[kmarosi]

Apparently I'm not the only one having this issue. My wipers on my 2012 Malibu quit working even though I could hear the motor running. I was pretty sure what the problem was, so I got the replacement bushings (available at AutoZone; Dorman #49449). Pulled the linkage assembly and replaced the bushings, which one was severely worn. The Dorman bushings come in a two pack, so I replaced both of them. I put everything back together and seemed to work fine, until three days later.
So I'm wondering whether when I was pressing the new bushings in that I ever so slightly bent the linkage, so it worked its way off the ball at the motor when it was running?
Any thoughts would appreciated. Winter in Michigan is not a great time for this to happen and a bad time to be working on my car.

 

[Dan Peyton]

I just replaced my linkage assembly. Got it all put back together and my wipers are trying to go in reverse. As in, they're going down when I turn them on instead of going up like normal. They immediately get stuck then. Any idea what is going on here?

 

[Griffy]

Just my experience on my 2010 Malibu: The wiper takes a fair amount of force to pull off the splines. My gear puller was too big to fit, but a pair of slip-jaw water pump pliers (i.e, Chan-L-Lock) clamped between the bottom of the wiper and the center of the threaded splined stud popped them off with a hefty squeeze of the pliers. Like Jcurlin, the crank arm had worn plastic bushings. Those little snap-fit parts abraded away after 120,000 miles. A 7 cent part wears out and the dealer was delighted to sell me a $137 assembly. "GM sees to it that dealers to make money on parts" was the exact quote. Three mounting bolts were easy to remove and the whole unit came out very easily. I had to re-mount the existing motor on the new crank assembly (two screws only), so lay them out on the bench next to each other so you get the orientation right. Everything assembles back pretty easily

I couldn't figure a way to cobble a fix out of the worn plastic snap-on bushing, so I bough the replacement unit. I would hate to have had the failure on a rainy road side. It is a lousy failure mode to have a vital attachment done with a plastic part that wears over time and gravity pulls away from the assembly. But at least my ignition switch won't kill me like 13,000,000 GM cars might.

5-1/2 years later and the genuine Chevy replacement part failed with only 70,000 miles on it. Heavy snow and an un-named family member who left the wipers in the on position cause the bushing to snap when starting the car. The bushing is now an aftermarket part: Dorman 49452 available from stock at Autozone and other usual suspects. It is a tough press fit. I broke the original apart pulling it out. Some grease on the outside and an arbor press got the new one in. Cleaned and regressed the mating part on the motor’s crank arm. Then proceeded to switch driver/passenger wiper arms which made adjusting them impossible. Red-faced, I switched them back and had it all buttoned up in 45 min. Good videos on YouTube to help.

 

[repairman54]

Yep those bushings are a wear item. Did a family members '11 Florida car, my NJ car still had OEM in at 190k miles. Less wiper usage in NJ than FL I guess as FL car had 50k less miles than my NJ car and newer.

 

[Ashley H]

A couple days ago the wipers on my 2009 quit. I could hear the motor running so I pulled the wiper arms, then the cowl cover, then the wiper motor and linkage. There is a connector rod about 7 inches long with a plastic press fit cup on each end that attaches the motor to the linkage which had popped off on the motor end. I popped it back on and problem solved. Well it popped off again tonight mid sweep on interval setting. Is there anyplace I can get just this arm or do I need entire new linkage set, which seems like a waste.

Yes!! I have been having this same issue with my Malibu. Its been going on a while now and my husband has to keep putting that cup part back in. Im growing tired of it and need to get a new linkage bar part or whatever it is to fix the issue. I really don't want to pay for a whole new wiper motor system but its getting really frustrating and I'm almost to that point. The wipers will stop when I'm driving in mid rain storm and its completely dangerous! He is looking at it as I type this. Any suggestions on what to do? Should I replace that linkage bar he said or is that possible? At this point I'm concerned it won't even work. My luck it will not ...

 

[DrivenDaily]

Yes!! I have been having this same issue with my Malibu. Its been going on a while now and my husband has to keep putting that cup part back in. Im growing tired of it and need to get a new linkage bar part or whatever it is to fix the issue. I really don't want to pay for a whole new wiper motor system but its getting really frustrating and I'm almost to that point. The wipers will stop when I'm driving in mid rain storm and its completely dangerous! He is looking at it as I type this. Any suggestions on what to do? Should I replace that linkage bar he said or is that possible? At this point I'm concerned it won't even work. My luck it will not ...

Check out post #23, It just might be your answer.

 

[Oggy75]

You can just buy the grommets, the plastic parts. Here in Canada got them at napa. Was about 14 bucks for the bushing kit.