How To Fix Leaking Wiper Pivot Seals

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'74 Sport

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'74 Sport submitted a new Article:

How To Fix Leaking Wiper Pivot Seals

For the benefit of many of you wondering how to stop a typical leak
through worn out and deteriorated wiper pivot seals, I am providing
the following sequence of photos. The first photo is to show you
how important it is to keep the cowl clear of debris. This pile of
leaves and twigs were dug out of the cowl by reaching up through
the fresh air opening on the passenger side of the dash.

View attachment 1714972275

I know most of you wont have the luxury of having your A/C or
heater box removed to reach up into the cowl to clear the debris, but
you should know that there are drain holes in the sides of the cowl
where you can dig out the bulk of the mess. Its not fun and is very
time consuming, but it may possibly prevent debris clogging up the
drains and causing water to back up and overflow into the fresh air
inlet. Or worse, the built up debris provides a place for moisture
to remain, causing rust to develop around the inlet and on the floor
of the cowl.

The following sequence of photos shows how to install the grease
fittings, seals, gaskets, and caulk strips that are provided in a kit
sold by Schumacher Creative Services (www.engine-swaps.com).

1. Drill 3/16 hole through pivot base.
View attachment 1714972276

2. Hole drilled only through outer wall of pivot base.
View attachment 1714972277

3. Use nut driver or socket to drive grease fitting into pivot base.
View attachment 1714972278

4. Grease fitting installed in pivot base.
View attachment 1714972279

5. Schumachers wiper pivot seal kit.

View attachment 1714972456


6. Liquid soap will ease installation of the new seal.
View attachment 1714972281

7. Its tight, but the new seal will go on with a little persuasion.
View attachment 1714972282

8. Wiper pivots with new seals and gaskets.
View attachment 1714972283

9. New base gasket and rope caulk.
View attachment 1714972284

10. Pivot installed with new seal.
View attachment 1714972285

By the way, dont forget to shoot a little grease into the pivot base
using the new fitting. You can skip the step of installing the grease
fitting, but Schumacher says it can prevent water from seeping down
a loose pivot shaft (and it might do away with a squeaky noise coming
from a dry one.)

The kit comes with very concise instructions, but I
thought I would give you a preview of what you will be getting into.
You should probably plan on taking the better part of an afternoon to
replace the seals from start to finish, including replacing the linkage
arm nylon bushings. But that is a story for another time.

Don't be afraid, it's not that bad,
Jerry

Read more about this article here...
 
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A man after my own heart! That was a GREAT step-by-step procedure Jerry! Thank you for taking the time, and having the forethought, to chronicle each step. THIS is what a forum such as ours should provide for the new, or in-experienced, members whom came here in the first place for help & information. When someone asks "How do I..." THIS is what we should have tucked away for reference.

I wish I had the authority, and resources, for a incentive program for rewarding posts such as this. This is the stuff we need EVERYONE to contribute.

Thanks again Jerry.
trink39.gif
 
Thanks for the kind words. Much of the credit goes to my son Aaron - he wouldn't make a living as a hand model (see the skinned knuckle and dirty fingernails), but we make a good team. We started taking lots of pictures during the restoration of his '74 Dart Sport, and we continue to do so with his '74 Duster.

The Dart was our first-ever project, so we fumbled our way through most of what we accomplished. Since the Duster is almost a carbon copy of the Dart, we don't have the learning curve to overcome, and we have the advantage of having already done most everything, at least once.

I've noticed that the typical first response to a member's question about the most likely source for water drips under the dash has been "the wiper pivot seals." Aside from a leaky windshield gasket, this is probably the most often found source for leaks. I hoped these photos would show even the most inexperienced A-body buff that this is really an easy and inexpensive fix for a common and highly damaging problem.

So, visually check the condition of your wiper pivot seals, looking for cracks and signs of deterioration. Run a strong stream of water over each of them with your garden hose and check for leaks under the dash. Take care of any leaks now, before they create greater problems later, like this:

Rusted lower lip of dash
2445564721_0d1c5fbff9_o.jpg


More to come...
Jerry
 
DMT also has wiper pivot seals available. I purchased them last fall along with the gaskets for under my hood inserts ('67 Barracuda). I've installed the hood inserts and the gaskets were perfect. We haven't done the wiper pivot seals yet.
 
Great write-up! That dash looks bad. Mine looks just like it. damn leaks!
 
wow thanks for that i knew how to do it before but havent actually done the work yet that makes things much more clear Thanks again Justin
 
Awesome post. When I bought my car the drains were clogged because it sat outside uncovered for a long time. Not pretty. It needed carpet but I got to it before any rust started.
 
DMT also has wiper pivot seals available. I purchased them last fall along with the gaskets for under my hood inserts ('67 Barracuda). I've installed the hood inserts and the gaskets were perfect. We haven't done the wiper pivot seals yet.


I had recieved a set of the proto-type hood insert gaskets from Jim at DMT and was so happy with them. I was wondering, are there installation pictures with the gaskets? I had sent him pictures of mine and he said he was going to include them with the gaskets.

Barracuda286-vi.jpg

CarStuff063-vi.jpg

CarStuff066-vi.jpg
 
No, no pics. I just laid the gaskets over the studs and tightened everything down.

In the middle picture above you can see there are bends. He recommends you do this so it doesn't sit crooked. Or at least, that's what he told me. Maybe it's un-necessary.....

He's a great guy Jim. I praise DMT every chance i get.
 
Even with my heater box out the leaves are hard to get out of the cowl.
The cowl is sealed up and my arms aren't that long for the drivers side.
So I used a hole saw and put like a 1 inch hole in the fire wall and blew compressed air around in there to get the leaves out.
Then just put a body plug in the hole(s).
Looks like it belongs there.

I didn't know about the grease fitting kit. Good deal.
I have used flush needle grease fittings in my pivot arms and "Micro-Mesh" rubber sanding blocks are just the thing to make your own seals.
Won't say were I got the grease fittings or the Micro-Mesh foam blocks.:yawinkle:
(Jump over to the current thread about fixing aircraft and ask an aircraft mechanic about that stuff).
 
Now I need to know which way the bar goes under the dash. The one that hooks up both wipers together.

Possible picture?
 
Here ya go....

The first pic is a refurbished unit.
The second pic is the left wiper pivot in my parts Duster.
The third pic is an enlargement of the left wiper pivot for detail.
(Notice the white lithium grease and new nylon pivot bushings.)

Does that help?

Jerry

Pivot_Links.jpg


Pivot_Lt01.jpg


Pivot_Lt02.jpg
 
NO, it doesn't at all, Ahhhh I need my glass'sss'ss I can't seee!!!!!!!
(Runs blindly into wall!! :angry7: )

OK, idiot's delight over....:cheers:

YA, it does, a whole lot, Thanks Dude!
Great shots. :cheers:


Left wiper pivot on the driverside picture, er, the incar shot, hard to get to? Looks good. Nice work.
 
No, not really, considering it is in the Duster I am parting out, and all the steering, pedals, wiring, instrument cluster, and other obstacles were removed first.
icon10.gif


You're welcome, anything to help...

Jerry
 
I agree that this is a great help. We're rebuilding a 73 Duster and this is all new to us. One question, though. Where can we get the new nylon bushings that are mentioned.
Thanks again, Ken
 
great write up deff. a #1 way to stop them leaks unless ur window channel is rusted out
 
Where can we get the new nylon bushings that are mentioned.

I used to get them in the HELP! section of miscellaneous parts at the local parts stores with a couple of them in a blister package for a couple of bucks. I think they are now selling a misc. collection of various bushings (most you don't need) in a package for several bucks.

Check with your local NAPA store. I got the last ones there.
When you install them, let them sit in some very hot water for a couple of minutes to soften before pressing them in with channel lock pliers. Don't forget to fill the pocket with white lithium grease.

Jerry
 
Thirty years ago, one of the plastic bushings on my 74 Dart broke and I had to repair it without a FSM or instructions (pre-internet days). I was upside down for hours cursing the engineer that made this repair so difficult.

Thirty years later and three years into my restoration, I originally decided not to do this wiper pivot repair. THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN A MISTAKE. For any of you doing a restoration on a thirty-plus year old car, the Schumacher repair kit is $11.50 plus $5.00 shipping. DO THE REPAIR.

My dash was back together and I decided I did not want water leaking on my new carpet. Without removing the radio or heater/air control switch, I removed the heater box and the plastic box that holds the heater core and the glove box. (I left the core in.) It took a few hours to get the wiper control arms out from the dash. After removing the nuts holding the pivot arms to the underside of the dash, I removed the whole unit through the glove box. (Too many wires, steel, etc to drop straight down to the floor board.) The old gasket was dry rotted and fell apart. Before I took the arm assembly off, I put a piece of tape on the bottom of the pivot arm while it was still installed so that I would be sure that the grease fitting per Jerry's picture #4 in the original post would be in the right spot after reassembly. Be sure to drill in the center of the pivot arm so that your grease fitting will attach snug. (Ask me how I know this.)

After removing the arm assembly, take pictures of both sides of the arms before removing the old bushings. I cleaned my arms and painted them and the next day after drying overnight, I put one new bushing in backwards. Luckily I referred to my digital pictures and realized the bushing was not on properly, and I fixed the problem before putting the assembly back in the car.

As per Jerry's pictures # 7 and 10, the new seal is necessary to prevent water leaking into the dash area. You will need four new bushings which do not come in the Schumacher kit. I bought mine at O'Reilly's in a package of two.

The last thing to do after the arms are reinstalled is to reattach the wiper motor to the arm through the hole in the firewall. The end of the wiper motor that sticks through the firewall has a rectangular piece on the end of the motor that has to be properly positioned with the rectangular groove on the arm. Hold your wiper motor with one hand and rotate it lining up the two rectangular slots. Put them together and place your nut on the end of the wiper motor and use a 3/8" open end wrench and tighten the nut. You can then rotate your motor and install the motor holes through the three studs on the firewall.

Good luck! Just be prepared to spend several hours doing this repair.
 
I bought my Nylon Bushings at Pep Boys Auto Parts. They come in a 2 pack though - Go figure! Cost was $4.00 a 2 pack and 2 packages required. Hope this helped.
Later,
Bruce B.
 
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