Wipers not working

[dparnas]

Spent part of the day today trying to figure out why the wipers are not working on my 1971 124
Spider. At first it seemed as if the motor was burned out, as there was current
making it to the motor, but it was not consistent current. Pulled the motor and applied current directly to the
contact points and it did move, indicating it was not completely dead. Putting
it back in the car and trying again, it fried the fuse and I didn't have any
replacements (shame shame), so put everything back together and will try and
regroup. When the intermittent wipers are turned on, you can hear a clicking
sound coming from the dash behind the instrument cluster. One theory is
that perhaps the relay was not sending constant current to the motor. Assuming
I explained all of that properly, anyone want to provide their input here?

[Dawgme85]

Search both the "Electrical Issues" and "General Maintenance" Forums for "wiper linkage".

This should give you some ideas on where to look. Your wiper linkage may be siezed or bound enough that the motor can't overcome the drag.

Good luck.

[Tango]

That sounds familiar to my problems last fall. The old motor could run on its own, but not overcome the friction of the blades on the glass, even with newly cleaned and lubricated linkages, and I figured the clicking was the worn gears slipping.

When i put the new motor in and the cowling back together the second last time, one of the cowling sheet metal screws nicked the power wire and grounded it, blowing the fuse for me also. As far as i can see, the wire was meant to be routed right by that screw, so it is worth looking at to make sure you didnt do likewise.

Getting the cowling off without scratching the fenders was for me far more frustrating than actually fixing the wipers. tight fit.

[Dawgme85]

...I figured the clicking was the worn gears slipping...

The Intermittent Wiper Relay also clicks normally (between swipes)...