73 Charger Wiper Questions

[ChargerJim]

Ok, so what I thought was going to be a simple thing has (potentially) snowballed... My wipers stopped working because two of the nylon bushings on the wiper linkage disintegrated, as 50 year old nylon bushings tend to do. No big deal, I got some replacement bushings an was going to install them. As I was starting to line things up so the wipers would be in the correct park position, I noticed that they didn't seem to have been set in the right park position. They parked on the bottom of the windshield above the hood. It looks to me like they should park below the hood, resting on two bump outs on the chrome trim piece under the windshield. Question 1: Is that a correct assumption? If so, we can move on to Question 2...
I then noticed that the current wiper blades (replacements from a previous owner) were too tall to fit under the hood with the adapters on them that allowed them to attach to the bayonet style wiper arms. So I started looking at things closer and I found that the replacement blades were 18". I believe they should be 16" from what I've researched so far. No problem, I got some 16" blades with a seemingly lower profile so they would (hopefully) fit under the hood in the correct park position. They did not. So, Question 2: Is 16" the correct wiper blade size?
Since this didn't solve my problem, I took a closer look at the wiper arms themselves and noticed that the driver side wiper arm scrapes along the chrome trim under the windshield as it moves. I know that's obviously not supposed to happen but I couldn't see a way to get it to clear the trim and move without scraping. That's when I started looking up pictures of wiper arms for 73 Chargers/B-bodies. I noticed that a lot of the wiper arms that came up looked different than what's on my car. Mine are just straight arms with the flat bayonet style attachment at the end. What I'm finding online is that the wiper arms that appear to belong on there are different than what I've got. One of them has some kind of stabilizing arm on it. Also, the connections are a side facing pin style instead of the bayonet style - which seems as though that would allow them to clear the hood to get to the correct park position. I've attached two pics of wiper arms here. The first is what's on my car and the second is what I am finding on the interweb as potentially what should be on there. Which leads me to Question 3: Does my car have the incorrect wiper arms on it? I really don't want to (nor can I afford to) spend $100+ to replace the wiper arms. I've got other bigger issues to deal with first. So I guess the big question, Question 4: Can I just leave things as-is, change to 16" blades, and just set the wiper linkage so that the park position is at the bottom of the windshield when I replace the bushings? and Question 4a: Aside from the aesthetics of the wipers not technically being in the correct park position, does it really matter given that I barely ever use the wipers since I rarely if ever drive this in the rain and I really only need them to pass inspection? I guess what I'm really asking is, will doing this cause any problems/damage to the wiper motor, linkage, etc or would it be fine to leave it as-is and just replace the bushings and blades until I hit the lottery?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!!

 

[Austin Charger]

Ok, so what I thought was going to be a simple thing has (potentially) snowballed... My wipers stopped working because two of the nylon bushings on the wiper linkage disintegrated, as 50 year old nylon bushings tend to do. No big deal, I got some replacement bushings an was going to install them. As I was starting to line things up so the wipers would be in the correct park position, I noticed that they didn't seem to have been set in the right park position. They parked on the bottom of the windshield above the hood. It looks to me like they should park below the hood, resting on two bump outs on the chrome trim piece under the windshield. Question 1: Is that a correct assumption? If so, we can move on to Question 2...
I then noticed that the current wiper blades (replacements from a previous owner) were too tall to fit under the hood with the adapters on them that allowed them to attach to the bayonet style wiper arms. So I started looking at things closer and I found that the replacement blades were 18". I believe they should be 16" from what I've researched so far. No problem, I got some 16" blades with a seemingly lower profile so they would (hopefully) fit under the hood in the correct park position. They did not. So, Question 2: Is 16" the correct wiper blade size?
Since this didn't solve my problem, I took a closer look at the wiper arms themselves and noticed that the driver side wiper arm scrapes along the chrome trim under the windshield as it moves. I know that's obviously not supposed to happen but I couldn't see a way to get it to clear the trim and move without scraping. That's when I started looking up pictures of wiper arms for 73 Chargers/B-bodies. I noticed that a lot of the wiper arms that came up looked different than what's on my car. Mine are just straight arms with the flat bayonet style attachment at the end. What I'm finding online is that the wiper arms that appear to belong on there are different than what I've got. One of them has some kind of stabilizing arm on it. Also, the connections are a side facing pin style instead of the bayonet style - which seems as though that would allow them to clear the hood to get to the correct park position. I've attached two pics of wiper arms here. The first is what's on my car and the second is what I am finding on the interweb as potentially what should be on there. Which leads me to Question 3: Does my car have the incorrect wiper arms on it? I really don't want to (nor can I afford to) spend $100+ to replace the wiper arms. I've got other bigger issues to deal with first. So I guess the big question, Question 4: Can I just leave things as-is, change to 16" blades, and just set the wiper linkage so that the park position is at the bottom of the windshield when I replace the bushings? and Question 4a: Aside from the aesthetics of the wipers not technically being in the correct park position, does it really matter given that I barely ever use the wipers since I rarely if ever drive this in the rain and I really only need them to pass inspection? I guess what I'm really asking is, will doing this cause any problems/damage to the wiper motor, linkage, etc or would it be fine to leave it as-is and just replace the bushings and blades until I hit the lottery?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!!

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View attachment 1449638

#1 Arms should be parked under hood on the stops
#3 They appear to be incorrect Mine look like what you have in the second pic.
#4 You could get by with what you have if you have greater priority elsewhere. I would not scratch up that trim panel if I could help it.
I do not know if all '71-'74 B bodies had the same wiper arms. If so you should be able to find them at swap meets.

 

[T2R9]

Agree with the above.

#2 16” is correct.
#4 71-73 arms are the same and 74 had the washer line connected to them. Your second pic is the correct arms. You can try the arms you have but the drivers might not pivot or park correctly.

 

[64fury74charger]

I had wiper issues for a number of years until I finally decided to dig in. The parking problem on my car was a plastic bushing on the driver’s side pivot that moves both wipers. The arm from the motor was literally just sitting on the post. Wipers parked above the hood but you could push them down on the stops. I will post some pictures that may help.
I found the correct wiper blades with the lower profile to fit under the hood properly. Now wipers work properly and are quiet.

 

[ChargerJim]

Thanks All for your replies and pics! Definitely helpful. At least I can confirm my suspicion that the car's got the wrong wiper arms on it...d'oh... I think, unfortunately, I'm just going to have to go with what I've got for now. Like I said, I barely use the wipers so the chrome trim shouldn't get scratched up too bad. I'll basically just have to run them once a year for the inspection sticker. In the meantime, I'll keep my eye out for a set of the correct arms at a "reasonable" price. So far the stuff I'm seeing is all between $100-$150 for a set.

Well, at least I've got something to do this weekend now - put my wipers back together. Speaking of...any tips on getting those damn bushings on any easier? I did this before on my Satellite and it was a pain in the butt - especially trying to get the ones back up under the cowl. I've got some white lithium grease which should help. I was also thinking about trying to warm them up a bit so they are a little more pliable - maybe soak them in hot water or something.

 

[YY1]

Put up a wanted ad here on FBBO.
IMO $150 is too much.

Blades can occasionally be had from NAPA for much less than repro blades.
I remember a link or two here on FBBO for more cost effective blade sources.

Make sure the arms you get have all the parts including the blade holders and nothing is wallowed out.

I'll have to check but I think 74 arms are slightly different. I could be wrong.

 

[64fury74charger]

Thanks All for your replies and pics! Definitely helpful. At least I can confirm my suspicion that the car's got the wrong wiper arms on it...d'oh... I think, unfortunately, I'm just going to have to go with what I've got for now. Like I said, I barely use the wipers so the chrome trim shouldn't get scratched up too bad. I'll basically just have to run them once a year for the inspection sticker. In the meantime, I'll keep my eye out for a set of the correct arms at a "reasonable" price. So far the stuff I'm seeing is all between $100-$150 for a set.

Well, at least I've got something to do this weekend now - put my wipers back together. Speaking of...any tips on getting those damn bushings on any easier? I did this before on my Satellite and it was a pain in the butt - especially trying to get the ones back up under the cowl. I've got some white lithium grease which should help. I was also thinking about trying to warm them up a bit so they are a little more pliable - maybe soak them in hot water or something.

I used some wheel bearing grease and to lube it and then pressed the bushing together with a vise. Slow and easy and the pieces will pop together.

 

[ODZKing]

Best ones I have found are
https://images.carid.com/trico/wipe...M*MTY4MTY1Mzc0NC4zLjEuMTY4MTY1Mzc0NC42MC4wLjA.

 

[SattyNoCar]

Put up a wanted ad here on FBBO.
IMO $150 is too much.

Blades can occasionally be had from NAPA for much less than repro blades.
I remember a link or two here on FBBO for more cost effective blade sources.

Make sure the arms you get have all the parts including the blade holders and nothing is wallowed out.

I'll have to check but I think 74 arms are slightly different. I could be wrong.

I've parted a few '73 Satellites, I'm pretty sure I still I have a set or two of the wiper arms over in storage, I can check if you don't find a set sooner.
Also, I think the arms are the same up to '79, but as mentioned, they have the windshield washers attached to the arms. I grabbed a set a few yrs ago just for the washer assemblies off a '78 Fury (B-body), but I'm not selling these.

 

[ChargerJim]

I've parted a few '73 Satellites, I'm pretty sure I still I have a set or two of the wiper arms over in storage, I can check if you don't find a set sooner.
Also, I think the arms are the same up to '79, but as mentioned, they have the windshield washers attached to the arms. I grabbed a set a few yrs ago just for the washer assemblies off a '78 Fury (B-body), but I'm not selling these.

Thanks! I found a set. Just got delivered today and they look ok. I got the set for just under $50 including shipping. I feel like that's not a bad deal. Hopefully they're good. They have the side pin attachments for the blades instead of the bayonet end. Looks like everything is there.
So my new questions now are:
1. How do I remove the existing arms and how do I attach/secure the new ones? I know there are splines on the post and inside the receiver on the wiper arms that have to line up and that there's some kind of clip/release lever on the arms but I don't want to break anything.
2. Where does the stabilizer arm on the driver side assembly attach to? It just hangs off the arm assembly with the other end loose. Can't figure out where the other end attaches to for the life of me.
3. Since I have to replace the bushings on the linkage, too (that's where this all started...) How do I know where to set the arms so they are in the right place so that they work correctly and sit correctly in the park position when they're turned off? I imagine that takes some lining up. Maybe do the bushings first?

Thanks again for all the assistance!

 

[64fury74charger]

There is a small spring clip at the base of the wiper arm that locks the wiper arm on the spline. Flip the arm over and you will see the clip. The tracking rod for the drivers side goes on a small pin next to the spline and keeps the arm on the glass.

I played with the wiper arms after doing the bushings and making sure the wiper motor was in park. Lay the arms down until they rest close to those ridges on the lower trim. Lock them on and test, see where they land when parked. Keep us posted on your progress.

 

[ChargerJim]

Welp.......... I got a wiper arm removal tool and took the arms off. That went nice and smooth. However, once I got the arms off, I saw that the @#$%!& who put the wrong arms on also broke the pin off the driver side pivot so that they could fit said wrong arms on so now there is no way to attach the tracking rod. So now I have to buy a replacement pivot for the driver side - one that still has the pin on it. Aaaarrrggghhh!!! Every time I think I'm making progress with this I get a big ol' punch in the gut to set me back.

Anybody got a driver side wiper arm pivot for a 73 B-body they're looking to sell?

On the up side, since I had to take the arms off anyway, I removed both pivots and all the linkage from inside the cowl so that I can clean it all up and grease all the connection points. Not to mention have a MUCH easier time replacing all the bushings. So I've got that going for me......which is nice.

 

[YY1]

I have a 71.

I can check to make sire it's the same as my 73 this weekend.

 

[ChargerJim]

I have a 71.

I can check to make sire it's the same as my 73 this weekend.

Thanks for offering, I appreciate it, but I just ordered one off Ebay last night. Figured I'd save you the time checking on it. If this one falls through for some reason, I'll let you know. Thanks again!

 

[ChargerJim]

Just an update for anybody who's still interested... I got the new pivot and it's in great shape and has the pin for the tracking rod. I got all the linkage cleaned up and put back together with all new bushings. Everything went together pretty easy using some white lithium grease and my vice. Only had one bushing blow out but I had a couple of extras so no problem. I got the linkage/pivots reinstalled in the car - that was fun...not. Ran the motor (without the arms attached) to test the linkage and everything seems to work just fine.

Now my issue is that the wiper blades that I have aren't going to fit under the hood. I have been to a couple of auto parts stores and they don't have anything aftermarket that has a low enough profile to fit under the hood. Anything with any kind of adapter sticking up is too tall as are any with the spring arms to hold the blade to the glass. I've also searched online (Ebay, Rock Auto, Parts Geek, Year One, etc...) and I can't seem to find the correct blades for this car there either (not for a reasonable price anyway). I tried searching for the Trico classics that somebody mentioned above but I can't seem to find ones that fit my car. They're either 15" or they have the bayonet attachment or an adapter that sticks up. I don't want to buy something online that 'should' fit because I don't want to deal with the hassle of trying to return it. So now, I'm looking at my only option being to set the arms in the incorrect park position so that the wipers park above the hood (like they did before this all started). I don't really want to do that since I've gone through all this work to try to make things right but I'm kind of getting to the to the point now where I just want to get them operational and be done with the whole thing. ugh...

Anybody have a pair of decent wiper blades that will fit a '73 Charger that they're looking to part with?

 

[SattyNoCar]

Just an update for anybody who's still interested... I got the new pivot and it's in great shape and has the pin for the tracking rod. I got all the linkage cleaned up and put back together with all new bushings. Everything went together pretty easy using some white lithium grease and my vice. Only had one bushing blow out but I had a couple of extras so no problem. I got the linkage/pivots reinstalled in the car - that was fun...not. Ran the motor (without the arms attached) to test the linkage and everything seems to work just fine.

Now my issue is that the wiper blades that I have aren't going to fit under the hood. I have been to a couple of auto parts stores and they don't have anything aftermarket that has a low enough profile to fit under the hood. Anything with any kind of adapter sticking up is too tall as are any with the spring arms to hold the blade to the glass. I've also searched online (Ebay, Rock Auto, Parts Geek, Year One, etc...) and I can't seem to find the correct blades for this car there either (not for a reasonable price anyway). I tried searching for the Trico classics that somebody mentioned above but I can't seem to find ones that fit my car. They're either 15" or they have the bayonet attachment or an adapter that sticks up. I don't want to buy something online that 'should' fit because I don't want to deal with the hassle of trying to return it. So now, I'm looking at my only option being to set the arms in the incorrect park position so that the wipers park above the hood (like they did before this all started). I don't really want to do that since I've gone through all this work to try to make things right but I'm kind of getting to the to the point now where I just want to get them operational and be done with the whole thing. ugh...

Anybody have a pair of decent wiper blades that will fit a '73 Charger that they're looking to part with?

Your question about blades was answered about 7 posts up. Looks like you'll have to do a google search as the poster did not provide a source for them.

 

[YY1]

Resto sites have shallow blades but they are marked up pretty heavily.

They are available elsewhere for less.

I believe there was a part number posted in another thread recently.

The last ones I got came from NAPA but they don't always have them.

 

[64fury74charger]

I posted a picture of the “correct “ low profile wiper blades on my earlier post. Those are from Dante’s website and they work perfectly and there’s plenty of room under the hood when they are parked. I think they were around $50.00 for the pair.
Complete with blades installed. Hope this helps.

 

[ChargerJim]

Well, here's the latest.
Good news, I found the correct retro blades that will fit under the hood. Picked them up a local NAPA. He said he usually sells 2 or 4 year so he always keeps a few on hand. Fortunately, he still had a couple in stock.
Bad news, they still don't fit under the hood. Why you ask? Because come to find out, the hood is not aligned correctly. It's minimal and I never noticed it before but it is off just enough so that the wipers won't clear it. I tried to loosen the bolts on the hinge to try to adjust it but I couldn't budge them. So I went to a local body shop guy that I've used to blast and paint my steel rims and fix my other car when it got a little dinged up. He's awesome. Anyway, he said he could take care of it so I've got an appt with him in a week to get this fixed. I REALLY hope this is the last thing because I'm getting tired of there constantly being another hurdle every time I think I've got it solved. So fingers crossed this is the final piece of the puzzle...