until tomorrow to get r done.
Fisherman Posted March 25, 2011 Report Posted March 25, 2011 And if you don't get it fixed for her ASAP...then a new boyfriend is in order. (Just sticking it back to the ones that suggested a new girlfriend) Seriously though, this is a test to see just how handy you are. If you really want to keep her you got until tomorrow to get r done. Why would he get it fixed for his girlfriend, her car, her problem. Besides, being a good girlfriend leads to being a good future wife and we all know that means spending time in the kitchen away from the phone and computer. Time away from the stove leads to potential burning of supper, a.k.a. unhappy husband syndrome. Now get back to your stove and no texting between stirring.
bigbuck Posted March 25, 2011 Report Posted March 25, 2011 It's either the motor or the dreaded multi function switch. Get a circuit tester and see if there is any current to the wiper motor itself, try different positions on the switch. If you are real handy, you can replace the motor, the switch is a different matter, the steering wheel needs to come off along with the airbag so that's better left for a qualified shop to handle. Try rockauto.com for the parts, they ship to Canada and are much cheaper than anywhere here. I have a shipment of parts coming in today and including shipping and taxes, I'm saving 30-40% over what the shop price is nevermind what Canadian Tire or Partsource or any of the other parts stores would charge for them. The only issue is that it takes about a week to get the parts.
pikehunter Posted March 25, 2011 Report Posted March 25, 2011 Problem's not the car or the wiper motor...problem is you need to dump her and find a mechanically inclined girl so she can fix her own car, then when you have a problem with yours then she can fix it too! Oh yeah, make sure she likes fishing and if she has a boat even better!
Billy Bob Posted March 25, 2011 Report Posted March 25, 2011 Problem's not the car or the wiper motor...problem is you need to dump her and find a mechanically inclined girl so she can fix her own car, then when you have a problem with yours then she can fix it too! Oh yeah, make sure she likes fishing and if she has a boat even better! Yep....one that looks like Marisa Tomie in "My Cousin Vinny"....
Headhunter Posted March 25, 2011 Report Posted March 25, 2011 Sunfire's are the "bic" lighters of vehicles... they are disposable... so dispose of it! HH
Raf Posted March 25, 2011 Report Posted March 25, 2011 dispose of it for a less than $50 fix if he does it himself?? i'm betting on the linkage or the motor. if it blew a head gasket then absolutely!!
Billy Bob Posted March 25, 2011 Report Posted March 25, 2011 if it blew a head gasket then absolutely!! With "Deathcool" that GM uses, it wouldn't be long...
Headhunter Posted March 25, 2011 Report Posted March 25, 2011 dispose of it for a less than $50 fix if he does it himself?? i'm betting on the linkage or the motor. if it blew a head gasket then absolutely!! My post was a poor attemp at humour... mostly! HH
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