Wiper linkage adrift/broken? .....bodgeable?
 

Hi.....this and this have come adrift. Can't work out at a glance if something has sheared off or not. Odd looking fixing. Any ideas, or am I looking for new parts?

Thanks,
Zip

ugh! looks like the ball joint has seized and sheared off :(

You could perhaps drill it out and put a bolt through (loosely), as a very temporary fix, but I suspect you'll need to replace the linkage. I wonder if new linkages are still available?

I often worry how many miles/years my wiper linkage has left in it. I frequently spray oil onto the ball joints but I'm not sure it helps.

That's kaput unfortunately. The ball joint is still attached to the arm, but rusted beyond salvation.

A8parts have just dismantled a couple of D2s so might have a usable linkage for you. I'll take your old one for a nominal fee since it might have some salvageable bits I can use to repair others.

Tradition have new ones IIRC, if you can navigate the vagaries of actually buying anything from them. Probably worth checking Andrew's (HPSauce) thread since he found a German company online who can buy from Tradition.

B*gger.

Do I need to do the just the whole linkage or motor as well?

I'll give Maria a call in the morning.

Grrrrrr.

P*ssing it down at the moment as well...

Zip

Whole linkage. It may come from A8parts without the motor unless you request otherwise. You can swap in your old motor if you're happy with how to line everything up.

You'll need to take the scuttle panel out to get the linkage out - the two outer bolts tend to seize in to the speed nuts so soak them in your penetrating oil of choice beforehand, and pay close attention to the square plastic bushing when removing. Its very easy to break the plastic panel taking the bolts out - you'll see why when you have a look at them. There is one more bolt in the middle under a round cover.

To get the linkage out of the car you need to remove the driver's side bonnet strut. Prop the bonnet up with a stick or broom handle then take the bonnet-end of the strut off and lie it down, then the linkage will swing out. I'd suggest covering the wing with a cloth so you don't scratch it.

Everything else is pretty self-explanatory. Its a good opportunity to swap the heated washer jets while the scuttle trim is out, since they're usually not heating any more by now.

MJ :)

I had this on a 2006 Q7 and managed to repair in-situ.
Took 20 minutes and is working perfectly 2 years on.
I bought the replacement bushing from a small firm here in Ireland that repair linkages but also sell repair kits for DIY.
http://wiperrepairs.com/wiper-bushings/

Now that's an interesting find. What state was the steel ball in on your linkage?

I've emailed them to see if they have something suitable for the D2 +++

Nothing as rusted as the D2 one posted here but I don't think it would much matter.
The repair kit uses a circlip spring to hold the replacement bushing in place.
The existing plastic bushing on the linkage has to be broken away or burnt off to leave a clean hole to fit the new bushing kit to the metal arm.
The linkage on the Q7 had a small lip around the hole which had to be ground off with a die grinder.
I have attached a photo of the "repaired" linkage if it's of any help.
Even if the repair kit was twice the price, it would still work out a cheap fix.

I'd expect he won't be familiar with a D2 or any A8 for that matter, they are rare beasts in Ireland. You might have to measure the thickness of the metal on the linkage arm and the size of the ball/hole to help find if he has a suitable kit.
From memory he seemed more familiar with Japanese cars as they generally give more bother with wiper linkages.
One would hope there can only be so many variations of VAG linkages.
From memory he thought an A6 one would suit the Q7 but in the end, I think it was an A4 one that fitted the Q7. I brought the car to him as he was only 2hrs drive away. I didn't have a calipers to take proper measurements at home and needed to fix a.s.a.p as rain is never too far away here.
For someone with your skills on the spanners, you could be refurbishing entire linkages on a regular basis if you were happy with the quality of the repair kit.
Sizeing Chart from the website attached.

That's exactly what he said +++ I'm going to take a broken one to bits when I get back and send him some dimensions.

Exactly :cool: It would save me re-engineering from scratch with rose joints and would be much more OEM. The main challenge would be rescuing the steel balls as they rust away and become useless stumps. If I can get those CNC'd from stainless that might be an option though. Plus re-sleeving the spindles, but that's not difficult.