Citroen C5 windscreen wipers
Discussion
My 2011 C5's wipers are malfunctioning.
Last year, the passenger side motor failed. I think water had got in and seized the shaft. I replaced it, and all was well.
Now, since this cold weather they behave erratically. When the car is cold, they won't work at all. A long run, and I presume prolonged warming under the bonnet, they will work. In between, the left (passenger) side one will not work, the right will start, and then wipe the top third of its range, at high speed, and won't turn off. Setting the control to off, it will eventually stop, sometimes parking vertically along the A-post, sometimes at a random point on the screen. In that case, it will then descend towards the normal park position, in steps, at random intervals.
Meanwhile, the cocntrole and dashboard responses (auto wipe on or off) work normally
The car's built in error reporting system, I presume OBD2, but translated for the average driver, reports "No Fault".
That both motors are involved, but eventually work normally, makes me think that this is more than just a poor connection or a faulty motor, but some error nearer the ECU. Any ideas on how to pursue the investigation, please?
JOhn
Last year, the passenger side motor failed. I think water had got in and seized the shaft. I replaced it, and all was well.
Now, since this cold weather they behave erratically. When the car is cold, they won't work at all. A long run, and I presume prolonged warming under the bonnet, they will work. In between, the left (passenger) side one will not work, the right will start, and then wipe the top third of its range, at high speed, and won't turn off. Setting the control to off, it will eventually stop, sometimes parking vertically along the A-post, sometimes at a random point on the screen. In that case, it will then descend towards the normal park position, in steps, at random intervals.
Meanwhile, the cocntrole and dashboard responses (auto wipe on or off) work normally
The car's built in error reporting system, I presume OBD2, but translated for the average driver, reports "No Fault".
That both motors are involved, but eventually work normally, makes me think that this is more than just a poor connection or a faulty motor, but some error nearer the ECU. Any ideas on how to pursue the investigation, please?
JOhn
The onboard vehicle log wouldn't report DTCs per se (the one you access using the switches). You need to connect the vehicle to Lexia (Citroen's diagnostic tool) to see if there are any codes set from the wiper modules. It sounds like a loss of comms between the master/slave wipers resulting in the former going into limp home mode. Have you checked the connectors for any signs of corrosion/fouling?
Dealers say both wiper motors faulty!
The recall is for a different batch of cars to mine - any way of finding out if there have been more failures in mine?
And, the passenger side motor failed last year, and I fitted a new one, from the same dealer, myself - it's a three bolt job, so simple. The dealer has that sale on their system and promises to raise a "PWC" - Parts Warranty Claim - on that, as it has now failed! So hope that Citroen do the Right Thing and pay for the second new one on that side.
I suppose that a seven year old car must be expected to have original parts fail in use, so grin and bear it.
John
The recall is for a different batch of cars to mine - any way of finding out if there have been more failures in mine?
And, the passenger side motor failed last year, and I fitted a new one, from the same dealer, myself - it's a three bolt job, so simple. The dealer has that sale on their system and promises to raise a "PWC" - Parts Warranty Claim - on that, as it has now failed! So hope that Citroen do the Right Thing and pay for the second new one on that side.
I suppose that a seven year old car must be expected to have original parts fail in use, so grin and bear it.
John
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