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MG Midget and Sprite Technical - still have wiper woes

hi, can anyone help. I can't get my wipers to work, I have a 73 midget and every time I turn on the wipers the fuse blows, I tried disconecting the linkage from the motor and it still pops immidiatly you switch on the wipers. the wiring is brand new. the only thing that is in the back of my mind is that the hot air blower motor is disconected cause the motor was seized and since i won't be taking it out in the winter i just blanked it off, any thoughts would be apreciated
p sewell

Did the fuse blow before you renewed the wiring?
Robert (Bob) Midget Turbo

Disconnect the wires at the motor end. Then try switching on and seeing if it still blows the fuse. There could be a worn or damaged wire behind the dashboard, between the switch and motor, and there may be nothing wrong with the wiper motor itself.

Guy
Guy Weller

in answer to bob, yes the fuse was blowing before the rewire. I've had the car stripped and it's been blowing since i put it all back together.
in answer to guy i'll try that tomorrow thanks i'll let you know.
p sewell

Next question P is;

The wiring loom that you bought, does it have a plug fitting to the back of the wiper switch ( rocker type switch I assume)and does it also have a plug connection for the wiper motor?

As Guy rightly suggests disconnecting the motor and trying the switch would hopefully prove it is simply a motor problem.
Robert (Bob) Midget Turbo

Hi thanks for the suggestions, I've been out this morning and tried switching on without the plug in the motor and it didn't blow so I assume this means the problem is the motor. Bob, the connection to the motor is a block, the connections to the switch are individual spades.
p sewell

There's an internal conenction in the wiper mech that allows for parking when the switch is off. Check all is in place inside the wiper mech.

A
Anthony Cutler

Thanks, is that the white plastic block on the outside of the motor body?
p sewell

Sorry for not being in touch yesterday however, if the connections to the switch are not a plug fitting then it is possible to get the wires crossed and cause problems.

Could you please tell me what colour wires you have on the back of the switch (and where they are fitted) and what colour wires you have at the wiper motor please.
Robert (Bob) Midget Turbo

Hi bob , wow it's cold out there. The wires into the motor are in a moulded block from the manufacturer so I guess they must be ok, the wires into the back of the switch are as follows, If the switch is sitting as you would look at it from the passengers seat the top left spade has brown and green, the bottom left is green and pink and bottom right is red and green. hope that clarifies things. Cheers
p sewell

P mate, it would be nice to know your name.
Spridget wipers are notoriously difficult to understand. Everytime I have a problem with them I have to try to remember how they are wired and then work it out how they should be.

That said yours are very strange, the switch on the dashboard should have a black wire attached to it which grounds the motor via the switch. You do not seem to have this connection. Also the green and pink wire is not on any of my wiring diagrams?

If your motor is the same as one or two I have had you should try the following. Has your wiper motor got 2 loose wires behind the plug? these two wires are the motor itself. One is earthed in the connection. The other (red wire) can be removed and connected to 12v positive battery which will then operate the motor. If this works ok then the motor is fine and the problem is in the wiring. If the motor is faulty then it may spark a bit, if you are electrically competent you could test the motor at these 2 connections to see if it is fine.
Robert (Bob) Midget Turbo

Bob,
I think 'P' may have a rocker switch car.(single speed)
If so the colours on his switch are roughly correct.

GK Green/Pink - contact 2
RLG Red/lightgreen - contact 4
NLG Brown/Light green - Contact 5

Can't remember if the switches have the numbers (its too cold to get into the garage and pull mine out now!)
It has the same switches, so i could check locations.

These wires all go to the motor - motor also has an earth B (Black).

I agree, get to the main motor wires and see if it runs.

I had a problem where the auto park was all rusted up and caused problems - this part was available as a seperate bit.

Richard.
richard boobier

Hi, thanks for those thoughts, i'll have a look hopefully when we get rid of the snow. The name is Paul by the way, cheers. ps yes it is a single speed rocker switch car.
p sewell

Ha! think I've cracked it,tested the motor on the battery as suggested. it works then tested the parking switch which also worked, very strange. Went back to the wiring diagram ang to my original theory that the blower motor and switch seemed closely linked. Messed on with these for a while and hey presto, then wife arrives in garage without cup of tea saying she was off out and I had to sort out the children so I couldn't finish off but i'll be back out tomorrow night. so mystery solved. Thanks for all the help. and I'd have done it too if it hadn't been for those pesky kids. a good scooby do ending!
p sewell

This thread was discussed between 30/01/2009 and 03/02/2009

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