Felicia Rear Wiper, window demister and Third brake light

[farnhamg]

Bonjour everyone,

 

My (year 2000) Felicia 1.3 LXi estate rear wiper only works if I hold the wiper stalk forward - so I  have to let go at the right moment to park it in the proper place. I have checked fuse and relay - I tested relay it triggers with voltage and resistance is negligible. The rear window demister doesn't work. The switch light indicator suggests it is on, the fuse and relay are also ok and there are no apparent breaks or loose wires.

 

Finally - anyone got a spare third brake light? Mine was broken off by previous owner somehow and cannot find one to buy.

 

Thanks

Gerard

 

 

[RicardoM]

According to your description the only thing left thoroughly unchecked is the wiring. Most probably there are broken wires in the area marked in red. Look under the rubber boot. The black/yellow wire is the park wire for the rear wiper. The black wire is for the rear window demister.

 

4 hours ago, farnhamg said:

My (year 2000) Felicia 1.3 LXi estate rear wiper only works if I hold the wiper stalk forward

That is normal, why do you think it's not?

[farnhamg]

Thank you. I attach picture of wires - some damaged - but not apparently interrupted? How best to repair?

[RicardoM]

Unplug connector 6 (see previous photo). Check continuity of each wire based on their color using an ohmmeter. Crimp, solder, and insulate broken wires.

[HeavyMetalRich]

18 hours ago, RicardoM said:

That is normal, why do you think it's not?

 

Agreed, it is normal that wiper stalk doesn't act like an on/off switch, it will always return to the off position. But it should do a full sweep and park again with one push should it not?

[RicardoM]

Yes, it should. That is why wiper motors have a parking terminal.

[KenONeill]

@HeavyMetalRich @RicardoM My reading of the OP is that the rear wiper "self park" doesn't work, which I think goes back to the broken hinge wires that Ricardo's already discussed just like the HRW failure will.

[RicardoM]

farnhamg, are the issues solved?

Edited 5 April, 2017 by RicardoM

[farnhamg]

Hi Ricardo, I haven't had a chance to fix and test the wires yet, plus I'm waiting on delivery of a new relay as I think one (INT) is missing. Thank you for your invaluable help so far.

 

[HeavyMetalRich]

11 hours ago, KenONeill said:

@HeavyMetalRich @RicardoM My reading of the OP is that the rear wiper "self park" doesn't work, which I think goes back to the broken hinge wires that Ricardo's already discussed just like the HRW failure will.

 

Yeah that was my understanding of his problem too. Couldn't think how to word it at the time.

[RicardoM]

15 hours ago, farnhamg said:

... I'm waiting on delivery of a new relay as I think one (INT) is missing.

The "missing" INT relay is not the culprit for the rear wiper not self-parking. Your car is a LXi model which doesn't have the INT relay from factory. By the way, that is a programmable wiping delay relay and you should have the associated wiring installed on your car to work properly.

[farnhamg]

Hi chaps - quick update:

Rear window heater:

I think I made a mistake when I tested the circuit of the rear window heater - I left the wires connected so I got a circuit. Having tested everything else I realised what I think is my mistake - I disconnected it and now do not get a circuit so I presume its is knackered?

 

Rear wiper park: Still cannot get this to park. The F7 relay controls wipers front and back. Front work fine, without it neither operate at all. Connections to rear motor are sound. Is there a rear wiper position switch somewhere in there?

 

Thanks

 

[RicardoM]

4 hours ago, farnhamg said:

I think I made a mistake when I tested the circuit of the rear window heater - I left the wires connected so I got a circuit. Having tested everything else I realised what I think is my mistake - I disconnected it and now do not get a circuit so I presume its is knackered?

I have no idea what you're talking about. Focus.

 

4 hours ago, farnhamg said:

Is there a rear wiper position switch somewhere in there?

I have already told you that. If the wiring is good, then you have to open the motor and see if the wiper's sliding contacts are in good order.

[farnhamg]

9 minutes ago, RicardoM said:

I have no idea what you're talking about. Focus.

 

I have already told you that. If the wiring is good, then you have to open the motor and see if the wiper's sliding contacts are in good order.

I'll try and make it clearer.

 

1. Rear window heater - I believe the relay and wiring is good. 12+ volts goes to heater when switched on but it has no noticeable heating effect, so I presume the element within the glass has failed.

 

2. I had not seen any mention of sliding contacts within the motor - I will now check those.

 

Thanks

[RicardoM]

47 minutes ago, farnhamg said:

I presume the element within the glass has failed

It is very unusual to have all window wires broke. Unless there was a tinted foil on the rear window (big mistake!) I would check for good ground or good contact on heater terminals.

 

53 minutes ago, farnhamg said:

I had not seen any mention of sliding contacts within the motor...

There is not mentioned indeed aside of a parking terminal but I will add this photo.

[farnhamg]

ok i've got this out - what am i looking for?

[RicardoM]

10 minutes ago, farnhamg said:

what am i looking for?

• Check for continuity between connector pins and brushes.
• Look for good contact between the brushes and the slotted disc they slide on
• Make sure the slotted disc is correctly orientated/rotated.

[farnhamg]

Hi chaps  - I am back on the case with the Felicia - Rear window Heater - there is power to it so it must be the element itself somehow. There are no apparent breaks in the element strands. 

[KenONeill]

@farnhamg - After reviewing the thread, have you checked the earth point for the hatch? The HRW draws way more current than the lights or bidet do, so a poor earth could make the HRW function slow.

[farnhamg]

Thanks - where is the hatch earth-point?

 

[RicardoM]

7 hours ago, farnhamg said:

Rear window Heater - there is power to it so it must be the element itself somehow

Remove the 1-pin connectors on both sides of the window heater element. Measure its resistance with an ohmmeter. The value should be very low.

 

4 hours ago, farnhamg said:

where is the hatch earth-point?

It is near left tail lamp.

[JussiG7]

Hi guys!

 

Now that we have had a real, warm summer in Scandinavia, too, I have been able to do some fixings with my dear Felicia, fixings that are not urgent, but important to do when the weather is good enough.

 

One of these little problems, that I have now solved was the rear screen demister or the rear window heater, as we call it here in Finland, because it is mainly used against the cold, not so much against fog.

 

So, I noticed the problem of the current not coming to the heater in autumn 2016, and as the winter then came rather early, I could not repair the whole circuit, but ended up to a very unprofessional, but a safe solution taking current straight from the battery (via external fuse box, though) and leading it to a LED switch that showed when the current was on or off. And it worked ok during the two winters . No problems. But as it has been a very long and hot summer in Finland, too, I´ve been able to check that problem again. And now I can say, the problem is really solved. In my case it was a question of two or three things:

1. To find out what is the basic reason for the lack of the current (it was a damaged connector BA in the fuse box) 2. To find the same kind of unbroken connector (my only solution was my 96-Feli) 3. To find out, if the circuit was broken also in other places than from the BA- connector (I did not find the black wire at all under the dashboard, so I had to rewire the whole circuit from fuse box to the rear window)

The rest should have been impossible to fail... But I managed to do it !!! So in the year 2016 I messed the system and had to build quite a new source for the current to go to the rear window. Only a few days ago I noticed my error, as I was checking the circuits of the rear and front fog lamps. I made a diary for myself in November 2016 that I now  translated in English.It is in JPG-format. I hope it is possible to load in a resolution big enough. And I hope, too, that it might help someone other struggling with rear window problems.

 

Kind Regards from the land of the midnight sun

[RicardoM]

The illustrations should help you restore the wiring.

 

[farnhamg]

On 12/05/2017 at 17:13, farnhamg said:

ok i've got this out - what am i looking for?

Thanks

[JussiG7]

Thanks about the diagram and the illustration!

 

I had seen that illustration before, because it is in this thread, but the diagram was new to me. Actually I sent my message as a "problem solved after some stupid mistakes", but now I found out that from your POV it was not solved at all   I mean, that I had made a shortcut beside that 8-pin connector T8l/3. Well, it is possible that I shall fix it to go thru that connector. So it would be easier for the next owner  to repair the problems occurring inside that circuit. But I am strongly of that opinion, that this dear Feli shall remain with me as long as it is able to pass the MOT and the winter  These are the main challenges for this car !!!

 

As I have said before, I like cars with timing chains, and also cars with as little amount of electricity as possible. So, this green beast from east shall be in my possession and use  as long as possible.

 

Thanks about the diagram, it is very useful. I used it also as a background to my JPG- images to show, how the circuit and contactor seems to work in my car. Any correction is welcome

 

Best Regards, JussiG7