AlanS

So, no water comes out of my rear hatch wiper/washer. What is the story with this thing...Honestly, I haven't even explored it...And yes, it does have water in it. Anyone have a pic of the system, so I can track it down?

myfirstbenz

I had the same problem in my TE when I bought it. One of the many "midlife crisis" maintenence items I have had to work on is the wiring in the rear tailgate of the TE. After years of open and close action, the wires on either side of the hinges tend to flex beyond their abilities and they break causing electrical gremilins in the tailgate electronics. My wiper was on the fritz as was my rear pump. One way you can test this without pulling stuff apart is to test the pump to make sure it is getting a signal/current when you hit the switch. If not, check the fuses, and if the problem still persists, then it is time to start doing some work. the problems wires are on the drivers side hinge. You will need to pull all of the rear trim and upper plastic rear trim off and carefully remove the tension from the headliner, pull it back to expose the wire blocks where the harnesses to the tailgate tie into the cars main harness on the ceiling. you can take these off and then you need to pull back the rubber housing/sleeve that they run in to gain access and visability of the wires for inspection. I found that two of my wires were broken all the way and that 3 others were not far from it. I used some butt-connectors to reattach them.
On another wagon, I cut out a foot section of the harness to completely replace the flexing section of the wire, but on mine i just used the but connectors and it has held up fine for me so far.

230TErry

If the pump is working the plastic pipe feeding the nozzle can also get squashed by the tailgate. Happened on mine.

Hey firstbenz I see you got a W108 too.

myfirstbenz

Yeah! I restored my baby in High School, before I had my license, and working on that car got me hooked on mercedes design and engineering. I converted it from auto to stick gear box, and nothing brings me more joy than driving that car with the windows down, the sun roof open, and the 6cyl motor singing for me.

Btw, nice picture! Those cliffs are amazing. I would love to visit your neck of the woods someday. I have always wondered why there are so few trees there when it is so green?

230TErry

You should vist. A guy started working with us last year from Washington, he loves it.

The Atlantic winds tend to keep the coast clear of trees.