front wiper failure

Hi all 

         driving along the wipers suddenly stopped about 30° above the horizontal.

         stopped the car and checked them. there was free movement in the wipers.

        wipers were moving ,thought it might be a mechanical failure.  got back home  and after sussing how           to remove the plastic scuttle, i tried to remove the wiper assembly. no chance!

         had to remove holder for ecu off bulkhead and remove a bracket.

         then there were several screws behind insulation. 1 nut which require a deep socket.

          the elusive screw was behind the aluminium covering on the bulkhead, so just made a small incision to            access the last screw.  removed wiper assembly and opened the motor gearbox. nylon gear wheel had               threads stripped, on a car  about a month out of warranty with 15k on the clock.

           is this a known issue ?

           thanks

Edited 31 May, 20197 yr by 47269