96 w210 Wiper issues

[Ron Rountree]

I have 1996 E300D w210 328,000 miles and when I start the car the wipers comes on for 10 seconds and do not stop in stop position. The washer and speeds work fine. The car also fails to start all the time with irratic dash lights. The second or third attempt starts and runs fine for the day. Issues may not be related.
Thanks for any advice,
Ron R

[Jeremy5848]

My '96 E300D also had an intermittent, getting worse, starting problem that I traced, finally, to the [still mechanical] ignition switch: the starter contacts were 'burned' and unable to conduct sufficient current to pull in the starter solenoid. I chose to replace the switch but was also able to clean the burned contacts, restoring the old switch to be put away as a spare.

The erratic dash lights could be battery related or could be due to other burned contacts in the ignition switch, especially with your car's mileage.

The WWiper problem sounds like the wiper switch (on the turn signal stalk) is stuck in the 'wash' position. SInce it isn't parking correctly, it doesn't clear that part of the switch. It could also be a switch internal to the wiper or in the timer circuitry. The 124 models have a "multi-purpose relay' that handles this chore; I don't know what the 210s use for that function, even though I own one.

Jeremy

[Maki]

There are two circuits in a wiper motor/gearbox -- the main power circuit and the "park" circuit, which runs through a relay in the unit that is energized when the main motor is in operation. A sticky park relay can send power to the wiper motor when it's stuck closed, bypassing the stalk control, or it can stick in the open position, in which case the wipers stop in mid-sweep. I recently replaced a motor on a BMW that had a bad park relay that was stuck in the open position. The wipers would not complete a full sweep in intermittent mode.

You can test the motor circuitry with a multimeter if you can get to the connector. That's a good way to test the switch on the steering column as well.

[biopete]

Originally Posted by Maki

There are two circuits in a wiper motor/gearbox -- the main power circuit and the "park" circuit, which runs through a relay in the unit that is energized when the main motor is in operation. A sticky park relay can send power to the wiper motor when it's stuck closed, bypassing the stalk control, or it can stick in the open position, in which case the wipers stop in mid-sweep. I recently replaced a motor on a BMW that had a bad park relay that was stuck in the open position. The wipers would not complete a full sweep in intermittent mode.

You can test the motor circuitry with a multimeter if you can get to the connector. That's a good way to test the switch on the steering column as well.

Nice answer. Click and clack would be proud.

[shullshop]

What finally fixed the wiper problem.

Mark