My windshield wipers occasionally come on to make one swipe. I have seen this problem addressed before, but cannot find the solution. Any ideas?

 

Replace the Multifuntion Switch.

 

I believe there's a TSB on that problem on 97-98 years. You didn't say what year you have but it might be worth looking into.

 

Jake...I had the same problem with my '99 Scab, brought it to my dealer and they replaced the entire control arm, no charge and no questions asked! Now I'm more careful whenever I use turn signals on my new truck to avoid the same problem. I sure wished they did not integrate signals and wiper in one control arm, same problem occurs in all my previous vehicles (or I must have a heavy arm!)
Goodluck!

 

Mine has never come on by itself,but it does act wierd when it's on intermittent. It will swipe once,wait for the correct amount of time,then swipe 3 or 4 times without stopping,lol. Just plain strange! My washer button doesn't work well at all. I have to push it several times,and then hold it forever before it will begin spraying. I checked for leaks,but didn't find anything ,,,,,,,98

 

My 97 F150 and my 95 Ranger both did it until the dealer replaced the multifunction switch as indicated above.

 

I've been having the same wiper problem lately. Had the same thing w/ my '99 Explorer! Now that I know it's not just me, my dealer will be getting a call on Monday!!!!

Thanks,
Pete

 

... on the '99 Explorer I mentioned above.. this was a recall item and the dealer had no choice but to replace it.

 

I know this is a bit late, but I was having a lot of the problems you are describing here. Do a search and you should find some pretty detailed instructions on how to fix the switch yourself. I took my switch apart (its pretty easy - you just have to be careful of losing a particular spring that's inside) and cleaned the grease ford had used inside. It conducts electricity. I bought the type that doesn't from my dealership and it works fine now.

Also, regarding the sprayer button not working, there is a small metal tab inside the control arm that creates a connection when you push the button in. I had to "tweak" mine out a little bit because for some reason it got to the point where it just wouldn't make contact anymore.

Also, check for slime or film inside your washer fluid reservoir. I don't know where the heck it came from but I had some in mine and it clogged the little pump intake.

Sorry I'm not more technical about this electric stuff.

 

Horde and others
You make some good points. MY wipers hardly ever act funny but I do have to push and hold the washer button to get anything out of them. I always just thought that maybe the little washer pump just had to prime itself and get fluid up to the nozzle. Other times I would think that the pump was bad, clogged lines or the switch. Now I know for sure it's the switch. Heck if that many people are having the same problem it has to be it. Thanks for the quick fixes I might have to try some of them if it gets too bad.

 

same thing with my 99 scab. took it to ford and they fixed it no prob

 

I was going to post a new thread on my wiper problem, but it looks like I'm not the only one! It looks like my dealer is going to hear from me again (they must hate me by now! )!

 

I too am having problems with my washer fluid not working.

I took my wiper control apart yesterday and found the little "contact ring" you were talking about. I tried for over an hour to adjust the pins just right. Never could get it to work correctly. I would have to loosen the screw and it would not spray, or tighten it and it would spray all the time! Very frustrating!

There is a common pin that was bent back pretty far, I also fixed that. Does anyone exactly what contacts make it spray?

I really do not want to have to replace the entire arm for this! I assume Ford does not sell just the contact. Maybe I need to go to a junkyard....

Any suggestions?

 

I had this problem on my '95 Ranger and now my Expedition is doing it. The dealer said that if I wanted to have it fixed they would try a new multilever but that would cost over $100 to do.

 

I also had the problem with my washer button not working correctly on my '97 F-150 4x4. I used the suggestions posted here and got it working in about 20 minutes. It took some trial and error to get the "tweak" just right, but essentially I ended up increasing the angle of the metal "push" tab with a tiny pair of needle-nosed pliars. At first, it was too steep and would activate at the slightest provocation and usually stay on. On the second try I got it just right and it seems to be working perfectly. Seems that the tab just got "sprung" after several years and wasn't making a hard enough contact. Thanks for the suggestions and hope this helps.