Intermittent wipers issue (yes I checked the fuses!)

[2xw]

Hi,

 

Skoda Fabia MK1 1.2 petrol 2005

 

I have an intermittent wiper issue - getting the vehicle back on the road after two months sat on drive (just replaced the battery with a new one) 

 

Wipers seem to come on when they please. Checked the fuses and both are fine, my bonnet catch I think is one of the standard ones with no switch (it has no wires leading to it and is mechanical) 

 

The wipers very occasionally come on, and work fine, but then I'll go out the next day and nothing. 

 

The rear wiper works fine as does the washer fluid, as does the trip counter/computer on the stick. 

 

Am I looking at a problem with the stick (I hope not as removing the airbag looks a pain in the arse) or could they be another component I haven't thought of? 

 

[Breezy_Pete]

Don't suppose you happen to be handy with electronics and circuit-boards?

There's a relay that can be the cause of wiper problems, if you can rule out everything else methodically. Unfortunately it's soldered into a circuit board:

 

[RicardoM]

Are your wipers the "intelligent" type that spare the driver of the incredible effort to turn them on manually when raining?

[2xw]

3 hours ago, RicardoM said:

Are your wipers the "intelligent" type that spare the driver of the incredible effort to turn them on manually when raining?

Err, no. The car doesn't have electric windows or an electric lock nevermind "intelligent" anything! 

 

Wino I'm .... Probably not that handy. I'll have a look

[2xw]

3 hours ago, Wino said:

Don't suppose you happen to be handy with electronics and circuit-boards?

There's a relay that can be the cause of wiper problems, if you can rule out everything else methodically. Unfortunately it's soldered into a circuit board:

 

3 hours ago, RicardoM said:

 

Cheers wino I've just tried looking for it but is covered with dash. 

 

How "plug and play" is the entire unit? Is it feasible to take the board with the relay from an old scrapped car and just slot the whole thing in? 

[Breezy_Pete]

If you got one from a same-year car with all the same options it's pure plug and play.  Otherwise it might need coding with VCDS (2 minute job to read code out of current unit; 5 minutes to swap them over, 2 mins to recode replacement to behave just like the old one.)

[2xw]

Cheers wino. Do you happen to have any pics of where it actually is located? 

Pretty confident I (or an electrical engineering friend!) could swap the relay but I'm not sure how to get it out (pics seem to have gone from your original link)

[Breezy_Pete]

Lower dash trim panel has to come out, then you'll see it above the accelerator pedal, with the connectors facing downwards.  This thread shows it in the very last picture of the first post (which also details nicely the trim removal):

https://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/211083-diy-fabia-i-brake-light-switch-replacement/

 

[2xw]

I've found it - pic attached. 

 

Does I need to essentially unplug everything and pull it out? 

 

Whilst I was in there I noticed a lot of condensation on everything. Beginning to think this might be the beginning f the end for the vehicle! 

[2xw]

Even more bafflingly, I just started the vehicle and the wipers now work, including on the intermittent setting. This is the worst kind of issue!

[Breezy_Pete]

Let's just rewind completely to your description of the problem.

 

Was it originally a problem with the wipers when on the intermittent settings; or a problem with the wipers that is intermittent?

 

 

 

 

 

[2xw]

I'm so sorry Wino I've just realised how my description made it sound. The problem is intermittent. When the wipers work, the intermittent wipers also work fine. I'm now wondering whether it's dirty contacts or something. 

[Breezy_Pete]

That's OK, that's what I thought you meant, it was just your last post that had me wondering.

 

Moisture inside these cars can be a problem for all manner of the systems, because the interior electrical connectors are not waterproofed like the ones outside the cabin.

Can't remember if you've described leaky rear door carriers in any of your other posts, but that's the most usual cause of interior moistness.

 

It could be that the connector which feeds the wipers had condensation in it, but it could also be that the relay contacts are worn, scorched and pitted, making them unreliable.

 

Fix any and all the leaks you can find as a first step.