No "Park" in WS wipers, 1978 Mark V

[Scott C. Anderson]

Hey Guys, Long time no talk to... Back again from the "lost vast wasteland", where all good past LCOC directors go, I guess...

Anyways, I recently purchased ANOTHER "project" Lincoln (i know, i said i was done with that) but found a real nice '78 Gold Diamond Jubilee Mark V. Been sitting covered in a garage in U.P. Michigan since 1992. A myriad of small problems, nothing terrible, but one of the first things that caught my attention was that the Windshield Wipers do not "Park" when the switch is turned off. They just "stop" immediately when you turn the switch off. Hmmm....

The motor appears to be right on the firewall, fairly easy access, but I figgered I'd ask someone much more fluent in "Mark V-ese" than I before I started messing with this.

Any suggestions, or ideas???

I guess this the first in many inquiries to make with this new car, so I'll go and build me an adult beverage and wait for some replies!!

Take care,

[Bob Hubbard]

The contact inside the switch are more than likely corroaded.
When you turn the knob on the dash, the contacts inside the switch"tell" the wipers what to do.
One or all of these contacts are corroaded.
Either remove the switch and lightly sand the contacts or replace the switch.

[Scott C. Anderson]

Thanks Bob, I will look into this. I suppose that a corroded switch is as possible as anything with this car, since it has sat virtually unattended and not run since 92. I had kinda thought it had something more to do with the WSW motor assy on the firewall, but I am open to any suggestions.

BTW.... Cool pic of your '59 Convertible on your signature. I am doing a Sapphire 59 Convertible right now with a white top, and black/white int. Always had an affinity for the 58-60 models, I have had 7 or 8 of them in the last 15+ years, they are a rare breed.

Also surprised to see you have a Diamond Jubilee also, is your car a "one off", denoting the "Custom" ??? Interesting. What is the background of your DJE??

Take care.....write back when you get time.

Thanks, Scott

[toddallen]

Scott,
For what it is worth, the same thing happened on my past 95 Mark VIII, and it was in the motor assembly (replaced by the dealer). If it was the switch, the wipers would not stop at all- I have never had one of these apart, but I would imagine that there is linkage in the motor unit that tells the wipers to "park" when power is cut off by the switch, yet there is probably another constant power lead to the motor that will provide power so the wipers will lay down.

Now it is time for my "Adult" beverage...

[Bob Hubbard]

Scott, click on the cardomain link in my signature.
My D.J.E. is on the first couple of pages.
There are many moire pics of it on the fotki link under "my three toys" link on my cardomain home page.
What is custom about it is it's color.
After many years of looking at the all gold exterior, I decided to paint it black and leave some gold highlights.
As for it's history, I bought it 17 years ago from a friend that needed money.
He hated to part with it but, sometimes things happen that require that we do things we hate.
I installed a new rebuilt enging three years ago and there are less than 9000 miles on it.
I don't drive it much.
The interior was redone at the same time but the jerk doing it threw away the brocade on the seats and I was furious when I picked the car up.
I deducted $600.00 from his price and told him if he had trouble with that , I would take him to court for the complete amount of the job.
This Diamond is only driven about once a month for about ten miles.
It runs and rides incredibly smooth.
It does need a couple of minor things the worst of which is replacing the front seal on the tranny.
It leaks about a tablespoon in three weeks time.
The cable that operates the moon roof snapped and I got another but haven't installed it yet.
I am selling the car because most of my time and resources are being put into the 59.
I am trying to get it completed so that it can be in the Hollywood Christmas parade.
I have connections for the parade.

[toddallen]

One other idea I thought of...
Was not your year the era of the crummy- designed- backward style switch where the most counter clockwise position is not OFF but actually DELAY?

If this is the case, the wipers would not park on the counter clockwise position. The switch and motor unit may be fine, but the problem would be in the delay box not giving the message to the motor to "swipe" intermittently. Try slowing tuning the knob clockwise and see if there is a position that "parks" the wipers- this would be the OFF position.

There may be nothing wrong with your wipers, you may have it set on maximum delay, and did not wait long enough for them to cycle.

[Scott C. Anderson]

Hi Bob and Todd....

That in itself sounds kinda familiar to me, as those are my Dad, and brother's names, respectively. Hmmm...deja vu all over again....

Anyways, Bob, sounds like an interesting Diamond. I will click on your link tonite, and look around your site. Me myself, I have always been fascinated by the DJE edition Mk Vs. As a kid of 17 when they were introduced, I fell instantly in love with them. My girlfriend in those days, her dad was a prominent surgeon at the time, and traded in a really nice 74 White/Saddle Edition Mk IV for a Diamond Blue DJE. He didn't even have to drive it home from the dealership, they dropped it off in his driveway in a covered trailer!! I was fascinated by the opulence and elegance of this car, and amazed to see three window stickers affixed to the driver's side glass!! This car stickered out at over $22.000.00 in 1978!!

This was back in the day when you could get a loaded out LTD for $6k. Even a nicely optioned Town Car could be had for around $10k.

The mere thought of a car costing that much was amazing to me, and I knew that one day, I was gonna own one of these ladies. Actually always had a preference for the Gold DJE over the Blue, but it was just my preference.

When this one popped onto Ebay in early Feb, I was very curious. With a reserve of only $995, I was skeptical that there was anything left. The more I talked to the daughter and son-in-law of the recently deceased ORIGINAL owner of this car, it sounded fairly promising. They were mostly unsure of any of the mechanicals, tho. They were not willing to even attempt to get the car running. They said someone had tried to start it 8-10 years ago, in the garage, but suspected a broken or rusted fuel line, so they gave up right then, and replaced the car cover.

I ended up having the high bid on the car for just a few hundred more than the reserve. And a month later when i finally got up to Iron Mountain, Michigan, in the dead of winter, in a white-out blizzard, i was not really disappointed when i saw the car. The weather though was entirely another story........

It has the most original mint interior I have ever seen, all the DJE stuff is still there, hood ornament, tool kit, umbrella, leather bound owners manual, everything......all the stuff that seems to disappear over the years with these cars. I had the original title dated Aug 78, Bill of sale, the window stickers, all maintenance records, the whole ball of wax. Being an originality and paperwork stickler, I was happy as hell.

The chrome and paint is all original, and 90+ point. Bad things are that there are a few rust spots on the lower doors, and lower fenders, and it was never undercoated from new, so the underbody is a mess. I will have it sandblasted and painted soon. Good things are that it is a 460 car, with a sunroof, dual exhausts, 4 wheel discs, with a double line Goodyear spare tire that has never been on the ground. Only option they left off this one is the factory CB. Hmmm.....

With only 3 hours work one day last week, I changed all the fluids, pre-lubed the cylinders with Mystery Oil, and rigged up a remote gas tank, freed up the throttle on the carb, and had this old girl running like a charm. No seal leaks, no terrible smoke, nothing. Good Deal!!

This WSW wiper switch thing is something I will attack very soon, as with the brake rebuild. I guess I am dreading the $$$$ involved in replacing 4 rotors and calipers, and all the lines n hoses, but oh well, it HAS to be done for safety.

I will keep y'all up to speed on my progress. Thanks for taking the time to respond.....

Now, back to the adult beverage thing, and it's almost time for "Desperate Housewives"!!!

See ya, Scott

[Bob Hubbard]

Scott, as soon as you can, post some pics in the gallery.
We would all like to see your new Diamond.
As for the calipers and rotors, I replaced mine about three years ago and they weren't cheap.
I have always done all the work on all my cars except my Dakota which is still under warranty.
The replacement of the rotors and calipers is a piece of cake, it's just that now they are kind of pricey.
Bob.