The left-hand wiper has started to slip in its splines. The spindle has been getting a bit worn so I will be replacing that. However, looking on vw heritage and other sites, it looks like the spindle is a plain shaft?? Are there other parts I should be ordering at the same time? I will also order some new wiper arms, but any advice about other parts I may need to solve this problem would be gratefully received. With the weather as it is at the moment I really need to get this sorted ASAP.
The quickest and easiest way would be buy a new arm and put a bit of stud lock on the splines then nip the nut up but obviously not too tight. A bit of stud lock on the nut wouldn't hurt. This should get you back on the road. I'm not sure if Halfords sell the arms but they are definately available from German & Swedish. I had a similar problem but brought a second hand complete wiper unit including the motor, overhauled it and replaced the lot. Getting the top of the dash off is a bit tricky and you need arms like an orangutang. ;D
Top tip. You may find that if the arm is slipping on the splines, that you've run out of thread for the nut to grip down on. A washer or two under the nut may help.
Cheers for the suggestions. I'm thinking that I'm going to replace the spindle at least. Its fairly worn and as we are heading in to autumn/winter and I use the van daily, I want reliable wipers. I take it that the only way to have enough room to replace the spindles is to take the dash off? Or can you get to the spindles themselves without dismantling the dash?
It's just the top of the dash that needs to come off. It is not that big a job it is just a bit fiddly reaching the 10mm nuts that hold it on. I have taken it off quite a few times on mine, there is no need to refit all the nuts when replacing just the main ones that hold the grab handle and a couple of others. It makes it a bit easier next time you take it off.
Right - I look forward to that in the next couple of days then! Just trying to order the parts I need and VWH & Machine 7 are out of stock. Luckily C&C have them in stock - and they should be decent quality. Very helpful chappie at C&C - Hope I should have the parts by Saturday.....then the swearing can begin!
I have just replaced mine, and all I had to remove was the glovebox liner and the plastic air vent tubes under the dash, no need to remove the dash top.
Now that sounds even better. I did have a look and it does seem as if I might be able to get to them without taking the dash apart. Worth a try anyway.
Right...... I have removed the plastic air ducts, unbolted the central bolt on the mechanism and the nuts on the spindles. I have also pulled off the spade connector to the earth on the motor (having disconnected the battery of course) But the main feed/wire to the motor appears to be soldered in plcae - not a spade connector. The wire is held firm with a plate an 2 screws to claim the wire (as in a household plug). This looks like a factory fitting as well - not some Mexican bodge job. Has anyone seen this before? I am not too keen to cut the wires off and try to re-solder back on later, but what other options are there? here's a pic of the wiring attachment - not much room to get a decent picture I'm afraid If I can't get the wiper mech out fully, is it possible to replace the spindles in situ? I know the ball joint type end should just lever out, but how does the rest of the spindle release from the mechanism?
on earlier campers the wires didnt go through a plug so yeah you will have to cut and re-solder or come up with another way of disconnecting them
Bugger! - having eventually got the wiper mechanism out of the van to work on, I've found that the spindles I have are not the correct ones.....ARRGGGHH! I ordered these from Custom & Commercial, and they supposed to be the correct ones for the year - 68 - 79. I assumed that all late bay spindles would all be the same However, as you can see from the picture, the new spindle is a few mill shorter, with the sleeve also having a shorter end piece before the fixed washer that you bolt up against. This means that when you bolt up the sleeve, the spindle will not push through far enough to fit the spring clip on. The operating lever with the ball joint then also fouls on the main wiper frame that it is bolted to. The sleeve also only has one fixed washer whereas the original has two????? Does this mean that the whole wiper mechanism is different. ??? The camper was made in Mexico but I assumed that all the basic parts would be the same. The mechanism appears to be the original one as it is stamped 'hecho en Mexico' - Made in Mexico. Or have I been sent the wrong items from C&C? Any cunning ideas as to how to get these items to fit or where I can source the correct parts - not gonna be easy over a bank holday weekend and I need the van for Tuesday
The correct VW part number for the brass bearing (sleeve) is 211 955 227 B. This has an overall length of 70.5 mm. Judging from ones I've seen before there are two fixed washers on the bearing unequally spaced from the ends - exactly like your old one in the picture. So measure your old one - if it's 70.5 mm you can draw your own conclusions on the one C&C sent you. Cheers Ed
Cheers Ed - thanks for the measurements. The C&C one is only 68.5mm. The original one measures 70.39mm so allowing for a bit of wear, that looks about right. The main problem with the C&C one is that the spacing for the bottom fixed washer is only 5.5mm whereas the original is 9.5mm. this is why the C&C one is fouling of the frame. I picked up a couple of spindles from JK today. The quality does not look quite as good, but the dimensions are spot on. The only issue with the is that the washers are not fixed and do not have a cut out notch to locate them on a corresponding lump on the wiper frame. No matter. a few minutes work with a small file sorted out the notch on the washer and it seems to fit ok. Only time will tell with the quality I suppose. Looks like I need to return the spindles to C&C for a refund then. Having looked at the VW Heritage site as well, they also seem to show a spindle that looks like the C&C one??
