The Windshield Wiper Motor Does Not Work on My 90 Ford F-150

Ever since Charlotte Bridgewood invented the electric storm windshield cleaner – the first electric windshield wipers – in 1917, with their widespread use starting in 1923 -- drivers have become used to flipping a switch to wipe their car’s windshield clean. One downfall to electric wipers is that it is yet another electrical component to break. When the wiper motor stops working in your 1990 F-150, you may be relieved to know that this is a straightforward process, thanks to the simple nature of this Ford pickup.

Things You'll Need

• Masking tape
• Flat-head screwdriver
• Ratchet
• Socket set
• Torque wrench
• Window cleaner (optional)
• Clean, lint-free cloth (optional)

Instructions

1. Lift one wiper blade off the windshield and place a 3-inch-long strip of masking tape on the windshield where the wiper sits. Lower the wiper onto the tape and trace the wiper’s rubber blade with a pen. Repeat this step on the other wiper blade. This creates reference lines to aid in reinstalling the wiper arms.

2. Look where the wiper arm connects to the pivot shaft and find the metal tab on the bottom of the wiper arm. Move this tab away from the linkage shaft, using a flat-head screwdriver, to unlock the wiper arm. Pull the wiper arm from the pivot shaft. Repeat this step on the other wiper blade.

3. Remove the bolts securing the cowl grille, using a ratchet and socket. Pull the cowl grille up just a few inches and unplug the windshield washer fluid hose from the cowl grille. Remove the cowl grille.

4. Look on the end of the wiper motor arm and find the output shaft, the shaft that the wiper linkage connects to. Pry the linkage clip – the small metal clip holding the wiper linkage to the wiper motor – from the end of the output shaft, using a flat-head screwdriver.

5. Press and hold the unlocking button on the wiper motor’s wiring harness, and unplug the harness from the motor. Remove the four bolts securing the wiper motor and remove it from the F-150.

6. Set a new wiper motor on the F-150’s firewall, guiding the wiper motor’s output shaft through the hole in the wiper linkage. Hand-tighten the wiper motor’s bolts, then torque them to 6 foot-pounds with a torque wrench and socket.

7. Place a new linkage clip, which comes with the new motor, onto the end of the wiper motor’s output shaft. Press the clip firmly onto the output shaft until it clicks into place, locking the wiper linkage onto the output shaft.

8. Plug the wiring harness into the motor’s receptacle.

9. Plug the washer fluid hose into the inlet on the cowl grille, then set the cowl grille back into place just below the windshield. Hand-tighten its retaining bolts, then snug them with a ratchet and socket.

10. Set one wiper loosely onto its pivot shaft. Move the wiper arm until the wiper blade aligns with the alignment mark on the masking tape. Press downward on the wiper arm to seat it on the pivot shaft, then slide its locking tab toward the pivot shaft to lock the arm on the shaft. Repeat this step on the other wiper arm.

11. Peel the masking tape from the windshield and clean the area with window cleaner and a clean, lint-free cloth, if needed.

References

• Mitchell1 OnDemand 5: 1990 Ford F150 Wiper Motor Removal & Installation
• California State Polytechnic University, Pomona: Charlotte Bridgewood