Dodge Caravan wiper motor

Last Sunday was the 2009 Honolulu Century Ride, and what a great ride it was! I took along my "other" camera and took a few pics, which I'll post soon. The attendance was down a bit, but there were still a lot of visitors from Japan and the mainland, and that is a good thing.

The biggest problem with the ride is that it starts in Waikiki and goes along the coast counter-clockwise to the halfway point, then back. Less than a mile from the start is a small climb over Diamond Head, followed by ten miles into a tough headwind, then the two hardest climbs of the day, Heartbreak Hill and Makapupu. At twenty miles you arrive at the Waimanalo Recreation Center, and from there on the ride is much easier. This route is well suited to experienced riders, but totally inappropriate for beginners and kids. I would like to see a well supported, officially sanctioned alternate start/finish from Waimanalo.

My second complaint about the ride is the mass start. The event is not a race, yet thousands of cyclists are supposed to gather at Kapiolani Park and start at the same time. This results in riders unaccustomed to riding in a peleton all struggling down the road, wheel-to-wheel, shoulder-to-shoulder. It has gotten so bad that many local riders begin early and slightly ahead, just to avoid the crush. My idea of encouraging an alternate start in Waimanalo would help, but in addition I think the start should be staggered. This is done at the triathlons, so why not at the Century Ride?

I use our old Dodge Caravan to store all the paints and cleaners that I am not allowed to store at the shop. My rolling storeroom. While the Lotus was in the shop its safely check expired and its wiper motor broke. Today was the day to fix the wipers and get the safety check.

The motor is accessible from outside after removing the wiper arms and a cover panel. I don't know what Chrysler had in mind, but getting the motor out was next to impossible. I ended up loosening all of the nuts that attach the wiper subframe, including the motor mounting plate, and with help from Carl the motor finnaly came out. Crazy!

I have never done this before and messed up adjusting the linkage. Once I can the arms sweeping properly they stopped halfway through the arc. I was out of time, so next time I'll have to remove the cover and fidle with the motor crank arm.