Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Tailgate Wiring

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Tailgate Wiring

    In between repeats of Only Fools and Horses and being drunk this Xmas I thought I'd get to the bottom of why my rear wiper wasn't working. The inspection I had before buying the car revealed the motor was seized so I bought a salvage replacement at 45 quid. Fitted this but no joy.

    I then did what I should have done before buying parts and checked it myself. After removing the trim on the rear hatch I checked the voltage on the motor wiring and found one to have no juice. Further explorations revealed this:



    The brown wire is the missing wiper motor feed. White is the boot lock (no idea how that was working) and the other broken connections are for the heated rear screen. I was going to patch up what was there but this seemed like a short-sighted fix as other cables were starting to go as well. Instead I decided to make a new set of patch cables to sit in the gator. All that was needed was some appropriate cable, some heatshrink and a bit of soldering (never use scotchlocks as they often corrode). All in it came to less than a fiver:



    Despite the freezing weather outside I managed to get a pretty decent solder joint going and decided to length the cable to get both joint sections inside the panels. Hopefully this way the car body side slack would pull through when the tailgate was opened:



    It would have been better to stagger the joints to get them into the gator easier but the damage dictated where to make the cuts:



    Unfortunately I couldn't get the tailgate side connections into the panel without damaging them as there was next to no room so the gator pulls away from the car a little when opened and closed. I'm hoping some silicon spray will help keep it moving. Failing that I might just remove the gator and maybe use some grommets to close the hole around the cables to stop water getting in.



    After connecting back up and replacing a blown 15 amp fuse for the wiper system (number 44) everything worked!

    Whether you've got any problems with the rear wiper/heated screen, etc. or not it's worth just pulling the gator back and checking it out. If it hasn't gone yet then it could well be showing signs of wear.

  • #2
    Exellent write up..ive got to do the same as my heated rear glass isnt working! however when i pull the gaitor from the top i cant see any conections? would you say that they are in the middle of the trunking? Thanks in advance.

    Comment


    • #3
      Mine were pretty much bang in the middle yes. Best way if you can't see a break is to get a multimeter on the wires that meet the screen. With the ignition on and the button pressed you should get about 13-14 volts.

      Comment


      • #4
        Does that mean you've got a spare working wiper assembly for the rear? Interested in selling it? I like the look of mine without, but it seems to rain every day that it doesn't snow at the moment ...

        Jez
        1998 Cosmos Black - Not quite standard ...

        Comment


        • #5
          Sent you a PM Jez

          Comment


          • #6
            May I ask, does the rubber sheath from body to boot just fit in like a grommit? As in, you just squeeze and gently remove from the hole in the metal?

            I had a very quick (20 second) look at mine yesterday when outting something in the boot, but it seemed rather reluctant to budge, like it was almost stuck in.

            Ex-Dakar MC Owner - Gone But Not Forgotten

            Comment


            • #7
              Yeah, it will come out. It's just held in like a grommet. Give it a squirt with some WD40 if it's stiff to save you splitting it should the rubber have hardened.

              Comment


              • #8
                Sorry to drag up an old thread - can anyone do an idiots guide as to what parts are required (i.e what wiring is suitable etc)? Is it best to disconnect the battery? Any other tips?

                Comment


                • #9
                  As with any wiring its prudent to disconect the battery...remember to have your radio code at hand when reconecting!

                  Comment

                  Working...
                  X