Rear wiper, on Wagon

The other day I went to use the rear wiper on my 05 Wagon, and only the sprayers are working. The arm no longer rotates.

 

I took a look at the cabin fuse box and the engine fuse box...no resolution.

 

Anyone have this happen before? Anyone know how to fix it? Is this a warranty item?

 

Any help (regarding this issue) is welcomed.

 

Karl

sounds like the motor crapped out??

I would lean to guess motor also

That's what I was thinking. Boo.

 

I had a quick look through the repair manual and doesn't look like a fun task to change.

 

Either the switch in the steering column or the damn motor.

 

I hate the damn dealer

Perhaps you can confirm the motor by feeding it 12V in the same way the relay would, or by switching the relay manually. I haven't checked the wiring diagrams on the rear wiper motor, but should be easy to look up. Or you can test continuity through the switch to see if the switch still works like it should per FSM.

 

I'm sure a generic mechanic with good reviews can change the motor. No need to pay a premium at the dealer if that is what the price quotes come back at.

I have had problems with my rear window wiper and have replaced both the motor and wiper switch/stalk on the steering column WITHOUT success. My problem is slightly different from yours. My wiper works normal in full on mode but not intermittent. The blade does not return back to the beginning position if I turn it off. The intermittent also comes up 7-8 inches short on each swipe and is most annoying for me.

 

The only possible solution lies somewhere in the wiring which can be suspect where the wiring leaves the car body and feeds into the rear hatch door. I've peeled back the rubber grommets and my wiring looks OK from there but some Outbacks have reported the problem. My next steps would be to tear into the interior which I really don't want to do. I did the rear wiper motor myself and it was not that bad of a job.

 

Not sure I helped but thought I might share of my rear wiper story to help you before spending a bunch of money. Definitely get the motor tested out before replacing as they are spendy.

 

Cheers,

Mike

I have had problems with my rear window wiper and have replaced both the motor and wiper switch/stalk on the steering column WITHOUT success. My problem is slightly different from yours. My wiper works normal in full on mode but not intermittent. The blade does not return back to the beginning position if I turn it off. The intermittent also comes up 7-8 inches short on each swipe and is most annoying for me.

 

The only possible solution lies somewhere in the wiring which can be suspect where the wiring leaves the car body and feeds into the rear hatch door. I've peeled back the rubber grommets and my wiring looks OK from there but some Outbacks have reported the problem. My next steps would be to tear into the interior which I really don't want to do. I did the rear wiper motor myself and it was not that bad of a job.

 

Not sure I helped but thought I might share of my rear wiper story to help you before spending a bunch of money. Definitely get the motor tested out before replacing as they are spendy.

 

Cheers,

Mike

 

Perhaps test continuity of the wire(s) (if applicable) that control the intermittent? Have you checked the vacation pics?

WOW,

Thanks for the good advice. I called the dealer about warrranty and they told me they had no idea. So i'm going to look through my papers to see what are warrantyable items. If it comes up on the list, off to the dealer I go, otherwise i'll do as mentioned above and try to distinguish between whether its the motor or the steering column.

 

Thanks for the help.

Karl

First pop off the black cover and see if the nut has come loose - ie. the motor still works but the arm is not moving.

LOL,

Thanks for the little tid-bit of advice. I'll take a look at that First then move on from there!

 

Didn't even think to look for that!

My rear wiper also has stopped working. The rear washer still works.

 

I removed the lift-gate trim and unplugged the connector (which stumped me for awhile, it doesn't release the way many do, you have to pry up a plastic piece, with a sharp point, to pull the connector apart).

 

I hot wired 12v to the connector on the wiper motor, from the rear cigarette-lighter outlet, and the motor worked fine. (No need to hotwire GND, as the motor is still grounded even with the connector unplugged). There doesn't seem to be voltage on the corresponding pin in the wiring harness (that I unplugged). The fuse is fine.

 

So apparently I have a bad wiper stalk switch or a bad BIU, or possibly a bad wiring harness. I was kinda hoping it'd be the motor, as expensive as it is. (I'm not sure why people have mentioned a relay, the power for the motor seems to come straight from the BIU, per the wiring diagram, attached- unless it's a relay in the BIU). Not sure where to proceed from here. All the vacation pix stuff on how to diagnose the BIU requires the "Subaru Select Monitor" (an expensive special tool, presumably). Seems like the switch is likely the next most likely culprit - looks like to get to it, you've gotta remove the driver's airbag and the steering wheel - yikes !! The debug also mentions a "fusible link #6 in the main fuse box", but I don't see that in the circuit diagram.

My issues were all fixed by having my buddies body shop fix 6 broken wires in the rubber grommet.

mine only works correctly when on full mode. i don't even want to get into the project to find out what's wrong.

C-lo it is the hatch wiring.

I've just repaired mine, the shaft had seized in the housing due to being corroded. I live in Ontario and they use a lot of salt during the winter, if Alberta is the same then it may be your problem.

It's an easy fix once you get it out of the tailgate, you have to use a lot of WD40 and a pair of vice grips to free up the shaft in the housing. I removed it completely, used emery cloth to smooth it and then filled everything with grease to keep the weather out.

mine only works correctly when on full mode. i don't even want to get into the project to find out what's wrong.

 

That's what mine was doing. Check for broken wires. My buddies shop charged me $120 to fix the broken wires.

 

Also make sure you seal the grommet when it gets put back in. Mine leaked water into the cargo area. I use Permatex black silicone sealant to fix that.

Thanks for the replies folks. Like I said, it's not the motor - it runs just fine when I hotwire it. I guess I hope it is the wires where they pass into the gate - should be easier to fix than the stalk switch and cheaper than the BIU. But I know some of 'em still work, because the washer still works. I wonder what is the best approach to diagnose and fix the broken wires ? It'd be a huge pain to pull the BIU and get an ohmmeter from the harness there to the motor connector (I know, because I pulled my BIU to remove the chime from it).

My issues were all fixed by having my buddies body shop fix 6 broken wires in the rubber grommet.

 

+1. I would seriously check the wires.

 

Did you see this thread as well: http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/wagons-beware-tailgate-electricals-161086.html

+1. I would seriously check the wires.

 

Did you see this thread as well: http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/wagons-beware-tailgate-electricals-161086.html

 

That's extremely helpful, thanks ! I am an electrical engineer, and have lots of tools - but I'm NOT looking forward to tackling this ...

That's extremely helpful, thanks ! I am an electrical engineer, and have lots of tools - but I'm NOT looking forward to tackling this ...

 

I am as well. Have fun!

Yep. It was the wire. Thanks for pushing me to look at that, folks (esp. xt2005bonbon). Wish I'd done it before I pulled the PITA lower reargate trim. (Only need to pull the upper, and peel the roofliner back a little, to fix the wires). Read more at the thread linked in post #18 above.

Anyone else who has this problem, PLEASE go to the NTHSA wesbite and file a complaint so we can get a recall - could save other owners the headache, and could get OUR wiring harnesses replaced so we don't have to keep fixing wires as they break one by one.

 

You can do it at http://www.nhtsa.gov; I say a little more about the process in post #39 at:

 

http://legacygt.com/forums/showthread.php/wagons-beware-tailgate-electricals-161086p3.html

I am glad you got it fixed .