1998 chevy s-10 blazer with 97k miles and the windshield wipers worked intermittently. This would unfortunately occur when the windshield washer button would be pressed leaving the windshield completely covered in soapy solution and making it difficult to see. After visiting several websites the answer to our problem was on this link http://www.automotivehelper.com/topic130258.htm. The control circuit card attached to the windshield wiper motor assembly had cracked solder joints on 7 pins of the harness connector. I believe this to be a solder fatigue problem due to vibration and temperature cycling and the fact that the harness connector body is long and made of a different material than the circuit card leaving the solder joints under stress due to mismatch of thermal expansion coefficients. Consequently, after ten years the solder joints finally gave up. The good news is that the circuit card is easy to remove (3 torque screws) and the solder joints can be simply reflowed with a soldering iron and fresh solder. The solder joint cracks are easy to see using a magnifying glass. The wipers are now working properly again.
1998 Chevrolet Blazer visibility complaints
Page 2 of 10: complaints 11 to 40 of 259, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Wipers work about 50% of the time at best, typically when it is not raining. This is a big safety issue. It looks like countless others have had this problem with their 98 blazer. I have not yet fixed the problem. When will this be recalled?
There are 2 recalls for windshield wipers not working/intermittenly working for 1996 blazer - my 1998 blazer is having the exact same issue but I can't find any recalls with my 1998. It has been an intermitten problem for 2 years and now they just stopped. The fuse is good and there is a lot dealing with circuit board solder joints for the wipers.
Tl*the contact owns a 1998 chevrolet blazer. While depressing the brake pedal from approximately 2-5 MPH, the vehicle failed to immediately stop. An independent mechanic replaced the brake system, but the failure still remained. In addition, the wiper blades wiring mechanism did not work effectively. The contact was driving in rainy weather conditions and the wipers would not operate. She had the wiring spliced and was able to use the wipers. The failure mileage was 160,000. Updated 7/3/08 *cn updated 07/03/08
1998 chevy blazer with tire failure. Consumer states that the tires blew out and when he went to get them replaced the mechanic said they were dry rotted. He said the brakes engaged on his way home. *kb the consumer stated the brake and ABS light illuminated and the pedal went to the floor. The rear brakes were replaced. After the tire replacement, the consumer was told there was a problem with the rear brakes by another dealer. The first dealer stated every thing checked out and that maybe the master cylinder that was replaced by the previous dealer may have partially failed. The rear shocks were replaced, the rear view mirror assembly was loose. The dealer glued it back together.
I am having the same problem that many other blazer owners have with the windshield wipers. As the other complaints explain, they turn off after minutes of use, and sometimes will turn right back on, but usually stay off for a while.
Tl*the contact owns a 1998 chevrolet blazer. While driving 35 MPH in the rain, the windshield wipers malfunctioned. The vehicle was pulled over until the rain stopped. The windshield wipers worked intermittently. The vehicle has not been inspected by a dealer. The failure mileage was 20,000 and current mileage was 57,000.
Tl*the contact owns a 1998 chevrolet blazer. The contact stated that the windshield wipers worked intermittently. The dealer stated that the module needed to be replaced. There was a recall for the 1996 chevrolet blazer, the federal safety agency campaign id number 03v159000 (visibility:windshield wiper/washer). The purchase date was unknown. The failure mileage was 70,000 and current mileage was 117,000. Updated 01/02/08. *4200 the consumer stated has 2 chevrolet blazers with the same intermittent defect. Updated 12/12/07
Attempted to drive vehicle in light rain. Wipers would not turn on. On a later occasion, friends were following behind my vehicle and noticed that the brake lights were inoperative (third brake light was working). Also noticed that hazards lamps were not working either.
Winshield wipers work when they want to. Intermittent control is inoperable except at highest setting and usually shuts off completely during heavy down pours.
Windshield wipers work when they want. At times there is no problem at other times the stop in mid cycle and at other times the speed control won't allow them to shut off. This normally occurs during a downpour. I have looked at the other complaints and would like to know how many it takes before ntsb decides to make gm repair an obvious safety issue with this model.
The windshield wipers worked/failed intermittently. There was no discernible pattern, but it was a dangerous situation. My wife traveled 120 miles round trip to work and had to stop midway yesterday because of rain. The windshield wipers randomly decided not to work. A half-hour of waiting and they worked fine.
For the past year of owning this vehicle I've experienced a sporadic front wiper motor. Just recently it went out causing me to swerve and hit a low branch. The branch caused the windscreen to crack but not shatter, and the driverside wiper to cease functioning.
1998 chevrolet blazer, windshield wipers acts erratic. Recently have not been coming on when turned on.
Issues one would not expect from a 20k plus vehicle including windshield wiper blade failure today ("near miss" accident from heavy rain and traffic), smoke emitting from steering column, continuous intermittent repetitive sounds emitting from turn signal controller(s). Signs and symptoms have all previously been described in great detail by other owners as: an instrument cluster issue, wiper control board, various connectors and or harness, multi-function switch, smoke concerns etc. Listed from complaints from odi case numbers: 743685, 10014026, 10023129, 10030946, 10036610, 10045357, 10060630, 10066061, 10086138, 10086896, 10098912, 10103977, 10112458, 10137415, 549079, 847885, 866953, 874993.
Dt*: the contact stated the windshield wipers work intermittently. There was an the federal safety agency recall, # 98v150001, regarding the visibility: windshield wiper/washer. The vehicle was not included in the recall due to the VIN.
Windshield wipers work sporadically and never in heavy rain. Sometimes they work in light rain but then quit all together. Refuse to put any more money into this money pit and get them fixed. Assuming it's an electrical problem like everything else on this blazer model. Am looking for a new car and only drive blazer when conditions are dry.
1998 chevy blazer with multitude of problems, which chevy denies. Including wiper failure, brake failure, complete corrosion of anything touched by dexcool, and on and on. Very unsafe vehicle!!!!!
1998 chevrolet blazer windshield wiper failures 1) wiper operation has been intermittent and does not always function when wiper controls are exercised. Occurrence of this problem has been ongoing since this vehicles' initial purchase in 12/97. 2) wiper failure has resulted in unsafe driving conditions and near collisions with other vehicles. 3) initial investigation has deemed potential causes of failure to be cracked solder joints in wiper motor circuit module and/or defective wiper control switch. Corresponding corrective action is replacement of both: wiper motor circuit module and wiper control switch.
Dt*: the contact stated while the vehicle was parked in the garage the rear windshield exploded. The garage door and the windows in the vehicle were open. The contact inspected the vehicle to see if something struck the window however no object was found. The dealership has not been alerted. Updated 6/12/2006 -
Windshield wipers fail to operate when switched on and/or shut-off without warning in all positions except the full-on position.
Dt*: the consumer stated the windshield wiper motor worked intermittently. There is a the federal safety agency recall, # 03v159000, regarding the windshield wiper motor. The consumer experienced the same problem as indicated in the recall; however the vehicle identification number and model year was not included in the recall.
Windshield wipers stopped working while I was driving on I-5 @ 70 MPH. I pulled over and looked at the wiper motor , tapped the wire harness , it worked for about 10 miles, did they do a recall???? Anyone know !!!.
Wipers fail.
Dt: the windshield wipers will stop midway and sometimes they will not work at all. Ak
My 1998 blazer had a wiper failure during the first rainstorm of the california year yesterday. Fortunately, I was off the freeway and only a mile or two from home. The wipers would not work. This morning, they did. I saw that this is a frequent problem with the 1998 blazer.
The windshield wipers work when they want to, they quit at anytime then start working again then quit. There is no delay, low, or high they work on what ever level they want to. I have called local dealers and there is a recall for other models of vehicles except for 1998 for the same reason.( it is going to cost $200.00 plus to fix) I went off the rode today on a major highway because of the wipers stopping in a down pour. This needs to be address as I see I am not the only one with this problem.
Intermittent wiper circuit board on my 1998 chevy blazer went bad around 90,000 miles. Caused intermittent wiper failure. I have been told this is a known defect by gm and that earlier models with same problem were recalled.
1998 chevrolet blazer. The windshield wipers work intermittently. They will stop at any given time, during wet weather. The stopped wiper blocks view through the windshield. No damage has occurred to the wiper motor/circuit board or wiring. This is a product failure that gm has not recalled for this make/model/year. They have recalled 1996, 1997, 2002, and 2003 suvs with the same complaint. After many conversations with gm representatives, they refuse to repair the defective equipment. I must pay for repairs out of my own pocket. Why won't they recall the 1998 line when there are so many complaints about them? A quick on-line internet search yields hundreds of unhappy 1998 blazer owners that are experiencing the very same wiper issues that caused the other recalls.
On several occasions my windshield wipers did not work according to the setting on the windshield wiper control. Many times the wipers would go on and not shut off and many time the wipers would not go on at all. Over the span of 18,000 miles the effect have been dangerous to my personal safety. On sunny days when applying the windshield washer, the wipers would not operate. This causes me to pull over and pull on the windshield wipers until they start and then they do not turn off. On rainy days, they turn off without warning causing me to pull over on the highway and risk being hit due to a driver side vehicle exit on busy highways to manually clean the window or wait until the rain stops. I have had the control replaced at a cost of over $300 but the problem still persists. I have been told the motor needs to be replaced due to faulty connections from the pulse controller board and the wiper motor. This is a major safety flaw in the vehicle and must be corrected by gm. I hope you can help all the owners of vehicles using AC delco part number 15036008 wiper motors. Many complaint have been documented and it is time that the federal safety agency protected the drivers of the vehicles effected regardless of the pain caused to gm. If it saves only one life it is worth it. How many people have died and have not been able to document the problem due to their deaths? How many complaints does it take before you take action against an obvious safety flaw in a vehicle? This must be addressed.
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