Wiper Motor and Spindles

Fitting the wiper motor and spindles was another job I have been putting off for what seems like forever.

I just couldn't get my head around how the whole set up works so left it until now when its a case of it has to be sorted.

Looking at the build notes and a couple of blogs there appeared to be a number of things to consider and get right.


1. Position of the spindle holes and the angle at which they are drilled.

I put some masking tape on the scuttle and marked the positions described on the build notes and drilled a pilot hole. I then held the black plastic spacer onto the scuttle and drilled through, progressively using bigger drills at the same angle as the spacer until I reached maximum width. I then used a sanding drum on the dremel to create the elliptical shape required for the spindle to pass through.

Spindle position is 5mm from screen rubber and 415 from screen support struts

Had an assistant hold the rubber spindle in place whilst I drilled at the correct angle

Finished elliptical hole

2. Fitting the wiper motor to the dash support bar and making electrical connections.

First attempt at fitting the wiper motor to the dash support bar went horribly wrong. There was a massive gap under the base of the motor. Looking on the blogs, it appears that there is something fitted between the motor and the support bar. Reading the build notes confirmed this and a hunt around my box of bits revealed a piece of rubber that looks like a pedal cover. This is used to secure the motor and minimise any vibration. Once in place the motor was a snug fit.

Again, due to the corrupt build CD, I couldn't open the document showing the electrical connections to the wiper motor. I got GD to send this through and connections were straightforward. I just need to check now if the motor 'parks' the correct side for RHD car before final fitting the dash and connecting the actual wiper blades.


3. Installing the bundy tube and connecting to the spindles.

Essentially the wiper mechanism works with the motor turning a length of threaded bar which runs through a carrier (bundy tube). The bundy tube has to be cut where it meets the spindles bodies and the exposed threaded bar then meshes with the gear on the wiper spindle and making it turn.

Checking out a few blogs, the sensible way of fitting the bundy tube is to bend it to the approximate shape of the dash first. Having done this, I measured the distance between the motor and the first spindle and then cut the first piece to length. I then measured the distance between the two spindle and cut the next piece to length. Finally, I cut a piece about four inches long and connected this to the right hand side of the final spindle. The threaded bar is cut leaving a three inch overhang so there are no moving part exposed behind the dash.

All in all a job I had dreaded that ended up being sorted in a morning, albeit with the electrical test still to be completed.