Packard Forum Index » V-8 (1955-56)

Risked everything and drove the car in the rain today...only to discover that the wipers only wipe in the narrow position. Flipped the lever both ways; they run slower on one side, but always the short strokes of teh high speed setting.

Among last months repairs was replacement of all vacuum hoses.

Suggestions?

The small 1/8" tube at the very front center of motor needs to have vacuum to make it work full sweep. Pull the hose off and check to see if there is vacuum present in one position of the lever and not the other. If there is vacuum present but no sweep selection there is a problem in motor. If no vacuum at all, possible cause is small hoses are reversed or kinked at the switch or one fell off at the switch. If hoses are reversed you would probably be hearing a hissing noise when the lever is at one end position. If those are good and still no vacuum, one unlikely cause could be the tee connection at vacuum source near passenger side of motor is plugged.

Would someone please explain to me what the advantage vacuum controlled wipers have over those powered by an electric motor? It is kind of bizarre, and not just a little disconcerting, when the wipers slow down when I accelerate and speed up when I let off the gas! I can adjust them a bit to operate somewhat like intermitten wipers ... somewhat. My first car was a 1960 Ford Sunliner and by then, Ford had the good sense to drop the vacuum wipers for a two-speed electric setup. I have also noticed that cars before the 1940s had electric wipers. I guess we'd get tweeked if we traded the vacuum wipers for electric ones, right?

A good question and maybe someone has an answer. I always thought it was a lower cost item and was used to keep mfg costs down. When you consider having to add a dual chamber fuel pump or other secondary vacuum source plus the extra plumbing and labor to hook it all up, there wouldn't seem to be much savings. Lowly Studebaker was also using electric at the time expensive Packard was using vacuum so maybe there is another reason.

I'm sure you would get called out at any quality show if you changed the motor.

When you get tired of those vacuum wipers, install a 57 Chevy electric wiper motor, you can use the existing control cable. Works good on mine. I don't fear rain anymore.

bobp.


did the 57 motor fit ?.

I have the chevy motor, and I had to make an adapter, and the swing does not go all the way to the end of glass. tried playing with it.

now I would go with that new one someone has made.

When the operate correctly, you have variable speeds. My 48 wipers work perfectly. I have high speed operation even upon acceleration. When its a very light drizzle, I can slow them down to a crawl-almost like todays intermittent wipers. Packard used electric wipers on the 40-42 Junior cars and gave it up after the war because the electric wipers were considered inferior in operation.

I bought the motor used, it fit OK.The wiper arc is about normal ,covers the flat part of the glass.I really don't need it to clean the curved end. I didn't make any adapters. I think I used longer screws to bolt it on.maybe you need to remove the wiper arms put the motor on, make sure it's in park position, then put the arms on. Then adjust the cable. You might need to put some washers between the motor and firewall for spacers if it's too tight.

Packard used electric wipers on the 40-42 Junior cars and gave it up after the war because the electric wipers were considered inferior in operation.

Electric was still used on postwar Clippers. Haven't pulled mine out yet but I think they were the S-W units.

Until recently, I had the Chevy motor on the 56 although I think it is a 55 or 56 motor, not the 57. Worked OK but is a single speed.

The way it mounted put a stretch and sharp angle in the cable so I thought it was a little harder to operate. I finally took it off because of that and the bulk and replaced with the Newport unit.

Downside to those is the switch is electric and the washer coordinator won't work. Didn't want the Newport switch in the dash so made my bolt on slide switch module so it would still work with the stock Packard cable switch and coordinator could also bolt on and work.

I had a 61 Ford and it had vacuum wipers. They stopped dead when the accelerator was floored. I never oiled them and I guess they would have worked better if I did.

Early on the technology wasn't developed. Packard tried electrics on the 18th series and Clipper and they broke just as often.

I saw a movie that featured a brand new car with vacuum wipers and when they stepped on the gas the wipers stopped dead.

The Chrysler electrics did better.