Windsheild wiper troubles

[eds1275]

I was going to ask on a car forum but don't know which ones are good and am at work and don't want to sign up for another forum right now. I have a problem with my windsheild wipers where they stay on after engaging them. I can turn the switch to off and they keep on trucking. Until I turn the car off, and then they are off until I turn them on. When I turn the car on, they park themselves at the bottom if the wipers are set to off. Seems like it would be an easy fix.

Ideas? Or suggestions for a car forum?

[Howard_Casto]

What kind of car?  I don't know what your problem is, but I might be able to direct you to a good forum.  Typically you want to find a forum for your specific model car... and yes, that's a thing. 

Wiper systems usually have a set of relays that control the whole startup/shutdown procedure.  It sounds like it could be a simple wiring problem and/or one of these relays are loose.  That's about the extent of my wiper knowledge though. 

[eds1275]

It's a 1983 Buick Electra Park Avenue

[Howard_Casto]

Ahh the hearse.  Try these guys:

http://www.teambuick.com/forums/activity.php

Try searching for "wiper park" as it's a fairly common problem on old Buicks.  I know grandmaw's old 85 lesabre did it, but I was 6 at the time, so I don't exactly remember what the issue was. 

[jdbailey1206]

Same sort of issue on my 98 Silverado.  I have to replace my windsheild wiper logic board.

[danny_galaga]

Wipers self park when you switch them off. So when you turn off your wiper normally, power continues via a switch plate in the wiper motor assembly. It has copper contacts shaped on it so that when the wipers get to the right spot, it then finally disconnects. It can sometimes happen that the wiper motor spins TOO easily for some reason (it's normally the other way around though) and when it does, it will overshoot the contacts because of inertia so that it then makes contact again. Try this to see if this is the problem. When you switch them off, carefully hold the blades and put some gentle drag on it, mimicking some extra load. If they then stop where they should have, the problem lies in that direction. One solution in that case is just putting new wiper blades on.

I think also this can happen just from carbon build up etc in that same switch plate. In which case you would have to take it apart and clean it up. Be careful if putting power to wiper terminals if you are testing it out of the car though. Connect the wrong two terminals up and you put a dead short through the switch gear, blowing the 'fingers' that make the contact! When I was an apprentice, most of us did this at trade school

I can't remember how else it can be fixed, it's been a long time since I was an auto electrician and also, that problem was pretty rare. More common was the other way around- wiper motors that drew too much load (lack of lubrication).