If you’ve owned any Chrysler product from the 1990s, you’ve probably dealt with all sorts of electrical gremlins. Phantom battery drain? Check. Alternator overcharging the battery? Seen it. Ignition switch completely caput? Of course. But I just had a friend send me an electrical gremlin so bizarre, I had to ask him twice whether it was actually real or if he was pulling my leg. But it’s real; and it’s absurd.
Electrical issues have been a huge problem for 1990s-era Jeeps especially, which is why I myself have always preferred Jeeps equipped with manual windows, manual locks, manual side mirrors, and a manual transmission. Back in 2016 when I bought a 1995 Jeep XJ for $600, I found out what happens when you buy a rusty old junker of a Jeep with automatic windows/doors/mirrors/transmission.
It’s bad:
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At one point, I had reverse lights that were constantly on and taillights that didn’t work. So you know what I did to solve that? I took the reverse light bulbs out of the reverse light sockets and…simply put them into the taillight sockets. Problem solved!
Of course, now I didn’t have reverse lights, but taillights are more important and I’ve daily-driven cars that predated reverse lights and it was just fine.
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I also had to use a screwdriver to start the car (see above) and none of the power windows worked — it was honestly a nightmare, which is why I’ve been staying away from well-equipped 1990s Jeeps for a while now.
But as bad as my Jeep electrical gremlins have been, never before have I seen something like this:
What you’re seeing is my friend Hannah — whose Jeep’s cylinder head I replaced back in 2016 — simply closing her 1997 Jeep Cherokee XJ’s door, and as soon as the door hits the dome light off-switch the rear wiper washer turns on, spewing methanol-based fluid all over the ground:
What the?
Hannah’s partner Pat sent me an email explaining the situation.
Hannah gave me a ride to her apartment and when she went to shut her car door, there was a sudden noise of dripping water. She opened it again, thinking she’d bumped the rear windshield sprayer on the center console and it had decided to work for the first time in a decade. The sprayer stopped, thinking the issue was resolved, she shut the door again. Sprayer turns on again.At this point, I’m at the rear of the Jeep and she’s opening the door, messing with the switch and closing it again. It’s at this point we realize it’s tied to the door being open or closed. I come over to the driver’s side and press the dome light switch in the door jam. Sprayer goes off. Release it and it turns back on. Ah ha!We start messing with the dome light switch and notice it fades and the Sprayer pump noise changes when you toggle through the modes. Hannah needs to head inside to take care of some things, so I could continue troubleshooting, now targeting the fuse box. I found this cool interactive diagram: https://www.startmycar.com/jeep/cherokee/ info/fusebox/1997# anchorfusebox1 I pull the sprayer fuse – still spraying. Then I pull the wiper fuse – nothing. Lastly I pull the dome light fuse – no effect. Sprayer and dome lights are still working. OK, something is seriously crossed. At this point, the windshield fluid reservoir is empty and the pump is running dry. I unplug the battery and we go to dinner. This is a ‘tomorrow problem’.The next day Hannah takes my truck and I continue troubleshooting. My goal is to unplug the rear washer pump. No signs of damage to any wiring under the hood or near the pump. The pump for the rear is very forward in the vehicle. After struggling for a bit, I decide that its function won’t be missed (especially as it has been defunct for a decade). I cut the cable and seal every thing back up.Rear sprayer is retired in place and the dome lights still work!
A rear wiper and washer system is an available option on this model. The rear wiper system is a fixed-cycle wiper system. A single switch in the instrument panel center bezel controls both the rear wiper and washer functions. The rear washer system shares the reservoir of the windshield washer system, but has its own dedicated wash er pump and plumbing. The rear wiper and washer system s will operate only when the ignition switch is in tthe Accessory or On positions. A fuse in the junction block protects the circuitry of both the rear wiper and washer systems…[…]The single two-function rear wiper and washer switch is in stalled near the bottom of the instrument panel center bezel below the heater-A/C controls. The rear wiper and washer switch controls the rear wiper and washer functions. The toggle-type switch features a detent in the On position, and a momentary wash position. The rear wiper and washer switch also has an integral illumination lamp with a serviceable bulb. The switch knob is pushed down to its detent to activate the rear wiper system, and down again to the momentary position to activate the rear washer system. Both the rear wiper and rear washer motors will operate continuously for as long as the switch is held in the momentary Wash position. The rear wiper and washer switch cannot be repaired and, if faulty or damaged, the entire switch unit must be replaced[
My brother’s Land Rover has had it’s share of fun electrical issues. My favourite glitch was that the interior dome light would flash whenever you indicated left.
Most seem to be traceable to the previous owner welding on the rear chassis without checking if there was wiring on the other side. My brother managed to fix some of the problems by running a ground wire from the front to the rear part of the chassis. No, I don’t know how it’s possible for a chassis to stop being electrically conductive either. Just Land Rover things I guess.
My first running and first car to pass inspection was a 1980 Mercury Capri. Not only could I remove the keys while driving (“you don’t like the way I drive? Here…take the keys and drive yourself”….that was my favorite driving joke) but if I rolled down the driver’s side window all the way the door latch engaged thus opening the door. Fun stuff driving on a highway with no a/c.