Morris Minor Owners Club

Hi,
This is my first post, so please be gentle.
My daughter has a '65 four-door, and has just passed her test, so its now been used regularly. Things are going reasonably well apart from a wiper problem. Well, actually, there's also a suspension problem, oh and an oil leak problem, but I'll post seperately for those.

The drivers side wiper arm wouldn't grip the wheelbox spindle very well, although it behaved on its MOT. I removed the arm and inspected the spline, which looked a little tired, but I've seen a lot worse. I bought a new arm for one of the larger traders and fitted it. OK on test with squirty bottle of water, but it only lasted one rainy journey before it came loose again. The arm had pushed on far enough to engage the little spring clip. It didn't have many splines though. Are some brands better than others? These were Tex.

Is there an "elegent" bodge that I could use that doesn't involve tinfoil metal epoxy or superglue, or do I need a new wheelbox? I see from other posts that some new repro parts are better than others.

Ta, Mark[frame][/frame]

Mark
As you have guessed the correct answer is probably a new wheel box ( possibly two, if the other one is as bad ).

With the wipers lifted off the screen is the operation of the wipers otherwise smooth/ vibration free ?
If it is OK then a little bit of PTFE tape around the splines might work for a while.Experiment with how many turns of the tape, you may well have to gently hammer on the wiper arms.Cushion the chrome with a few layers of cloth to protect it.

It's only a temporary fix at best.
Bob

TEX is one of the better makes - but does seem you need new wheel boxes. The bodges you suggest will only fail at a critical moment.

Ah well. The joys of running an old motor. I'll bodge it for now, get new wheel boxes in, and book an appointment with the pilot.
I believe access is through the glove boxes. How do the cardboard liners come out? Are there any wheelboxes that are better than others?

Ta, Mark

The joys of running an old car is that you don't have to re mortgage the house to pay for repairs.

There's one make of wiper arm that incorporates a wedge that is tightened by a posi-headed machine screw. These will clamp on to worn spindles quite successfully, I've found. You may have to hunt around a bit to find them on an autojumble stall.
Sorry it's a poor photo, but here's one of mine:[frame][/frame]

Kevin

Crikey - never seen that before! Good idea......