505 Intermittent Wipers not Working/Parking

When I first purchased my 1988 505 GTi Wagon it had a couple of annoying problems with the windscreen wipers as follows:

1. the intermittent setting (first position) did not work - the wipers did not move and adjusting the speed slider on the stalk made no difference; and
2. while the low speed (second position) and high speed (third position) wiper settings both worked, the wipers would not return to the horizontal position automatically when the wipers were switched off.

After spending a lot of time trying to locate the wiper control relay (both physically and on the wiring diagram!) I gave up and posted a request for help to the Yahoo Peugeot list. I received two replies the next day - one from "Jason" and another from "George". Using the information they provided I was finally able to fix the problem (thanks guys).

The procedure was as follows:

1. Undo the screws that hold the plastic "knee protector" up under the steering column and lower it down to the floor.
2. Locate the wiper control relay. On my 1988 wagon it has a blue plastic cover and is located under the dash board to the right of the steering column (refer to photo).
3. With the ignition switch in the accessories position (car not running) you should be able to hear the control relay click as you move the wiper stalk from off to each position. If you don't hear a "click" in the intermittent wipe position, then possible suspects are the contacts on the stalk slider control or possibly the wiper control relay itself.

To clean the wiper control relay and wiper switch contacts:

1. Unplug the wiper switch from its wiring loom connector.
2. Squirt some spray switch cleaner such as CRC Switch Cleaner Lubricant (available from Dick Smith Electronics) onto the wiper switch connectors and wipe off the residue with a cotton wool bud.
3. Squirt some cleaner into the socket for the wiper switch, and also into the speed slider on the stalk. Move the speed slider on the wiper control stalk up and down a couple of times so that the cleaner can penetrate.
4. Unplug the blue wiper control relay from its socket.
5. Using the switch cleaner, clean the lugs on the wiper control relay and also squirt some into its socket.
6. Wait 15 minutes for any contact cleaner residue to evaporate then plug the wiper control relay back in.

To test if the cleaning worked, ensure that you have waited for at least 15 minutes for any contact cleaner residue to evaporate, then turn the ignition to the accessories position and switch the wipers on to the first (intermittent) position. Adjust the speed slider on the stalk until it is on the fastest setting (furthest away from the steering wheel). Hopefully, the wipers will commence working as expected (and park correctly when switched off).

Simon Nix

20 April 2002