Help me with this: Intermittant Wipers

[InaneCathode]

I'm looking for some help with this. It seems i only know enough about designing circuitry to be dangerous, so here goes. The following picture is supposed to be an intermittent wiper circuit i thought up.



Basically, what i tried to convey in the picture (i know its horrible, i tried) is to plug in between the first setting on the stock wiper switch and the motor, a circuit that uses a rheostat to alter the current to a flasher type relay (turns on and off according to incoming current) which then controls a larger relay that then controls the power from the stock wiper switch to the motor.

The operation would hopefully be as follows: Press a little green button, which activates the intermittent feature, and interrupts the first speed of the wiper motor to go into the circuit, then back out to the wiper motor. You then can adjust how fast you want the intermittant wipers to work by turning a knob, up to a maximum frequency of just below however long it is between parks on the wiper motor.

I need some help with finding out a very slow flasher type relay, with seconds between flashes instead of fractions of seconds, and finding the value of rheostat i would need. I know i can experiment, but i want to get this right before i go raid radio shack for a handful of rheostats and relays.

[Piledriver]

The OEM factory (not just VW) int. wiper relays work pretty good... and are easy to integrate.
Some even have pins for external pots.

Later bugs etc even have the "intermittent" position//switch contacts, just have to pull out a little stop in the wiper switch so it can "go there".
(column mounted wiper switch, not the dash mount, in retrospect it may just have been late supers...)

[Speedy Jim]

Lots of details in this post from Samba:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewto ... tent+wiper
and:
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewto ... tent+wiper



Speedy Jim
http://www.nls.net/mp/volks/

[InaneCathode]

The OEM factory (not just VW) int. wiper relays work pretty good... and are easy to integrate.
Some even have pins for external pots.

Later bugs etc even have the "intermittent" position//switch contacts, just have to pull out a little stop in the wiper switch so it can "go there".
(column mounted wiper switch, not the dash mount, in retrospect it may just have been late supers...)

Although i don't doubt the simplicity of integrating a newer switch into an older car, i'm looking to make the idea i had work (or not work based on bad design or whatever) and be a 'plug and play' sort of deal.

Not planning on, you know, going into production or anything, but it would be nice to design a little box that you just splice inline with whats there, mount a switch, knob, and an indicator, and you're off.

[Marc]

To function the way you want it to it'll have to open the park circuit, provide a momentary pulse of power to the slow speed winding, then close the park circuit again. I'm pretty certain that by the time you rounded up all the components to make this work you'd have spent more than the cost of an off-the-shelf item:
http://www.jcwhitney.com/WINDSHIELD_WIP ... 004484;0;0
Note that the wiring for the park system was redesigned for `72 when they went from the dash-mounted switch to the steering-column-mounted one. Speedy Jim has diagrams and descriptions of the circuit operation at his site.

There's a dash-mounted wiper switch made for Freightliners and Blue Bird school buses which can be used in a Beetle, it has an integral delay position (variable between 3 and 20 seconds). Need to use an electric washer pump since it's not compatible with the stock air-powered system, but that's an upgrade too IMO.

[InaneCathode]

See, that's what im looking for. Specific stuff, that's helpful. So, as far as opening the park circuit, then closing it along with a pulse of power, i could just use a normal open and a normal closed relay that run off the same energizing circuit, so when the switching circuit is powered, the normally closed relay that switches the park circuit opens, and the normally open relay closes, providing a pulse of power to the low speed wiper circuit. Thus is opens the park for a second, provides a pulse of power to the low speed, then closes the park and opens the low speed pulse circuit.

I know theres already modules that can be adapted to whats there, but i want to build one of my own, and maybe for a few people, that's super simple to install, sort of a "plug this in here, plug this in there, put this there and you're done" sort of arrangement. Barring that, it's a fun mental exercise.

[Chris V]

The school-bus switch only cost ~$60 and bolts right in - super simple...last time I looked a stock switch cost more.

BTW it's a 2-20 second delay

[Kafer_Mike]

There's a dash-mounted wiper switch made for Freightliners and Blue Bird school buses which can be used in a Beetle, it has an integral delay position (variable between 3 and 20 seconds).

Would you happen to have a part number and/or source???

[Zach T]

The school-bus switch only cost ~$60 and bolts right in - super simple...last time I looked a stock switch cost more.

BTW it's a 2-20 second delay

That's awesome! Where did you buy the switch from?? And also, are the high and low speeds slower than normal, or is it just the dry windshield?

With a little searching I see that there a decent number of those switches made for buses...would you happen to have the p/n Chris?

[Chris V]

75600-04 cole hersee

Wiper motor gets faster as it warms up...

[1303]

There is a OG factory relay that one can buy for the intermittent wiper. Wiring diagram is included in the Bentley manual. Also, you will need a late model SWF wiper switch. This gives intermittent wiper about every 6 seconds, not adjustable.

I wired that to my '74 super Beetle about 10 years ago and it is still working perfectly.

[Zach T]

Thanks Chris!

[1303]

P/N of the required relay is 111 955 531

[Chris V]

I've actually been talking with my buddy that has a `90 Corrado and there's supposed to be another OE relay on the market that's programmable as far as intermittent goes. You toggle the intermittent switch manually to set the desired speed It's easy to search the details of, but basically it's a relay with a "99" on top.

Might just work on a late model Beetle ???

From TheSamba thread:

Just as an FYI: I just replaced my '04 Mexi beetle's intermittant wiper relay with one from a 92 cabriolet.
This gives you the ability to vary the time of the intermittant wipe. Simply turn on the intermittant wipers then off. Wait the # of seconds you want and turn them back on. It gives you a range from 5-30 seconds and is a simple relay swap.
The VW part # is 357-955-531 or 1HM-955-531-(A) and the number stamped onto the end is "99". I think quite a number of VWs, Audis and even Volvo used this relay in the 90s-00s.
The Bosch # is 0-986-335-058. I swapped one out of my cabriolet before selling it but I see them on e-by for $20-25 often.

[david58]

http://www.lotustalk.com/forums/f129/jn ... ack-22036/

This hack may be familar to the VW owners out there or Europeans. It's very popular.
VW carries the relay: either 357 955 531 or 1HM 955 531B
Some VW aftermarket suppliers carry it as well. Cost ranges from $10-50 depending where you find it. Here's one for about $29 + S/H: World Impex Relay http://www.worldimpex.com/item_detail.html?sku=54591

The relay can be found in these cars at the boneyard.
Year Make Model
1995 Volkswagen Cabrio 2.0L ABA
1996 Volkswagen Cabrio 2.0L ABA
1997 Volkswagen Cabrio 2.0L ABA
1992 Volkswagen Corrado SLC V6 AAA
1993 Volkswagen Corrado SLC V6 AAA
1994 Volkswagen Corrado SLC V6 AAA
1993 Volkswagen Golf 2.0L GTI ABA
1994 Volkswagen Golf 2.0L GTI ABA
1995 Volkswagen Golf 2.0L GTI ABA
1996 Volkswagen Golf 2.0L GTI ABA
1993 Volkswagen Golf 2.0L GL ABA
1994 Volkswagen Golf 2.0L GL ABA
1995 Volkswagen Golf 2.0L GL ABA
1996 Volkswagen Golf 2.0L GL ABA
1990 Volkswagen Passat 2.0L GL 9A
1991 Volkswagen Passat 2.0L GL 9A
1992 Volkswagen Passat 2.0L GL 9A
1993 Volkswagen Passat 2.0L GL 9A
1995 Volkswagen Passat 2.0L GLS ABA
1996 Volkswagen Passat 2.0L GLS ABA
1997 Volkswagen Passat 2.0L GLS ABA
1992 Volkswagen Passat 2.8L GLX V6 AAA
1993 Volkswagen Passat 2.8L GLX V6 AAA
1994 Volkswagen Passat 2.8L GLX V6 AAA
1995 Volkswagen Passat 2.8L GLX V6 AAA
1996 Volkswagen Passat 2.8L GLX V6 AAA
1997 Volkswagen Passat 2.8L GLX V6 AAA