Bill Seward
Well-Known Member
My son's got a 2003 Sunfire. A few weeks ago, the driver side wiper blade stopped moving. Nope - not the nut tightening down the spindle, not that easy.
The little plastic cup that snaps onto the steel ball on the spindle decided it was not going to stay snapped. Not broken, just won't stay snapped on. You can put it in place, and pull it off with a very slight tug.
OK, time for a new little plastic cup. Maybe a buck or two? Nope! Not available as a separate part - you gotta buy the whole wiper drive assembly for $150.00 +!
The wiper got to the point that it came apart just trying to wipe over a dry windshield.
Time to fix it - permanently and cheaply. Got the plastic cowl out of the way, and held the offending blade tightly to keep the ball from moving. Using a new 1/8" bit - I drilled a hole as straight as possible about 3/8" into the ball.
Snapped the cup back on (with a bit of lithium grease), and drilled a hole through the cup to line up with the hole in the ball. A small self tapping screw and a washer were then screwed in through the cup into the ball. Felt like the screw got a good bite for about 3 or 4 turns. The washer holds the cup in place, and I can't pull the cup apart from the ball at all. The washer moves a bit on the screw, so I know nothing is binding. Works fine!
Time took - 30 minutes. Money saved - $150.00!
Someone here should nominate me for an award to cancel out the Homer Award I won a while back for frying my laptop!!
unk:
The little plastic cup that snaps onto the steel ball on the spindle decided it was not going to stay snapped. Not broken, just won't stay snapped on. You can put it in place, and pull it off with a very slight tug.
OK, time for a new little plastic cup. Maybe a buck or two? Nope! Not available as a separate part - you gotta buy the whole wiper drive assembly for $150.00 +!
The wiper got to the point that it came apart just trying to wipe over a dry windshield.
Time to fix it - permanently and cheaply. Got the plastic cowl out of the way, and held the offending blade tightly to keep the ball from moving. Using a new 1/8" bit - I drilled a hole as straight as possible about 3/8" into the ball.
Snapped the cup back on (with a bit of lithium grease), and drilled a hole through the cup to line up with the hole in the ball. A small self tapping screw and a washer were then screwed in through the cup into the ball. Felt like the screw got a good bite for about 3 or 4 turns. The washer holds the cup in place, and I can't pull the cup apart from the ball at all. The washer moves a bit on the screw, so I know nothing is binding. Works fine!
Time took - 30 minutes. Money saved - $150.00!
Someone here should nominate me for an award to cancel out the Homer Award I won a while back for frying my laptop!!
unk:
