'88 FJ62 Rear Wiper Relay "Clicking"/Wiper not working (1 Viewer)

[Old Nick]

After finishing up my recent body and paint work, when I put everything back together, the rear wiper (which worked previously) stopped working.

I swapped out both of my rear gates, and moved all of the internals to my donors. Wiring is set up correctly (and it's minimal as my truck is all manual).

The rear wiper is the only thing on my truck not working and it's bothering the heck out of me! My rear wiper relay (in the D/S real panel) is "clicking".

As far as diagnostics go, do I need to pull the relay and test it? (I didn't mess with any of the wiring to the relay, or from it... only unplugged the wiper motor, moved it, snaked the wire through the liftgate and plugged it back in.

If the relay is shot, does anyone have a recommendation for a non-OEM replacement? The OEM relays seem to be going for crazy money at the moment.

Thank you in advance.

 

[OSS]

I never used my rear wiper in 30 years.
When my hatch struts started getting weak, I yanked the rear wiper motor from inside the hatch (losing 7 lbs) and tossed it in the dumpster. After losing all that weight in the hatch, it would spring up to open even though the struts were tired.
Needless to say / I found the rear wiper useless. I'd use my side view mirrors (FJ62 style) to see what was behind me when the rear window was obscured.

 

[diesellibrarian]

A clicking or "chattering" relay is often a sign of a bad ground. Check the voltage at the relay, if it's less than 12v then you've got a bad ground somewhere that's creating resistance.

 

[ChaserFJ60]

A clicking or "chattering" relay is often a sign of a bad ground. Check the voltage at the relay, if it's less than 12v then you've got a bad ground somewhere that's creating resistance.

x2 on bad ground

 

[Old Nick]

A clicking or "chattering" relay is often a sign of a bad ground. Check the voltage at the relay, if it's less than 12v then you've got a bad ground somewhere that's creating resistance.

Thank you for this. Much appreciated. I’ll check the voltage this week and post up what I find.

 

[Old Nick]

I never used my rear wiper in 30 years.
When my hatch struts started getting weak, I yanked the rear wiper motor from inside the hatch (losing 7 lbs) and tossed it in the dumpster. After losing all that weight in the hatch, it would spring up to open even though the struts were tired.
Needless to say / I found the rear wiper useless. I'd use my side view mirrors (FJ62 style) to see what was behind me when the rear window was obscured.

Lol! I get it, man. Not quite there yet. It’s just that knowing it was working before all the work that I put into her and now it’s not irritates me to no end.

 

[John Staton]

My front relay "clicked" and I found the answer on here for my fix. I pulled the relay out, which was a big blue square and took off the cover. The relay was actually small plastic gears and had to be greased. Greased it, put the cover back on and it should be good for another 35 years.

 

[Old Nick]

My front relay "clicked" and I found the answer on here for my fix. I pulled the relay out, which was a big blue square and took off the cover. The relay was actually small plastic gears and had to be greased. Greased it, put the cover back on and it should be good for another 35 years.

Thank you, John! I'm going to try this fix first and keep my fingers crossed that it works. I've got some time this afternoon to give it a shot and will post up the results.

 

[John Staton]

Thank you, John! I'm going to try this fix first and keep my fingers crossed that it works. I've got some time this afternoon to give it a shot and will post up the results.

 

[John Staton]

Found the post with pics....if this is your problem, this is your fix....

83 FJ60 Windshield wiper noise

High pitch squeal in between when the wiper is on and moving and when it is stopped. Doesn't happen when you have them on high and they are not stopping, only when it is in one of the intermittent settings. It is not the wiper motor. Sounds like it is coming from behind the instrument panel. Any...

forum.ih8mud.com

 

[franklin40]

i’m actually having the same issue with mine. after body work my rear wiper no longer works. i’ve bench tested it and it’s fine. five tried two separate big green relays and still no luck so i assume i’ve either got two bad relays (not likely as mine worked before body work and the other from a dry climate) so it’s got to be a bad ground or a switch issue. still looking and interested in what you find!!

 

[Old Nick]

i’m actually having the same issue with mine. after body work my rear wiper no longer works. i’ve bench tested it and it’s fine. five tried two separate big green relays and still no luck so i assume i’ve either got two bad relays (not likely as mine worked before body work and the other from a dry climate) so it’s got to be a bad ground or a switch issue. still looking and interested in what you find!!

It sure is frustrating... I'm going to pull my relay and open it up. Then, I'll grease it using the link that @John Staton provided above. Mine "looks" good and it's been dry, but my wiper isn't working at all... just clicking at the relay. But, trying the simplest possible fix first, before I start digging into wiring seems like the best idea. Hopefully, I'll have an update later today.

 

[2mbb]

according to the various wiring diagrams I have, there is no relay associated with the rear wipers. The rear wiper motor is grounded locally.

 

[Old Nick]

according to the various wiring diagrams I have, there is no relay associated with the rear wipers. The rear wiper motor is grounded locally.

Here’s a pic of what I’ve got. I believe that this is the relay. No gears inside to grease… so I’ve either got a ground issue or a switch issue up front. Fun

 

[diesellibrarian]

Here's the bit from the FSM on testing the switch:

But I would still put my money on the ground. Here's the wiring diagram for the rear wiper:

There are two grounds in the circuit: one ground at (e), which is "located at right side of chassis on side frame" (whatever that means), and the other is (c), which is located "under the left front pillar".

The ground at the left front pillar is connected by a wire to a common ground bus located behind the speedometer. There are at least a dozen grounds that connect to that bus. A short in any of the circuits can melt the plastic housing on the bus, creating ground issues and shorts on circuits that are completely unrelated. You have to pull your instrument cluster to get to it, but that's what I would check. I'll see if I can find a pic of the location. I just did this whole routine to fix my non-op headlights.

 

[diesellibrarian]

This is what you're looking for (little orange burnt-looking thing in the middle of photo). Break the bottom off it, pull the multi-prong connector out, clean it up, re-insert, wrap with electrical tape.

 

[Old Nick]

@diesellibrarian thank you very much for attaching these diagrams (I've got the FSM and will print out those pages too). I'm afraid that you're right re: the ground. I'll start at the relay and make my way toward the front of the cabin. This is probably going to be a fall project.

 

[Old Nick]

This is what you're looking for (little orange burnt-looking thing in the middle of photo). Break the bottom off it, pull the multi-prong connector out, clean it up, re-insert, wrap with electrical tape.

View attachment 2768934

Got it! That photo really helps. Thank you.

 

[2mbb]

The way I read this diagram is that the ground buses a and c are for the washer motor. The wiper motor is seen as being grounded locally (probably to the metal structure of the rear hatch). Since the wiper motor is not working, I don't think chasing down the grounds for the washer motor will help the situation.

 

[diesellibrarian]

The way I read this diagram is that the ground buses a and c are for the washer motor. The wiper motor is seen as being grounded locally (probably to the metal structure of the rear hatch). Since the wiper motor is not working, I don't think chasing down the grounds for the washer motor will help the situation.

View attachment 2769544

i think you are right. I got the washer/wiper confused. @Old Nick ignore everything I said. Sorry!