Variable intermittent wipers for the rest of us with 8 usable delay settings.
DISCLAIMER: this mod may void some or all of your warranty, like any other mod.
It is designed to be removable in most cases. You are responsible for any loss of warranty or any other issues if you install one. The design is not going to cause issues if properly installed, but that will not prevent voiding warranty if a dealer so chooses.
The VIW control acts like an electronic version of the existing switch on the stalk which grounds the intermittent signal wire (the white/green factory wire) periodically to cause one wipe of the wipers to occur.
This VIW control operates independently from the existing INT setting on the factory wiper control, and placing the factory wiper control on any setting except OFF overrides the VIW control.
Three wires from the control module tap into three wires on the wiper stalk connector. There is a red wire for +12V, which taps into the power source for the windshield washer motor (green/orange factory wire), a black ground wire which taps into the ground wire on the wiper stalk connector (black wire), and a green control wire which taps into the intermittent signal wire ( white/green factory wire) to simulate momentarily turning the wiper control to the intermittent setting, and the back to the off setting, to cause the wipers to operate once.
Installation is straightforward, takes 30min to an hour, and doesn't require special tools. If you choose to do this, you should read all the way through the walkthrough prior to getting started, and you are responsible for any issues that arise.
The parts: Controller module + control + wiring harness, 3 wire splice taps (green circles) in case
the spring clips don't give a good connection at the back of the connector, fuse, knob, 2 cable ties, and velcro strip for mounting.
begin by removing the upper steering column cover. It snaps into the lower section, so pull upward:
separate the flexible section that attaches to the upper cover to free the upper cover completely:
Some folks may find that it is easier to remove the flexible section first, and then separate the top section. Be careful not to damage any trim pieces by prying with anything sharp!
remove two screws from either side underneath bottom section of the cover:
pull down lower cover to expose the lower screw holding in the wiper stalk control.
Push in on the key release button so the cover clears it and remove wiper stalk by pulling it outward after removing the two gold screws:
Here's the back of the connector plugged into the wiper stalk. The green wire from the intermittent control
has been plugged into the connector at the slot for the white/green wire, behind the existing wire. The curved tip of the
pin at the end of the green wire faces the white/green factory wire. Before plugging it in *make sure* you have the factory white/green wire located. It is in the 4th slot down on this left side of the connector in this picture. There is a black/green wire below it, a black/red wire above it in slot 3. You may want to spread out the terminal at the end of the control module wires some (not too much) if necessary to get good contact onto the existing factory wires, otherwise a splice using one of the green wire taps may be required later.
The black wire in the controller wiring harness plugs into the black wire at the top right corner of the connector. It is across from the yellow/black wire in this picture. Same procedure, slightly spread the terminal, then plug in with the short portion of the terminal against the back of the factory wire:
Finally, the red wire from the controller harness plugs in using the same procedure into the green/orange wire on the left side in this picture in slot 2 just below the yellow/black wire:
DOUBLE CHECK ALL CONNECTIONS TO MAKE SURE THE PROPER CONNECTIONS WERE MADE. At this point, test to see whether good contact is being made by the three wires:
Raise the wiper arms away from the windshield until they stay out so the wipers don't dry-rub the windshield.
Let the control module hang down outside the steering column. Set the wiper stalk so it is not shorting against anything.
Rotate the control for the VIW all the way counterclockwise.
Turn the ignition key to the ON position. The red LED on the VIW control should be lit, and the green LED should be very DIM.
Within 3 sec, the green LED should light, the windshield wipers should wipe once, and then the green LED should go out.
If the red LED is not lit, then the control module is not getting power/ground from the red and black wires. Try moving the red and black wires slightly to get good
contact. If the red LED is lit, but the Green LED is not dimly lit then brightly lit, the green wire from the control module is not making good contact. You may have to push the wires further into the connector to get good contact, ,or pull them slightly out. At this point, you should have a working system. If not, then the control wires may have to be spliced into the wiring harness to the proper wires using the provided wire taps. Avoid this if at all possible, since removing the mod will be more difficult if you need to.
If things are working, shut off the ignition key first, then use the cable tie to tie the wiring together to the factory harness so that things don't come loose. Tighten the tie tightly. If things are not working, then one or more wires will may to be spliced into the factory wires using the green wire taps. You will need to cut off the spring clip from a VIW control wire before using a wire tap. You should do this as a last resort, since reverting to factory wiring will be difficult or not possible. You want to have the flexibility to remove the mod in case any warranty work is needed on the car just to be safe.
To tap, place the open side of the wire tap over the proper factory wire. push the end of the proper VIW control wire until it is all the way into the other hole in the wire tap. Be sure to hold it all the way in while squeezing the green button on the wire tap completely flat with a pair of pliers.
Stick the velcro section into the lower section of the steering column cover between the two locator slots:
Then stick the VIW control module to the velcro to attach it to the inside of the lower cover:
Now reattach the wiper stalk to the steering column with the two gold screws that were removed, then reattach the lower portion of the steering column cover with the two screws that were removed from underneath.
Now we need to drill a hole for the actual control. I placed mine as shown, 11cm back from the rear cover edge.
The center of the hole is 12mm up from the bottom edge. The hole should be 9/32". If you cannot find this, then a 5/16" hole will work, but smaller hole is better.
The advantage of the smaller hole is that I have a hole plug that fits pretty well if you want to return things to almost stock look :
At this point, just mount the control in the hole using the provided washer and nut, reattach the flexible portion of the upper cover to the upper cover , and snap the upper cover into place. Attach knob to the control.
To operate the control, turn it totally clockwise to shut off intermittent operation. To turn it on, turn all the way counter-clockwise.
This will be the fastest setting, and should operate the wipers every 2.3 sec or so (times are approximate due to component tolerances). The times are not linearly spaced, since finer granularity works better for me at the shorter times.
The following delays are approx, starting with the control fully counter-clockwise, and working clockwise:
2.2 sec
2.5 sec
3.2 sec
5 sec
7 sec
9.4 sec
12 sec
30 sec
-- - not used, very long delay
-- - not used, very long delay
off
I built a couple of extra units, but don’t plan to produce many of these. I have someone who may be interested in assembling a few more though.
At least one other forum member has installed one and helped out greatly with the refinement and shakeout. Thanks Spots! :D :D :D
