- Last seen
- Joined
- Mar 19, 2020
- Thunderbird Year
- 1957
So I have the issue I've read about here, the super slow vacuum wipers. Does anyone have the link to the brake fluid "trick" that seems to help quite a few of you?
Thanks.
Thanks.
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So the brake fluid won't harm anything? I just assumed they were slow by nature. Especially when one would accelerate and the vacuum dropped. Ford loved vacuum actuators well into the '60-'70s.I treated my wipers with brake fluid several years ago and they still work well. It is very simple. Buy a bottle of brake fluid and affix a length of rubber tubing to the air inlet on the vaccuum motor under your dash. Put the other end of the tubing into the bottle of brake fluid. Start your engine and turn on the wipers. Run the whole bottle through the wiper motor and your problem should be solved. You will also emit a large cloud of smoke out of your tailpipes. This will lubricate the leather in the vacuum motor.
Good luck. Hope this solves your problem.
I treated my wipers with brake fluid several years ago and they still work well. It is very simple. Buy a bottle of brake fluid and affix a length of rubber tubing to the air inlet on the vaccuum motor under your dash. Put the other end of the tubing into the bottle of brake fluid. Start your engine and turn on the wipers. Run the whole bottle through the wiper motor and your problem should be solved. You will also emit a large cloud of smoke out of your tailpipes. This will lubricate the leather in the vacuum motor.
Good luck. Hope this solves your problem.
I would recommend changing your oil and filter as both are now contaminated. Brake fluid and oil do not mix. Brake fluid will surely deplete the viscosity of the engine oil when it was sucked into the engine through the intake Manifold. So while this might make the wiper motor work better it will likely do permanent damage to the engine internals.Success! I followed the instructions and was surprised to see it sucked down the fluid in about 60 seconds. A minute later, the wipers were firing back and forth like new.
Only thing I wasn't prepared for was how much white smoke I had. My white car in a light gray barn literally disappeared. Opened All the windows and doors and let it run. Took maybe 10 minutes to clear out. But now the wipers are good. Thanks for the advice.
Where is the air inlet. My 57 has ac and wiper vac motor hard to access. ThanksI treated my wipers with brake fluid several years ago and they still work well. It is very simple. Buy a bottle of brake fluid and affix a length of rubber tubing to the air inlet on the vaccuum motor under your dash. Put the other end of the tubing into the bottle of brake fluid. Start your engine and turn on the wipers. Run the whole bottle through the wiper motor and your problem should be solved. You will also emit a large cloud of smoke out of your tailpipes. This will lubricate the leather in the vacuum motor.
Good luck. Hope this solves your problem.
You can do the same thing by accessing the rubber tube in the engine compartment.Where is the air inlet. My 57 has ac and wiper vac motor hard to access. Thanks
Jim Holden
That's not a bad idea. Even though the intake tube is on the bottom it is hard to get to with that huge radio in the way probably even worse with A/C. Just not sure how you would plumb it to suck the fluid into the motor.You can do the same thing by accessing the rubber tube in the engine compartment.
The way I learned is to stick the tube in a bottle of Dot 3, and work the wipers back and forth about 10 times so the fluid is sucked up. Best to have one person on each side to work the wipersThat's not a bad idea. Even though the intake tube is on the bottom it is hard to get to with that huge radio in the way probably even worse with A/C. Just not sure how you would plumb it to suck the fluid into the motor.
I just sprayed some PB max into the intake with the can snorkel while running and they have never worked better but they worked well before anyway but struggled under acceleration. No problem now.The way I learned is to stick the tube in a bottle of Dot 3, and work the wipers back and forth about 10 times so the fluid is sucked up. Best to have one person on each side to work the wipers
I disassembled my vacuum motor and cleaned out all the dried lubricant (or whatever the gunk was that gummed it up). Instead of brake fluid, I lubed the inside with silicone spark plug boot release. Nice and slippery. Wipers work fine, now.So I have the issue I've read about here, the super slow vacuum wipers. Does anyone have the link to the brake fluid "trick" that seems to help quite a few of you?
Thanks.
Yeah, you might have a point there. I think it was harder to get the motor out of the car than it was to take it apart.I have rebuilt many of these vacuum wiper motors and when I do I also use silicone grease and the motor works like it did when it was new. However, most people do not have the knowledge on how to remove and rebuild a vacuum wiper motor, when that is the case using the brake fluid trick to soften the leather seals inside the motor is totally acceptable.
doug7740
1955 Thunderbird Blue.
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