Moparts
Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts?
Posted By: Mud Pig
Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/08/13 04:06 PM
I knew what I was getting into buying a classic truck, given my experience with a 66 mustang I use to own. I replace one thing and another thing breaks. Its a process before you get the classic stabilized and in good working order. So here is the latest issue. I replaced the windshield wipers with new blades. I was riding down the road and got something on the windshield, hit the wiper fluid button and then I tried turning on the wipers. They certainly worked before I replaced the blades. Nothing came on while I was driving. I get home and try to figure out what is going on, low and behold the wiper arms came off the linkage that connects to wiper motor. You can see the motor spinning the linkage arm around and around, the wiper arms just aren't connected anymore and are laying in the panel.
So from the looks of it I need to take off the vent panel right behnd the hood to access the motor and linkage arms. Now my question is, do I need some parts to put it back together. I'm assuming a bushing, cotter pin, etc.. broke. Before I take it apart I'd like to get the parts I need.
This is on a 1976 Dodge D-100 Warlock. Thanks.
Posted By: basketcase
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/08/13 04:12 PM
99% of the time, it's the nylon bushings on the wiper linkage. you can get these pretty cheap at your local parts store in the Help section. you'll need a couple of packs(2 bushings in each). Pull the wiper arms, take off the cowl, and you'll see which arm cam off. replace all the bushings. I put a touch of oil in the bushings, and used channel locks to put the arms back on.
Posted By: Mud Pig
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/08/13 04:31 PM
Quote:
99% of the time, it's the nylon bushings on the wiper linkage. you can get these pretty cheap at your local parts store in the Help section. you'll need a couple of packs(2 bushings in each). Pull the wiper arms, take off the cowl, and you'll see which arm cam off. replace all the bushings. I put a touch of oil in the bushings, and used channel locks to put the arms back on.
Thanks, that's what I needed to know. I'll go check with Advanced autoparts tonight. Any chance you know the part number?
Posted By: 340SHORTY
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/08/13 05:07 PM
I just replaced the 1s on my shorty. I got mine at O'Riellys. They were in the "HELP" section.. Replace all 3 while your in there. Soak them in hot water before intalling them. Makes the job a lot easier.
Posted By: stumpy
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/08/13 06:17 PM
Posted By: 76dodgeboy
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/08/13 07:37 PM
Theres 4 total. Not to hard of a job just a little pita
Posted By: 340SHORTY
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/09/13 12:40 AM
Quote:
Theres 4 total. Not to hard of a job just a little pita
slight loss of precious red colored body fluid. 
Posted By: sthemi
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/09/13 06:07 AM
Yes, expect some loss of skin, and some use of four letter words.
I used PB blaster to help get the metal tray back under the windshield gasket, white grease on the new plasic cups and small channel locks to lock them together.
Napa had them in stock...
Posted By: basketcase
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/09/13 03:34 PM
that's what the oil and channel locks are for...
did mine and no blood loss here....but I did have some when I did the previous truck.....
Posted By: Golden-Arm
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/09/13 05:50 PM
i wouldnt use oil myself, it will let them pop off later, and might even break down the plastic. use some plastic compatible stuff, like lithium or graphite. if you use the "help" ones, be sure to get an extra box, to carry in the glove box. the life span of some of them, can be measured in wipes, not years.
* Dodge part # is 3799089 it lists for $5.70
Posted By: blaze
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/10/13 01:11 AM
I've replaced the bushings in my trucks in the past. I bought the parts from Ma Mopar and didn't have to replace them a second time.
Posted By: Mud Pig
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/11/13 04:03 AM
Quote:
Yes, expect some loss of skin, and some use of four letter words.
I used PB blaster to help get the metal tray back under the windshield gasket, white grease on the new plasic cups and small channel locks to lock them together.
Napa had them in stock...
Channel locks, PB blaster? What in the good lord and where would I get those?
Posted By: 340SHORTY
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/11/13 04:53 AM
Quote:
Quote:
Yes, expect some loss of skin, and some use of four letter words.
I used PB blaster to help get the metal tray back under the windshield gasket, white grease on the new plasic cups and small channel locks to lock them together.
Napa had them in stock...
Channel locks, PB blaster? What in the good lord and where would I get those?
Most people have them in their toolbox. In your case you may need to take a trip to a place called a hardware store, parts house, or possibly a repair shop that knows what they are doing..
Posted By: Mud Pig
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/11/13 04:40 PM
I'll be tackling this Saturday morning. Hopefully, the weather stripping isn't dry rotted.
Posted By: Mud Pig
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/14/13 02:54 AM
Ok, so I took care of the bushing issue. Turns out the stock ones simply dry rotted and disenigrated. It took an hour to get the wiper arms and cowl off, another hour trying to get the bushing on. It was rough getting te bushings all the way on where I could get a set of plyers to clamp down and force it on. Finally took a pry bar to it an it popped on. I put everything back together and everything works.
Now the issue is a shudder in the wiper blades. I took the arms off and re-seated ten three time. The shudder got better, but eventually it was time for dinner and my wife was waiting on me.
Any other ideas on getting rid of the wider blade shudder?
Posted By: stumpy
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/14/13 03:14 AM
Have you squirted water on the windshield with the wipers operating to eliminate bad blades? If that doesn't work then you need to pull the cowel back off and watch the linkage move to see if you bent anything when you were prying stuff. There is no reson to resort to a pry bar to install those bushings.
Posted By: 76dodgeboy
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/14/13 03:16 AM
They will shudder if the windshield is dry
Posted By: Mud Pig
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/14/13 04:17 AM
It was raining so the windshield was definitely wet. As for the pry bar, the bushing wouldn't go on and there wasn't enough space to get plyers in there. Nothing was bent, the linkage arms are right where they should be.
I think the wiper arms are just a little offset from each other which is causing some dragging and shuddering on the windshield. I'll play with them and see if I can get them to run smooth.
Posted By: hooziewhatsit
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/14/13 04:49 AM
if you hold the wipers off the windshield do they still shudder?
Posted By: 76dodgeboy
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/14/13 05:16 AM
Quote:
It was raining so the windshield was definitely wet. As for the pry bar, the bushing wouldn't go on and there wasn't enough space to get plyers in there. Nothing was bent, the linkage arms are right where they should be.
I think the wiper arms are just a little offset from each other which is causing some dragging and shuddering on the windshield. I'll play with them and see if I can get them to run smooth.
Alt easier to pull the assembly out to install bashing in my opinion. They wipers being off from each other shouldn't matter other than going over to far or catching on each other
Posted By: 340SHORTY
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/14/13 08:08 AM
thats why I mentioned the loss of body fluid..
Posted By: Mud Pig
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/14/13 01:51 PM
Quote:
Quote:
It was raining so the windshield was definitely wet. As for the pry bar, the bushing wouldn't go on and there wasn't enough space to get plyers in there. Nothing was bent, the linkage arms are right where they should be.
I think the wiper arms are just a little offset from each other which is causing some dragging and shuddering on the windshield. I'll play with them and see if I can get them to run smooth.
Alt easier to pull the assembly out to install bashing in my opinion. They wipers being off from each other shouldn't matter other than going over to far or catching on each other
You make a good point. I'll check over te blade on the one that's shuddering and see if its damaged at all. I'll make sure to run each one separately by removing the other arm to zero in on the problem. You have to love a classic truck. How does simply replacing to wiper blades turn into hours of work, cut up hands, and a 200 pound pissed off man.
Posted By: 340SHORTY
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/14/13 06:32 PM
Quote:
Quote:
Quote:
It was raining so the windshield was definitely wet. As for the pry bar, the bushing wouldn't go on and there wasn't enough space to get plyers in there. Nothing was bent, the linkage arms are right where they should be.
I think the wiper arms are just a little offset from each other which is causing some dragging and shuddering on the windshield. I'll play with them and see if I can get them to run smooth.
Alt easier to pull the assembly out to install bashing in my opinion. They wipers being off from each other shouldn't matter other than going over to far or catching on each other
You make a good point. I'll check over te blade on the one that's shuddering and see if its damaged at all. I'll make sure to run each one separately by removing the other arm to zero in on the problem. You have to love a classic truck. How does simply replacing to wiper blades turn into hours of work, cut up hands, and a 200 pound pissed off man.
:Murphy's Law""
The shuddering is most likely a worn blade or something on the window. Highly unlikely it has anything to do with the linkage unless a transmission is bad.
Posted By: Mud Pig
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/15/13 03:05 PM
Quote:
:Murphy's Law""
The shuddering is most likely a worn blade or something on the window. Highly unlikely it has anything to do with the linkage unless a transmission is bad.
Well, here's the rub. After calmly looking at everything, linkages, wiper arms, blades, all of a sudden it dawned on me that the wiper arms were on backwards. The left one was on the right, and the right one was on the left. Turns out that the last person to touch them put them on backwards. I know I didn't do it, given that I laid the arms on the side of the truck they came off of.
So that helped the shudder out, but unfortunately its still there. Going to get some rain X and do a throrough cleaning of everything tonight. Hoepfully, that will solve it once in for all.
The wipers are getting on my last nerve. 
Posted By: 76dodgeboy
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/15/13 04:41 PM
I doubt the arms being on opposite sides affected it. they take the same blade for both sides
Posted By: poorboy
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/15/13 06:15 PM
A shudder is almost always blade or arm related, either the blades are shot, the arms are twisted, or the connection between the blades and the arms is too loose. Put new wiper blades on the truck, its the cheapest place to start and the most likely problem. They tend to "lay over" after they have been against a windshield for a while. When the wipers are running, the blades shift from side to side as they go across the windshield. Old, laid over, blades don't shift over very well, and tend to shudder. Also check to be sure the blades are not sloppy loose at the pivot points where the blades attach to the arms, as that will also cause a shudder. Gene
Posted By: Mud Pig
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/15/13 08:08 PM
Quote:
A shudder is almost always blade or arm related, either the blades are shot, the arms are twisted, or the connection between the blades and the arms is too loose. Put new wiper blades on the truck, its the cheapest place to start and the most likely problem. They tend to "lay over" after they have been against a windshield for a while. When the wipers are running, the blades shift from side to side as they go across the windshield. Old, laid over, blades don't shift over very well, and tend to shudder. Also check to be sure the blades are not sloppy loose at the pivot points where the blades attach to the arms, as that will also cause a shudder. Gene
They are new blades as of a two weeks ago. But the number of times I've had to pull the arms off the car they may have been damaged. Its one of those things that really isn't the biggest deal, but I'm on a mission now. To quote GW, "This agression will not stand!!". These wipers are going to answer to me one way or another.
Posted By: nytemuvr
Re: Windhield wiper arms came off the linkage, thoughts? - 01/31/13 10:37 PM
If you clean the winsheild with a wet sponge with Bon Ami, it takes off the build up off the windsheild and your wiper won't shutter so much. Don't use Ajax or Comet as they will scratch the glass. Bon Ami is the same powder(cerilium powder?) that glass shops use to polish windows with. I've done that each year before the rain starts when I put on new wiper blades. May not solve the problem completely but will help alot, especially if you RainX them after cleaning them with Bon Ami(any grocery store should have it).Just did it 3 or 4 months ago and my wipers work much better on my D100 and Challenger.