My rear wiper has been not working all winter, and its time to get it fixed. I have a 2005 base model Vibe with manual transmission.
Disassembly was a real chore, as the spindle and nuts were ultra seized up with rust/grit and I had to ask around to see if someone could air wrench it off. I am fairly confident this is the source of the issue, as it seems to be a common cause of a busted rear wiper motor. But I want to be sure it is the motor before I order a replacement because the only affordable motors are from retailers that don't seem to like doing returns. And that's $130 gone...
Back to the issue: so, there is no response or sound coming from the motor when I turn on the switch. The corresponding fuse underneath the steering wheel tests fine. The switch for the wiper and washer fluid works physically, and the fluid comes out just fine. When I look at the motor, there is more rust surrounding an area.
I disconnected the 4-wire power supply connector from the motor. Putting my multimeter's red lead on the red wire's prong and the black lead onto the car frame (ground), I see 0.4 V when the wiper switch is off. When I flick it on, it drops down to 0.1 or 0.2 and then back up to 0.4. When I take both the leads off I get 0 Volts. I had the multimeter on a DC setting -- is that correct?
Should the switching not make a change in the measure voltage on the multimeter?
I don't understand electrical troubleshooting too well, so I could use some advice on this.
Thanks.