July 10, 200421 yr Is it possible to upgrade the intermittent wiper control on a 2000 Forester L? These intermintent wipers are not variable like those on the better S model. I read either here or another board that it was just a matter of changing out the control lever. Does anyone have better instructions? Thanks ! ~Howard :cool:
July 10, 200421 yr Howard, I did thid on my 2002 Forester L. Just go to a dealer and buy the 'S' model wiper control. Takes 15 minutes to replace. Just remove the top and bottom housing on the steering column, then unplug the headlight switch (wires run right by the wiper switch and are in the way). Then unplug and replace the wiper switch. 2 small phillips head screws. About $75 new for a switch, or cheaper from a junk yard.
July 10, 200421 yr Author Howard, I did thid on my 2002 Forester L. Just go to a dealer and buy the 'S' model wiper control. Takes 15 minutes to replace. Just remove the top and bottom housing on the steering column, then unplug the headlight switch (wires run right by the wiper switch and are in the way). Then unplug and replace the wiper switch. 2 small phillips head screws. About $75 new for a switch, or cheaper from a junk yard. FERRET: How do you remove the top and bottom housing on the steering column ? Would you have a part number ? ~Howard
July 11, 200421 yr Howard, Subaru p/n 83119FC130 . To remove the housing, there were 3 phillips head screws from the bottom. Then the top and bottom are 'snapped' to each other, just pull them apart. The rest is to disconnect the headlight switch connecter, then disconnect the wiper switch and remove it with the 2 screws. Then reassemble in the opposite way. It is really simple.
July 12, 200421 yr Similarly straightforward for a 1997 Legacy Outback?No! I have the exact same car. The dealer checked into it a few years ago. Told me that I'd need the stalk, a different module, some wiring probably (labor), etc. The whole thing was going to end up costing in the order of $400++ Cdn! (You could look thru junkyards for stuff from a Limited model, but I still don't know if it is directly swappable.) There is a cheap little module from Canadian Tire that can add intermittent wipers. I just couldn't find a spot to mount it that I felt I could live with. (I had used this module on a couple of 80's Civics.) I decided to install a raintracker. I love it. Works great. www.raintracker.com You could try a search, but I think the posts I put on here are gone now (old ezboard). I have a second one that I never installed. It was to go into my wife's van. Commuter
July 12, 200421 yr The dealer's response was likely based on what they saw in the parts catalog. For Impreza and gen. 2 Legacy, there are no separate part numbers for wiper and light switches. However, the FSM shows the switches are removable, and the wiper switch is only held by two screws that are easy to access. Haynes has the photos. It may even be possible to remove the wiper switch w/o taking out the the steering wheel and the combo switch assembly, if one could maneuver the circuit board past the combo switch housing (FSM says to remove the steering wheel and the combo switch). The real question is the part number for the wiper switch. For older Legacy models w/o airbags, those switches do have separate part numbers, and I believe same switches are used on cars with and w/o airbags. I know for sure the electrical connectors are the same and the delay circuit is inside the switch. The correct no. for the wagon most likely is 83113AA520, I'll probably use a Subarubucks coupon to try it on the Impreza. No! I have the exact same car. The dealer checked into it a few years ago. Told me that I'd need the stalk, a different module, some wiring probably (labor), etc. The whole thing was going to end up costing in the order of $400++ Cdn! (You could look thru junkyards for stuff from a Limited model, but I still don't know if it is directly swappable.)
July 13, 200421 yr Are you sure that the delay circuit is inside the stalk? For my generation of vehicle? I would think that it would just be a variable resistor or something like that feeding the module. I'm not electrical though. However, I did figure out how to add the RainTracker and I'm glad I did. In 3.5 years on this board, I haven't heard of anyone just changing the stalk to get variable intermittent wipers on a 96-99 Outback. Then again, I'm not sure that anyone has tried. My dealer is not perfect, but I've rarely caught them out on stuff, technically. Why doesn't someone try it? Then we'll know. Commuter
July 13, 200421 yr The circuit, although not inside the stalk, is a part of the switch body. I am 100% sure of that. The fixed-interval switch is almost the same, the only difference is that a variable resistor in the stalk is replaced with a constant one on the PCB. You can partially see the board if you shine light into the opening where the stalk comes out. All switches, adjustable or non-adjustable, sedan or wagon, use the same 9-pin connector, with the same pin-out (obviously with rear washer-wiper pins absent on a sedan). Why no one tried? Probably because the dealers were always telling the same story to everyone.
October 11, 200421 yr Someone has actually replaced a '99 Legacy L wiper switch with a variable delay type out of a GT, as posted on Nasioc. It was a straight swap. Legacy switches didn't change till 2000 even though Impreza had the new diesign since '98.
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