Removing
Original Mechanism and Wipers
- First, you need to
remove the old wipers and the mechanism that
operates them. Remove the plastic covers from the
end of each wiper arm, and undo the nut holding
them on. You may need to waggle the arm from side
to side a bit to loosen it.
- With both wipers off,
open the bonnet and locate the wiper motor
(mounted on the right hand side of the bulkhead).
On the other side of the bulkhead, you can see
where the linkage and the short rotor arm are
fixed to the motor spindle. Undo the nut and keep
it safe, along with the washer, as these will be
needed later. Remove the rotor arm from the motor
spindle. I found that I needed to lever it off
with a long screwdriver.
- Back on the scuttle
panel now, remove the large black plastic nuts
that hold the two wiper arm spindles in place.
You will probably need a large adjustable spanner
for these, unless you have a 32mm socket long
enough. Be very careful doing this as it is very
easy to slip and scratch the paint! The whole
mechanism is now free and should drop down into
the space behind the bulkhead.
- Remove the mechanism from the
engine bay. I found the best way is to take it
out from the right hand side (standing in front
of the car). This can be tricky, so try turning
it or bending it at the pivots, and it should
come out. The wiper motor does not need to be
removed.
Modifying the Mechanism
- The linkage for the drivers
side wiper can now be removed. Simply pop the
joint apart with a flat screwdriver. The gold
coloured T shaped piece now needs to
be shortened by about 10mm by cutting and
welding. By shortening this piece, the sweep of
the wiper is increased and therefore provides
enough coverage to be able to use just one wiper.
A local garage or bodyshop should be able to do
the cutting and welding for a couple of quid.
Refitting Mechanism, Wiper and
Set Up
- Now the modified mechanism can be
refitted. This is easier than removal, because
there is now only half of it left. Poke the wiper
arm spindle through the middle hole in the
scuttle panel, and secure it with the large black
plastic nut. Remember to be careful not to
scratch the paint. The rotor arm can now be
fitted back on to the motor spindle.
- The next step is to fit the wiper
arm and blade, but the old ones are no use
because they are not straight. I have found the
ideal wiper arm is the rear wiper for a Peugeot
306 hatchback. There are two types, the one
fitted to the early models is too short, so you
need the type fitted to the facelifted models.
For some reason this one is longer, and is the
same length as a standard Nova front wiper arm
(and therefore the right size for the Nova
windscreen). Better still, it fits the Nova
spindle, is a nice smooth design and costs only
£12! The part number is 6429Q5.
For the blade, I found that re-using one of the
original 16" Nova blades was no good, so I
fitted an 18" blade from a Fiat Uno. It
should also be possible to fit a 19" blade.
- All that remains to be done is to
set up the wiper. With the spindle tightened up
on the scuttle panel, push the linkage as far to
the left as it will go. Tighten the rotor arm on
to the motor spindle. Now mount the wiper on the
spindle so that it rests about 30 degrees up from
the bottom of the windscreen on the passenger
side. Test the wiper and see how far over to the
drivers side it goes. If it doesnt go
far enough, loosen the wiper and set it a little
higher on the passenger side. Experiment with
this until you are happy with the coverage on
each side. I have mine so that it comes down a
bit lower on the drivers side for better
visibility.
- I keep my wiper parked at the end
of its travel on the passenger side, but
heres how to set it up so that it parks
vertically, touring car style. With the wiper
tightened securely and the ignition off, having
set the side to side coverage as above, remove
the rotor arm from the motor spindle. Manually
move the wiper to the centre of the screen.
Tighten the rotor arm back on to the motor
spindle, and test. The wiper should go to the
left, over to the right and back to the middle.
Job good!
- It is possible that with more
travel on the mechanism, it may knock the
bulkhead or the scuttle panel grilles slightly.
If so, use a length of metal bar to tap the
bulkhead back, or cut a corner out of the drivers
side scuttle panel mesh grille.
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