Hi guys, rear wiper turns itself on when I start the car so I turn it on and off to reset it and when I turn it off it stops immediately as in the middle of the rear windscreen so I have to time it properly! So funny.

Dash indication showing rear stop lights not working but they are so that is obviously a malfunction.

I am guessing this is part of the famous rear boot grommet ruining the electronics. Well I have no intention of doing anything about it until something really goes wrong

Sounds like an earth fault, if the earth is really bad you get electrical feedback through the wiper motor causing it to operate.

Could easily be a broken earth in the tailgate wiring

AndyRKett said:

Sounds like an earth fault, if the earth is really bad you get electrical feedback through the wiper motor causing it to operate.

Could easily be a broken earth in the tailgate wiring

Click to expand...

Yeah must be something with the tailgate. As with all faults Fiat, I will drive it till it properly breaks = )

AndyRKett said:

Sounds like an earth fault, if the earth is really bad you get electrical feedback through the wiper motor causing it to operate.

Could easily be a broken earth in the tailgate wiring

Click to expand...

I had that and it was the broken earth in the tailgate. Go check

Melanabb said:

I had that and it was the broken earth in the tailgate. Go check

Click to expand...

I'm scared to = ) It happens intermittently, today i pushed the grommet around a bit before i started the car when i opened the boot and the wiper didnt activate upon starting.

ahmett said:

I'm scared to = ) It happens intermittently, today i pushed the grommet around a bit before i started the car when i opened the boot and the wiper didnt activate upon starting.

Click to expand...

Don't do this, or attempt any inspection of the wiring, without first disconnecting the battery negative terminal.

If there is a wiring fault, it's possible you could short a cable or apply a stray live feed somewhere - the resulting voltage spike could blow a fuse (likely), or (less likely but much worse) damage some vital bit of electronics.

You don't need me to tell you what it could cost to replace a ruined ecu.

jrkitching said:

Don't do this, or attempt any inspection of the wiring, without first disconnecting the battery.

If there is a wiring fault, it's possible you could short a cable or apply a stray live feed somewhere - the resulting voltage spike could blow a fuse (likely), or (less likely but much worse) damage some vital bit of electronics.

You don't need me to tell you what it could cost to replace a ruined ecu.

Click to expand...

Ok, i won't touch anything until it breaks completely then go straight to the garage. Thanks for the advice!

Ahmett, while I normally subscribe to "If it ain't broke don't fix it", I'd be inclined to get this one checked. If it is the usual problem, just opening the tailgate could cause further damage as described above by JRK.
Hope you get it sorted.

TrevC said:

Ahmett, while I normally subscribe to "If it ain't broke don't fix it", I'd be inclined to get this one checked. If it is the usual problem, just opening the tailgate could cause further damage as described above by JRK.
Hope you get it sorted.

Click to expand...

Yes but this has been going on and off for years now. It was probably first damaged 2 years ago. I will just keep on using it normally, because so far the problems have been trivial. Since I am in town almost all the time and have breakdown cover and have access to another car if i really need it, I am not too worried. I know it will get worse over time, but it can be up to 2 years before it collapses completely and who knows, maybe I would have changed cars by then = ) So WORST CASE in a catastrophy, I get it towed to the garage.

I believe I have dealt with much worse during my Fiat 500 ownership (Dualogic gearbox anyone? I believe I have used roadside assist about 6 times due to the gearbox and a further 3 times due to the battery, and have vowed never to own a car without having breakdown cover!) My used 2002 Audi A2 that i bought for 6,500 GBP from the dodgiest dealer in the world in 2008 at about 40,000 miles did not break down once in 2 years of ownership and A LOT OF driving. Sold it at over 70,000 miles.

The wiper and the tail lights are all connected through the body computer. In the absence of an earth the power to the tail lights is finding its own earth by the power routing back through the wiper motors and through the delicate electronics of the body computer. It's is very likely if you ignore the problem then it will burnout tracks on/damage the body computer which will need to be replaced at a cost of many hundreds of euros.

AndyRKett said:

The wiper and the tail lights are all connected through the body computer. In the absence of an earth the power to the tail lights is finding its own earth by the power routing back through the wiper motors and through the delicate electronics of the body computer. It's is very likely if you ignore the problem then it will burnout tracks on/damage the body computer which will need to be replaced at a cost of many hundreds of euros.

Click to expand...

So I guess you will be the first one to tell me "I told you so"! Whatever happens, I will not touch it at all and it will have to wait until I go to the dealer again, when I will obviously mention it. My next service will be done in April most likely. Might as well kill two birds with one stone with the labor charges, etc.

Guys this problem has been going on for 2 years! = ) Its just that now its not only the wiper, it is also the rear light sensor. But there again the front light sensor was packing up but stopped bothering me, and I noticed it was weak wiring in the front side. Rear lights working just fine. Wiper is working fine when I command it, it just doesnt go back into position when i stop it so I have to sync it. Peanuts compared to my dualogic issues.

I will keep you guys updated on how it progresses, and ahead of its most likely fix in April.

Out of curiosity, how much will this cost to fix if i deal with it now? And what does the fix involve exactly? Changing wiring in the back?

I had the rear wiper coming on at start up and it was the hatch wiring.

Next time was the middle brake light. Wiring again

Last week was the boot light. Just had last of the wires repaired

First time £110. Second £50. Today £40

Call an auto electrician

ahmett said:

So I guess you will be the first one to tell me "I told you so"! Whatever happens, I will not touch it at all and it will have to wait until I go to the dealer again, when I will obviously mention it. My next service will be done in April most likely. Might as well kill two birds with one stone with the labor charges, etc.

Guys this problem has been going on for 2 years! = ) Its just that now its not only the wiper, it is also the rear light sensor. But there again the front light sensor was packing up but stopped bothering me, and I noticed it was weak wiring in the front side. Rear lights working just fine. Wiper is working fine when I command it, it just doesnt go back into position when i stop it so I have to sync it. Peanuts compared to my dualogic issues.

I will keep you guys updated on how it progresses, and ahead of its most likely fix in April.

Out of curiosity, how much will this cost to fix if i deal with it now? And what does the fix involve exactly? Changing wiring in the back?

Click to expand...

We're just trying to save you some money - I'd be the first person to suggest leaving it if I didn't think that could cause you an expensive problem down the line.

Fixing it at this stage is just removing a couple of trim panels and splicing a few bits of wire into the loom; the cost depends on how easy it is to find an auto electrician in Greece that'll do a decent job for a reasonable price. Personally I'd say around £50 for cash. If you leave it and the body computer is damaged, probably the sort of money you'd pay to fix a dualogic 'box.

jrkitching said:

We're just trying to save you some money - I'd be the first person to suggest leaving it if I didn't think that could cause you an expensive problem down the line.

Fixing it at this stage is just removing a couple of trim panels and splicing a few bits of wire into the loom; the cost depends on how easy it is to find an auto electrician in Greece that'll do a decent job for a reasonable price. Personally I'd say around £50 for cash. If you leave it and the body computer is damaged, probably the sort of money you'd pay to fix a dualogic 'box.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the concern and advice JRKitching! I will do something about it, but of course only when i go to service my car or have to go there for an urgent reason. So let's hope it lasts until then. Problem does seem to be getting worse as the car ages, but over the course of a couple of years, not days. It seems it gets progressively worse over a long period of time, so I hope it can last a few months more.

I use the boot about 4 times a day.

I'll probably do it at my Bosch Car Service center if they quote me a reasonable price of course, but they should be able to do it.

Fiat fixes the whole thing for 500 euros I won't do of course but just wanted to see what they do about it.

Looks like I will have to go to the garage sooner rather than later the wiper was not working today for a while but then started working again. Of course its Christmas time now so ideally i will do it after new years when things calm down a bit.

will keep everyone updated.