X7 passenger wiper died

[Agour]

Hi!

My passenger wiper has just given up the ghost.

It was delayed behind the drivers side one by about half a second, went up.. And never came back down..

Its now stuck in the vertical position and doesn't move at all. Drivers side still works fine..

It does feel a little loose - I'm guessing this might be the linkage between the two?

Thanks!

[RichardW]

There's a separate (expensive) motor for each side. It might not be the passenger side causing the trouble, so you would need to get it diagnosed first to confirm which is at fault (although if there is obvious mech problems, then it might have given itself away!).

[GiveMeABreak]

Absolutely ^ These have a Master / Slave relationship, so not as obvious as it may seem.

[Estately]

Hi Agour,
If you google,
"Citroen C5 X7 Windscreen Wipers"
And go the FCF result you will find copious detail in the various posts.
If you are fairly handy at relatively light repairs you could fix it yourself and save the cost of a wiper motor or two.
The problem could be the magnet displaced on the drive shaft which if realigned will provide continuation of wiper service.
The uk driver's side motor is the master with the passenger side being the slave. That is driver's side fails no wipers, passenger side fails, driver's side continues to work giving reasonably good visibility.
Hope that helps, let us know how you get on.
Andy.

[Agour]

Gotcha, thanks!

How are the two linked?

I went to the car to investigate... And the wipers were magically working again. So didn't take anything apart

[GiveMeABreak]

Very likely it will be water ingress causing intermittent behaviour - as said, details likely covered in threads about this and I've provided more details in some of them.

[Agour]

Hi Agour,
If you google,
"Citroen C5 X7 Windscreen Wipers"
And go the FCF result you will find copious detail in the various posts.
If you are fairly handy at relatively light repairs you could fix it yourself and save the cost of a wiper motor or two.
The problem could be the magnet displaced on the drive shaft which if realigned will provide continuation of wiper service.
The uk driver's side motor is the master with the passenger side being the slave. That is driver's side fails no wipers, passenger side fails, driver's side continues to work giving reasonably good visibility.
Hope that helps, let us know how you get on.
Andy.

Ahh amazing thank you! I didn't see this post before I put my last reply.

I'll have a read around, thank you

[Estately]

The wiper motors are linked electronically via the circuit boards inside each of the motors.

The function of the magnets being to provide alignment information to the circuit boards between the wipers.

If the magnet has moved on the shaft the alignment signal is lost to the circuit board.

You could have a problem with water ingress inside the motor, there is a drain hole that could be blocked. Check for debris on the scuttle under the wiper arm.

The grease inside the motor could be all but dried up.

I think member ASK_dj was the first to identify the magnet problem with an explanatory picture, there is also a YouTube video showing the dismantling etc. procedure (what isn't on YouTube? ).

If you do decide to remove the motors, treat the cover screws with respect, soak the heads with plus gas or penetrating oil for as long as you can to try and prevent them from snapping.

If you can make time, investigate before the weather turns colder, being a Citroën it will try and lull you into a false sense of security, then it will pack up on the worst night imaginable.

Good luck
Andy.

[Agour]

The wiper motors are linked electronically via the circuit boards inside each of the motors.

The function of the magnets being to provide alignment information to the circuit boards between the wipers.

If the magnet has moved on the shaft the alignment signal is lost to the circuit board.

You could have a problem with water ingress inside the motor, there is a drain hole that could be blocked. Check for debris on the scuttle under the wiper arm.

The grease inside the motor could be all but dried up.

I think member ASK_dj was the first to identify the magnet problem with an explanatory picture, there is also a YouTube video showing the dismantling etc. procedure (what isn't on YouTube? ).

If you do decide to remove the motors, treat the cover screws with respect, soak the heads with plus gas or penetrating oil for as long as you can to try and prevent them from snapping.

If you can make time, investigate before the weather turns colder, being a Citroën it will try and lull you into a false sense of security, then it will pack up on the worst night imaginable.

Good luck
Andy.

You were 100% right.. It seemed to be ok for the last week and I thought it would be fine.

Rainy night, and the passenger side goes crazy again.

Will take it apart tomorrow to investigate!

Seems likely to be magnet or electrical issue.. As the wiper would move and then get stuck in weird positions. Turning car off and on again and it would reset back to normal

[Agour]

Magnet was definitely up the shaft a bit.. Pushed it back down and glued it in place. Hopefully that will solve the issues

There was also a bit of foam matting (presumably sound insulation) between the motor and cabin.

It was soaked.. And touching up against the electrical connectors on the motor. Might have been the cause so I've removed it.

[Agour]

Unfortunately glueing the magnet didn't work...

Passenger side now refuses to move, and the drivers side only goes 2/3 of the way up.

The passenger side was still greased up, and I cleaned the rust off the linkages that move.

Anything else to check? Or replacement motor time?

[darbuck]

I did this a while ago as well you could have used too much glue and accidentalIy stuck it to the housing preventing the motor from turning. Try rotating the magnet on its axis and make sure it is free to move. If It still doesn't work you may look at a new motor

[Estately]

Sorry to hear that you have had no success up to now.

I would use thread locker if you have to stick the magnet again.

a. It seems to have the right consistency.

b. It won't stick you to yourself or your surroundings.

c. I think it works better in the presence of oils.

I would try to get thread locker on the shaft in the direction from where the magnet had to be moved back from and then leave the motor in such a position that the thread locker will run onto the magnet/shaft. Then leave for a while to set before you re assemble.

Worth checking the electrical connections to ensure there is good contact. Check that the circuit board in not showing signs of water damage.

Check the drive shaft with the magnet is not moving up and down such that the magnet could be taken out of position with reference to the circuit board.

If you have dismantled it, try to test with the motor plugged in and placed, no wiper attached or any location bolts, just to see and listen for any activity.

(I think that the magnet should only be moved up and down the shaft and not rotated on the shaft. The shaft may not be a totally round profile but shaped with multiple mild flats to keep the magnet referenced)

Hope that helps.

[Agour]

Thanks for the replies!

The magnet was still in place, so no luck there...

Mechanism was still moving OK too.

There's a small amount of corrosion on one of the screws that holds the circuit board in. Nothing else visible on the top, but I can't get the circuit board out to check underneath.

Suspect there's corrosion on the underside of the board, and it came in where the plug socket attaches to the housing..

I'll bite the bullet and buy another motor

[Agour]

I was told this would fit.. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/155812046129 ... media=COPY

But mine doesn't have the external wiper linkage?

Did they change the design at some point? The eBay listing matches closely otherwise.. Both 2009 estates