Explorer rear wiper is inoperative.

[handgun]

For those of you that have probably wasted money troubleshooting and ultimately purchased a new wiper rear motor, I may have the answer.
If you have determined that your rear wiper motor is getting the proper voltage, (fuse, relays and switch are OK), try this. My second wiper motor stopped working despite knowing the proper voltage is making the trip to the motor. It "clicked" and the relays in the fuse box under hood cycled, although the drive shaft on the wiper motor did not move.

I removed the unit from the rear door and removed the black plastic shaft housing collar. I sprayed WD-40 into the shaft housing three times and let it soak for about 30 minutes. I then applied heat from a propane torch very carefully, just to warm the housing and shaft. (Be careful WD-40 is flammable). This expands the metal and releases the corrosion bind. To my amazement, after reinstalling, it now works!!!

Conclusion: water infiltrates the drive shaft housing because it is canted upward. Water and minerals corrode the cheap pot metal housing and the drive shaft due to galvanic reaction (dissimilar metals). Keep the shaft lubricated with a water-displacing product, then buy yourself a premium adult beverage with the money you saved!

 

[BrooklynBay]

Welcome to this forum! I've moved your thread into the stock 95-01 section. Thanks for making your first post helpful!

 

[Joe Dirt]

Welcome from a fellow G-Rapper! :wavey:

 

[ucluglee]

Sweet, thanks. I'll have to try this something soon.

 

[Dave98XLT]

Would this problem be the cause of the rear wiper making a clunk sound when cold, and not coming up on the glass?

When it is warmed up it works fairly reliably and correctly, but when cold it hangs up somehow.

 

[Cranmaro99]

Would this problem be the cause of the rear wiper making a clunk sound when cold, and not coming up on the glass?

When it is warmed up it works fairly reliably and correctly, but when cold it hangs up somehow.

This is exactly what mine does, as well. Looking forward to the replies.

 

[Cranmaro99]

^ No love?

 

[rileybig]

This is exactly what mine does, as well. Looking forward to the replies.

try spraying the actual rear wiper switch by the bezel with contact cleaner or maf cleaner.... i had my wiper housing apart and cleaned up and lubricated with dielectric grease.... and actually the inside of the wiper motor was clean as it was in the factory...then i started fiddling with the switch itself.... just stick the little hose on the side and spray contact cleaner in it and that solved my problems.... i always thought that there was something wrong with motor but it was the switch all along.... i was getting ready to take the wiper off and bondo the back clean and forget about having a rear wiper....

 

[gadourym]

The clunk may be the blade getting stuck in the crack between the door and the glass. I loosened the bolts on the inside of the glass and lowered it as far as it would go. I clipped a couple of small black binder clips to the bottom of the glass where the wiper goes over, and secured them with a little black electrical tape.

Bridging the gap will allow the wiper to cross over smoothly. The black tape and black clips aren't too noticeable on the dark glass either!

Some people bend the arm out slightly, but then it doesn't wipe as well. I finally got mine to wipe 100%, so I'm not messing with the arm!

 

[Cranmaro99]

Good tips in the last two posts. I'll look into them. Thanks.

 

[lidavef]

For those of you that have probably wasted money troubleshooting and ultimately purchased a new wiper rear motor, I may have the answer.
If you have determined that your rear wiper motor is getting the proper voltage, (fuse, relays and switch are OK), try this. My second wiper motor stopped working despite knowing the proper voltage is making the trip to the motor. It "clicked" and the relays in the fuse box under hood cycled, although the drive shaft on the wiper motor did not move.

I removed the unit from the rear door and removed the black plastic shaft housing collar. I sprayed WD-40 into the shaft housing three times and let it soak for about 30 minutes. I then applied heat from a propane torch very carefully, just to warm the housing and shaft. (Be careful WD-40 is flammable). This expands the metal and releases the corrosion bind. To my amazement, after reinstalling, it now works!!!

Conclusion: water infiltrates the drive shaft housing because it is canted upward. Water and minerals corrode the cheap pot metal housing and the drive shaft due to galvanic reaction (dissimilar metals). Keep the shaft lubricated with a water-displacing product, then buy yourself a premium adult beverage with the money you saved!

Wow! my wiper hasn't worked for a few years and I was going to replace the motor soon. I had read other posts about water getting into the motor and shorting it out, so that's what I assumed mine was. Just read a few posts on here, (yours being the last) went outside, checked ALL the fuses (all good). Turned on the ignition, turned on the rear wiper switch, then went to the rear of the Exp, grabbed the wiper arm and gently but firmly rotated it up ( one hand on the pivot, one on the arm) and it started cycling by itself!!!!! WOO-HOO!!!!! Thanks handgun!! Now I have to replace the wiper blade!

 

[rileybig]

The clunk may be the blade getting stuck in the crack between the door and the glass. I loosened the bolts on the inside of the glass and lowered it as far as it would go. I clipped a couple of small black binder clips to the bottom of the glass where the wiper goes over, and secured them with a little black electrical tape.

Bridging the gap will allow the wiper to cross over smoothly. The black tape and black clips aren't too noticeable on the dark glass either!

Some people bend the arm out slightly, but then it doesn't wipe as well. I finally got mine to wipe 100%, so I'm not messing with the arm!

gad.... I don't clearly understand the binder clip thing... if you don't mind, do you have a photo of it? thanks in advance

 

[traveler]

Only problem I have with my rear wiper is it won't even come in contact with the glass! It comes on, cycles back and forth nice as you please... about 1/2" -3/4" away from the glass. Thinking I'll just have to replace the entire arm.

 

[AP9]

Mine also gets stuck, I have to kind of force it right before I want to use it.

I found an old bottle of 2-cycle oil in my garage, so I decided to apply some to the bearing thing inside. (Figured that because it was opened about 7-8 years it wouldn't be a good idea to use in gasoline mix, so might as well put it to some kind of use). Still have to physically "un-stick" it every time I want to use the wiper. Maybe I didn't apply it to the right location? Or maybe some other product would work better? I'd imagine the innards could be rusty, since there's definitely a gap that could allow water in, and rear window bearings/hinges are showing some rust :thumbdwn:.

Only problem I have with my rear wiper is it won't even come in contact with the glass! It comes on, cycles back and forth nice as you please... about 1/2" -3/4" away from the glass. Thinking I'll just have to replace the entire arm.

Happened to me, so I kind of just physically bent the arm inward. It only makes contact on about the left half of the sweep that it's supposed to, but it's better than nothing I guess.

 

[Lewa1200]

My 2000 Mountaineer's rear wiper froze up a couple years ago. I took apart the wiper motor to find that the plastic gear inside that turns the wiper sorta warped on one side. I wasn't sure how to fix it without risking destroying the motor, so I just took the whole thing out.

After removing all of the rubber holders on the exterior, I took some JB Weld and some small steel plates and completely sealed off the 4 holes left.

Once I receive the color-match paint I ordered, I plan to use bondo to finish off the body holes and then go through the process of sanding, primering, painting, and clear-coating. Hopefully this'll give me a clean back end and not a big mess.