bowtie123

Hi,
Wipers work, washers don't.
I can not find any troubleshooting tips on the washers.
All parts appear to be there including the vaccum tank.
I have an assembly manual and the ST-12.
Anyone know how to troubleshoot the washers?

Thanks,

62Jeff

I can help a little bit. Are your hoses connected properly?

Here are two diagrams showing the dry and wet modes of the system

bowtie123

Hi Jeff,

Thanks for the reply
I will check the diagrams out later today and see how it looks.

Thanks again

62Jeff

The basic operational scenario is with the car running:

1) Press and hold button on the wiper ****
2) This closes a designed vacuum leak which creates a closed circuit in the washer system
3) Which engages the coordinator on the wiper motor and
4) Cause the pump to pump fluid until you release the button
5) Upon releasing the button the system will continue working for a short period depending on how a screw on the side of the washer pump is adjusted.

Now, having said all of that - the washers in my 62 don't work either, but the above data is what I've learned working with other forum members such as Frankie the Fink, which in turn gave me the data I needed to draw those diagrams.

Here's a post from Frankie on how to maintain the washers once you get them working
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/1570817405-post15.html

And you may find this interesting
http://www.wiperman.com/washservpage.html

http://www.chrysler300club.com/tech/w-washer60.html

bowtie123

Hi Jeff,

Thanks again for the info.

I printed out what you posted, including all the links.
All of the hoses are connected correctly and are clear.
Still won't work.
The owners manual states that when you press and hold the
washer button the wipers will start. This does not happen.
Also if I disconnect the "Squirt" hose and hold the button,
there is no water coming from the pump.

I guess I will move on to the brakes and clutch on another thread.

Thanks again,

Bob

62Jeff

Bob that is controlled by the coordinator on the wiper motor with the vacuum hose going to it.

If you remove the hose from it, can you test it with a manually operated vacuum pump (like a miti-vac, or your mouth) to see if it works? If it works that way, then vacuum isn't getting to the device.

Do you have vacuum at the hose on the wiper button?

My photo below shows the coordinator with the hose going on it, although I incorrectly annotated the hose target in that picture.

Frankie the Fink

These old washer systems are just a trip. I wouldn't worry too much about the 'drying wipes' by the wipers until the washers are operating...waste of time.

A quick check beyond what Jeff cites:

Disconnect the squirter hose from the pump on top of the water tank....with a mouthful of water blow through the hose and see if you get water on both sides of the windshield; if you do then at least your system is clear and that's not the problem.

If you have the hoses on correctly AND enough engine vacuum...(the washer system isn't real happy with engine vacuum less than 16) then the culprits are almost always the little valve on top of the vacuum tank or the pump itself. Again you can test the vacuum tank valve blowing/sucking (no smart @ss remarks pls) and making sure it only works one way.

If its the tank pump (HIGHLY likely) Tom Maxwell is one of the few (only?) people that fix these. You can try the Corvette Central rebuild kit but it generally fails and does not include all of the perishable parts for the pump (ask me how I know that!). Tom's rebuild is not cheap but if you follow his advice on using/maintaining the washers they should last for years and years.

One big source of failure is the large O-ring on the plunger (the blue-greenish 'top hat' looking item) inside the water tank (see picture)

I probably should have my head examined for spending the time and money to get mine working on a non-judged driver but once I face a technical challenge it'll bug me till I prevail.

bowtie123

Jeff & Frankie,

Thanks for the info.

I will print and check these out tomorrow.

Like you, It bothers me when things don't work right.
I'm not going to worry to much about the washers
since I never get the windshield dirty.
It would be nice if they worked though.

Thanks again,

Bob

bowtie123

Jeff & Frankie,

I can blow water through the squirt hose to both sides of the windshield.

The tank valve seems to be working, and only one way

If I disconnect the hose from the pump to the coordinator and blow through it, nothing happens at the coordinator.


With the engine running and the wipers on.......

I have vaccum at the wiper switch on the dash

I have vaccum at the tank coming from the engine

I do not have vaccum at the coordinator

I pulled the bottle out and did notice that the
rubber hose inside the bottle had harden and was a loose fit.
It was too short to cut and re-attach.


I believe this car was restored in 1990
I think it sat in a GM dealers showroom for at least
10 -15 years. (titled to a Buick dealer)
According to the past titles it has only been driven
1500 miles in the last 15 years.
Would some tapping on the pump with a light hammer
help after all those years?

62Jeff

If by coordinator you mean the thing on the wiper motor, you need to suck not blow.

You should not have vacuum at the coordinator on the wiper motor until you press the button in the center of the wiper switch. Was that the scenario here?

bowtie123

Hi Jeff,

I have vaccum at the coordinator with the wipers running, not just
when the button is pushed.

The tubing is old and brittle and I was thinking about replacing it.
How do you get to the nozzles?
If I try and turn them from the top, the whole assembly turns and
just twist the tubing.

Thanks again,

Bob

bowtie123

Thanks for all the info and help.

I think I'm going to give up on it unless I can
verify that the pump is working.

I pulled the bottom of the pump apart and cleaned
it. All seemed to be in good shape.
Do I need to re-prime the pump?

Is there anyway to verify that the pump, the dash
switch and the coordinator (on the wiper motor)
are working?

If any of these are bad then I don't think I will put
the money into it.

Thanks again for the help

Frankie the Fink

Probably the wisest course of action...I can tell you that 95% of the time the pump is the problem on these systems. And yes it can look fine but be completely inoperable....there is just a lot of small perishable parts in the pump any one of which can cause the failure. Unless you want to shell out a few hundred bucks for a Tom Maxwell level rebuild then drop it.

Fawndeuce

I agree wholeheartedly with Frank. Even if you are lucky enough find a NOS pump at a swap meet, it probably won't work due to internal deterioration.
I wanted to have my car judged, so mine had to work. The diaphragm in the coordinator was shot, so it had to be rebuilt and the pump had to basically be replaced with a rebuilt one. Total cost from Tom Maxwell was just under $400, how badly do you need the squirt squirt?



Paul

bowtie123

Thanks to all who responded, I got some great information.

I'm going to let the washers go as this will never be a judged car,
and never better than a 2 or 2-.

I'm going to move on to my next problem.............brakes.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks again all,

dcamick

Sorry to uncover this old post...but I'm right in the middle of this project......

Do I need the coordinator on the WW motor to have the squirters work??? I am gathering components for this System on my 61....I was hoping to not purchase the coordinator...

In other words....if I just turn on my wiper motor from the dash switch...then push the washer button will the water hit the squirters????

Frankie the Fink

dcamick

Frankie,

Thank you...That's was what I was counting on!! I also need to relocate squirter holes and purchase a Vacuum Tank with Check Valve...