The Nissan Path

Ok, this is a problem i've just dealt with for at least a year or so, before I found this forum. I regularly used my rear wiper. Then one day it wouldn't do anything. Its in the 'rest' position but wont wipe. First thing I did was track down all of the possible fuses and they checked out. Is there any other simple tests I can do before replacing the rear wiper motor? It's not a neccesary item, but I do miss it especially when its really dusty. Also my washer fluid reservoir decided to stop holding fluid about 6 mos ago and that's pretty annoying too. The local shop quoted me $200 labor to put in a new one! I guess its a real PITA to get to, has anyone done a write up on replacing it?? Nothing on YouTube

It's hard to say if your wiper motor is bad or not unless you check for power and ground at the wiper motor. As far as the washer tank, the part is about $100. It's located behind the plastic wheel well liner at the right front wheel, as pictured at the part diagram linked below. In a shop, it would be about an hour's labor:

http://www.nissanpartszone.com/parts-li ... asher.html

thanks smj999smj! can always count on you for a quick accurate reply! i guess $200 to pay for a replacement isn't too bad if its an hours worth of shop time. it's on of those things that isn't used all the time but when you want it, it sucks that's its broken. as far as the rear wiper motor, i think i'll take off the cover and use a multi motor to test the power coming to the motor to rule out the switch in the car.

khavel wrote:The local shop quoted me $200 labor to put in a new one!

khavel wrote: i guess $200 to pay for a replacement isn't too bad if its an hours worth of shop time.

your initial post said that they quoted you $200 labor
the part is at least a hundred bucks in addition to that
if it's about an hour of labor time, they're charging you $200 per hour?
based upon that, you'll be spending a total of over $300!

You could just use a 12v test light to check for power and ground.

I'm putting my money on a bad ground. I had to fix the ground wire on my parents 05 Tahoe rear wiper motor. While not the same vehicle, I've seen it in others so I'd question the grounding of the motor first.

volvite, i'm praying that your right and thats all it is, fingers crossed there. smj, good point about just using a simple test light, and eieio, your right that would be very high for just and hours worth of labor, its been nearly a year since i got that quote so it could've been $200 for the part installed, which still sounds high at $100 for the part and $100 for one hours labor. If i can find a decent write up or youtube video i might tackle that one myself, its annoying not having windshield washer fluid, especially when that random bird decides to drop a duece on the windshield in the parking lot!

It's not as hard as you think it might be. The front right wheel will need to be removed. If you have a mudflap, they will need to be removed. The plastic wheel well is held in with push-clips and Phillips head screws. The washer reservoir will be held in with 10MM head screws. Of course, there will be a couple of washer hoses to disconnect and the fill spout will twist off in the engine compartment and can be pulled out of the tank. It's possible that the leak is from the seal for the pump or one of the hoses or even the pump itself. If the tank is cracked and not too bad, you may be able to fix it with two-part epoxy or have it plastic welded, if you know of a shop that has one (body shops are more likely to have one than mechanical shops).

smj, thanks for the info on the washer tank. i did look a little closer at the rear wiper motor. i'm not the greatest with electrical diag, but was able to use the meter to confirm continuity to the wiper motor and find 11.6V to the motor with the key in the 'on' position. its a little funky b/c there's 2 electrical harness connections on that motor. there's only 3 wires coming into it and one of them i couldn't get any volts, the black one, so maybe that one was the intermitant or the auto wipe and wash feature. the tan one was ground and the orange one was power with the switch in the on position. I'm going to try and get some pics up to point out the assembly. the motor looks perfect but i guess it could just randomly just burn up?? i'll work on some pics. Thanks

Try tapping on the motor a few times and see if it starts working.

no dice on the tapping i can't access the service manual on here so i dont know what that black wire is for on the harness coming into the rear wiper motor. i have a ground and i have nearly 12V coming in with the key on but nothing on that black wire even with the rear wiper switch turned to on and also on intermittent. there's no sign of ANY corrosion anywhere on the motor. [/quote]

You probably have a bad motor. If you want, NissanHelp.com has service manual downloads in the "knowledge base" section. You could also try the repair guides at Autozone.com.