Wiper Modification for Mkll's
By Robert Ashworth.
NOTE:
This method will work just as well to keep the wipers
in their standard mounting positions. You don't have to relocate the
spindles if you don't want to.
As
I am in the process of modifying my Mk2 Consul, I was thinking late at night
(as you do) about what features I've liked and what I've disliked about the
Mk2's and other classic cars I've had in the past.
I
don't want to provoke a debate on the subject, but one think I've had a
love-hate relationship with is the vacuum-operated wipers. I've also had
problems with the wipers not clearing the screen properly due to the wiper
blade being too inflexible to keep pressure on the sharply curving screen (to
the right of the driver). I guess this could have been improved by trying
different (newer!) wiper blades and experimenting with the springs in the wiper
arms. However, one of the things on my "likes" list was the
"clap hands" wiper set up I'd had on a ’62 Morris Minor. This is
where the of wiper spindles are mounted towards the outer edges of the screen
such that the wipers meet in the middle at the bottom of the screen when flat
in the park position (they are a legacy of earlier Minors having a split
screen). A similar set up can be seen on a '55 Chevy. It struck me that with
this set up on a Mk2, then the arm would be more upright when wiping towards
the edge of the screen and hence not have to curve so much, remaining in
contact with the screen better.
I
should mention that my car already had an electric wiper conversion, using Mini
components. This comprises a two-speed electric motor, which was mounted in the
engine bay (on a bracket under the bracing bar that runs from the nearside
strut top to the bulkhead), with a steel tube and flexible rack arrangement
passing through the bulkhead to a wheel box for each wiper spindle. This is
easy to adapt, new steel tube with flared ends can be used to mount the spindles
at different spacings. The flares are trapped by the two halves of each wheel
box to keep everything together. I admit I used 3 spots of weld instead of
flaring the tube – much quicker! Mounting one of the wheel boxes upside down
means that the wipers operate in different "directions", as needed
for my new arrangement. I realised though that the flexible rack was not going
to be long enough to reach from the motor in the engine bay to the furthest
relocated spindle. I think that some larger BL cars use the same arrangement
and may have a longer rack, but I couldn't be sure. Looking at what I had to
hand, I investigated and found out that there is just enough room to the right
of the Speedo housing to mount the motor behind the dash. It can remain mounted
in a "flat" position, which I think the design requires, ideally, for
lubrication. Making up brackets to mount it properly (rubber insulated) will be
fiddly, but not impossible. This means that the existing flexible rack is long
enough to reach both spindles, and has the added bonus of tidying up the engine
bay. On the downside, the motor should be greased occasionally and this will
mean stripping it right out again, but I think if it's well greased up when it
goes in then it should survive. I have a slight concern over the noise of the
motor in the car, it sounds quite noisy in my garage but this is without engine
or road noise and with the dash fully stripped out, no sound deadening or
carpets etc.
The
wiper arms need to be “handed”. It was straightforward to modify one of the
stainless wiper arms by dismantling to remove the arm itself and fitting it the
other way around.
I
drilled the new holes in the scuttle using a small pilot hole followed by a
16mm spade drill intended for wood. I’m not sure this did the drill bit much
good, bit it remained sharp enough for the two holes I needed. You then have
two small holes to drill if you are reusing the Mk2 spindle trims with their
integral screen wash jets. Strangely, these are actually “handed” and look good
in their relocated application.
There
are a few other things to consider, welding up the holes where the original
spindles were is the most obvious! This of course is best done before the new
hardware is installed. Also in that area, the air intake grill has two cutouts
in its rear edge to clear the wiper spindles. This is a cast component and not
under stress, so I plan to fill these with body filler or “plastic metal”. My
car is a hi-line so I don’t have the added complication of the stainless trim
around the windscreen. On a low-line, I think you could use two trims, cut
unequally and joined in the centre as neatly as possible, and carefully trimmed
and bent at the outer edges as required.
Inside
the car, the wheel boxes are now in the same place as the screen demisting
slots in the dash, and obstruct the standard metal duct at each side. Here I
will either modify the ducts to just clear the wheel boxes as tightly as
possible (and claim that this was a deliberate design feature in order to
divert some air towards the screen washer jets to prevent freezing), or make up
a more slimline vent for each side as the standard ones are a bit bulky for
what they do.
To
control the 2-speed electric motor, I have adapted a standard Mk2 light switch.
Now the sidelight position is “slow” and the headlight position is “fast”. I
used a relay on the 2nd position to block the feed from the first
position, to prevent the motor getting 2 feeds at once. I also hope to use the
twist function of the switch (for panel dimming) to power an electric screen
wash pump, though this needs more investigation.
Overall,
I’m pretty happy with this conversion. It’s one of those mods that hopefully
people wouldn’t spot immediately and would take a bit of time to work out what
was “different”. It might seem a backwards step, but overall the swept area of
the screen is the same. It could be argued that the new wiping pattern is more
useful as it clears the screen towards both edges, meaning a better view of the
pavement (and hence anyone just about to step out) and of oncoming traffic. The
unswept area is now largely behind the rear view mirror.
Now,
if could just stop getting distracted by things like this I can get back to
more crucial things like welding my sills and fitting an exhaust!
Robert
Ashworth
Disclaimer:
The advice and guidelines given in these articles are given in good faith.
The owners and managers of the Galeforce Zephyr site will take no
responsibility for any injuries or loss sustained while carrying out the
described tasks and procedures or any consequences arising. Please read
the Safety First
Article