Wiper rack replacement.

[n/a]

The drivers side wiper spindle on my RHD 280SL is badly worn, & I guess the only real solution is to change the rack linkage complete.

From what I can remember, when we did the heater controls & broken plastic flap, we manage to extract the passenger side spindle, & grease it, but could not remove the drivers side.

The question is, has anybody out there done this work, & are there any tips to pass on, or is it really as bad a job as the specialist garages make out?

Would be very grateful for any advice.

[George Des]

Clockmaker,

Sorry. There is no other way to do this other than taking the whole dash apart. The transmission is buried in there in a way that the only way to extricate it is to pull all the guages and heater vents out. This necessitates pulling the heater matrix and that's why it is a bear to do. I made sure when I had my dash apart recently that I pulled the entire wiper transmission and opened the spindles themselves--they're held toegther with a snap ring. I very carefully used some fine grade sandpaper to clean them up, greased them and then reassembled. This is one of those jobs you just don't want to have to do twice so fix everything else that may possibly go wrong once you dissassemble the dash--that goes for light bulbs, heater cables, etc, etc

George Des

[ja17]

Hello Clockmaker,
George is correct, it is a miserable job. These wiper transmissions were one of the first things to be installed into the car when they were being manufactured. The two wiper transmission housings are connected as a single assembly and cannot be removed separately. It is more common for these to rust and get stuck, then to wear. Nearly everything in front of the driver must be removed. Remove the steering wheel first so you have plenty of room to work!
My advice to the others is find a way to lubricate these at first sign of trouble. I recall that these have a seal and/or a felt washer built in the chrome cap to shed water?

Joe Alexander
Blacklick, Ohio