I was on my way to work this morning in an absolute downpour, wipers going full blast. Then, suddenly, they went up and the driver side got stuck past the windshield on the window. Needless to say I couldn't see anything and had to pull over. I pushed it back onto the windshield and turned them back on, nothing happend, they stayed up. I went to push them back down and found they were moving wherever I pushed them. Is this because motor stripped them or what? Is it easy to replace a motor and save myself a couple hundred dollars? I have a 2002 Nissan Altima.
well the wiper system consists of a motor, links, and arms. One of them has probably gone bad. Try to tighten the wiper arms down first b/c the nuts will usually loosen up over time. The replacement of the motor or links isn't that difficult but the links are probably gonna cost some money. The motor you could get from a junkyard. Would not recommend getting the links from one though. Get them from the dealership.
Sounds like your linkage came off the socket. The motor is running but the linkage arm is no longer connected to the motor. If you turn on the wiper motors, you should hear the motor running. Stripped gears on motor would either make a lot of noise or burn the motor. If the linkage came off the socket, its should be an easy repair. There are access panels beside the wiper motor underneath the hood. Carefully take the screws off, reach in and check the linkages. If they move freely then they popped off the socket. You should be able to pop it back in, its just a plastic socket on the linkage and metal ball on the motor. Although if you can, see if you can get a new plastic socket from a car parts store, it may already be worn out thats why it popped out easy.
