Trying to figure out a weird one.

1 _ wiper Switch in down position (should be off) Wipers operate in intermittent mode
2 - wiper switch up in any of the other positions (assume should be low and high) they do nothing

So the relay is engaging intermittent when they should be "Off" and when they should be going at speed in the upper positions i get nothing.

Could it be a bad switch on the steering column? Or could it potentially be an incorrect switch? I know the intermittent relay was an option at one point.

Any help is appreciated.

Thanks

Did this happen all of a sudden? Has the wiper motor been out of the car lately?

If this happened all of a sudden I would do a visual check of the wires at the motor for a loose connection or rodent damage.

Then I would pull and look at the switch for issues (burnt contacts, melted plastic)

All the way down is intermittent wipers. Next click up is off. 3rd click up is low speed. Last click is high speed. Let us know what year the car is. 72-74 HAS to have a tight ground spring (z shaped copper strap) in the right hand corner, of the steering column.

I just bought the car a few months ago so it has been that way since i got it. The PO did some welding up front and removed all of the fresh air blower stuff so i dont know if the motor has been out. I did find a broken wire headed to the relay which i repaired - rest of the wires look good

I am just trying to fix it before i replace the fresh air box, etc...for obvious reasons regarding access...

I get voltage on the blue / black wire at the motor when the wipers fire on intermittent

what was odd was i didnt get any voltage when testing the red wire(s) on the motor...seems counterintuitive - i would think i wold see voltage there

I have the switch out of the car now so will look at it for what you mentioned

It is a 1975 914

if the intermittent works, probably the switch or wiring is hooked up incorrectly

75 takes a different type of wiper switch. Has smaller base.

Intermittent relay location is on the drivers side front cowl support. Make sure the harness for the relay socket is plugged in correctly at the wiper motor.

Yeah, I saw that...tryign to figure out if the one on there is the correct one or not....Here is a pic of the bottom with a part number...crazy thing is that part number shows up as ignition switch in most places i look...not a wiper switch...so not sure if it's the correct switch or not...

Click to view attachment

914 613 306 18

NLA switch for a long time. 75 VW Rabbit will interchange. They are rare also. I backdated my column to a 74 and used the 75 ignition switch. Easy swap.

That would be worthy of a write up Mark @914Sixer

If the fresh air system was pulled more than likely the wiper motor was disconnected when/ if they pulled the wiring back to get it out of the way.

Check to make sure the wires are in the right place

Appreciate all the help. Was able to dig into it again tonight and found a loose 12V wire in fuse box causing the motor to not get power. - so several people were right Im 90% of the way there - now the wipers will run in all speeds but for some reason they are still running on intermittent in the lower (2) positions on the switch - found a leaky gas tank while i was at it so the odyssey continues - I'm guessing at this point the switch is bad causing it to stay in intermittent mode even when in the "off Position" Anyone know if there is a way to just kill the intermittent part of the equation - i never drive the car in the rain - just want them functional in case i get caught in rain unexpectedly...On to reassembling the fresh air system...

https://www.design911.co.uk/mobile/#part;id=137974

New fuel tank cheaper delivered than any I've found in the US without shipping.

Just remove the intermittent relay from the socket and put it in your glove compartment for that day you get caught in the rain ...

Finally got it all sorted - never got to the final reason the intermittent would stay on when in off position. I don’t care about intermittent so....

I capped off the green and blue/black coming from relay.
Then took the green from wire harness to green on the motor

I now have
OFF in lower positions
And low and high in the upper.

Didn’t have to buy anything