Rear Wiper Won't Stop
- Thread starter nac1345
- Start date
speedyb166
New member
I read that too. Started pulling the boots and tracing it back to where those wires connect under the headliner and all of it was new because of the rear hatch replacement. Maybe something's pinched but since it's all brand new I didn't feel like cutting into the boots.
speedyb166
New member
Some other weird things started happening like the driver side window being able to be controlled while the car was off and others. Decided to replace the Body ECU. It's a part of the interior fuse panel so I bought a donor part of eBay and installed it earlier today. Everything seems to work but we'll see if it lasts.
DadBandBass
New member
We figured out what was causing the issues in my vehicle. thought I would let you all know in case you have the same issue. we discovered that the rubber seal on the bottom outside of the rear window had deteriorated and some of it was missing. water was leaking into the rear hatch. when we removed the rear hatch liner, we could see it was all wet inside and that's what was causing the problems. Once we dried it all out and let it air dry overnight everything was fine. Of course it seemed obvious once we discovered it but I didn't even think to look at the seal.
speedyb166
New member
Was it the rear hatch window or the rear door window?
I gave up and brought my 4Runner to a trusted shop near me and after following wires and running pin tests they found water damage just like yours. Mine was at a junction block under the driver's side rear quarter trim (images below). The tech said when he removed the electrical tape keeping the junction together water came out. The rear carpet was soaked too. They removed the block and fused the wires together but couldn't pinpoint the source of the water. I'll definitely check the rear window though. Glad you were able to find the issue, I hope it stays fixed for you.
speedyb166
New member
FIXED! Final update
The root cause for me was the sunroof drains being clogged and sending water into the headliner, and because I have to park on an incline the water ran down the headliner to the C pillar and down into the wiring harness I posted earlier.
DadBandBass if you have a sunroof I'd highly recommend cleaning out your drains. This YT (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qalXo4etX3Q) gives a good explanation of the process and how to test if this is actually a problem for you at all. There's likely a few threads here about how to clear the drains.
One of my front drains was fully clogged but that was easy to clear with trimmer line like in the YT above. The two rear drains were tough. I was able to access the driver rear drain tube's end through the jack opening but had to take off the passenger side rear trim to access the passenger rear drain tube's end (pictures below). Snaked some weed trimmer line up through the tubes, then blew air through the lines, slowly poured a bunch of water through the rear lines, and now everything works perfectly. I sat inside while my dad hosed the roof of the car for 10 minutes and didn't see any water get into the car. Instead the water went through the tubes just as designed. Once the carpet is dry I'm going to put everything back together and drive around with a huge smile on my face.
The root cause for me was the sunroof drains being clogged and sending water into the headliner, and because I have to park on an incline the water ran down the headliner to the C pillar and down into the wiring harness I posted earlier.
DadBandBass if you have a sunroof I'd highly recommend cleaning out your drains. This YT (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qalXo4etX3Q) gives a good explanation of the process and how to test if this is actually a problem for you at all. There's likely a few threads here about how to clear the drains.
One of my front drains was fully clogged but that was easy to clear with trimmer line like in the YT above. The two rear drains were tough. I was able to access the driver rear drain tube's end through the jack opening but had to take off the passenger side rear trim to access the passenger rear drain tube's end (pictures below). Snaked some weed trimmer line up through the tubes, then blew air through the lines, slowly poured a bunch of water through the rear lines, and now everything works perfectly. I sat inside while my dad hosed the roof of the car for 10 minutes and didn't see any water get into the car. Instead the water went through the tubes just as designed. Once the carpet is dry I'm going to put everything back together and drive around with a huge smile on my face.
DadBandBass
New member
Speedyb166 thanks for all this info and pics. Nice you got it solved. Great to know if any other issues come up. I will definitely check those drains. I had a bad seal a few years ago in my sunroof and realized water was getting in. I replaced it with one I found on ebay and that seems to have done the trick but good to know about the drains!
I saw I missed your question - the seal we replaced was the one on the rear hatch that's on the bottom outside of the window. I think over the years the weather just deteriorated that seal to a point where part of it was actually missing. So rain was running right down the back window and into the inside of the rear hatch. I finally took it to a shop as well, which was how we figured the seal issue. They took that back inside panel off the door and discovered the issue. Seemed obvious once it was discovered lol! They used a dryer and let it air dry in the shop. Once that was done, the issues went away.
I saw I missed your question - the seal we replaced was the one on the rear hatch that's on the bottom outside of the window. I think over the years the weather just deteriorated that seal to a point where part of it was actually missing. So rain was running right down the back window and into the inside of the rear hatch. I finally took it to a shop as well, which was how we figured the seal issue. They took that back inside panel off the door and discovered the issue. Seemed obvious once it was discovered lol! They used a dryer and let it air dry in the shop. Once that was done, the issues went away.
Greenie7743
New member
Hey speedy anyway you can post a picture of how they put the wires together from the plug that’s the exact same issue I have currently
bonnvoyage
New member
it shocks me that no one has responded to or had this exact same issue. did you ever find a solution? recently purchased a 08 Limited V8 4WD and due to pain-in-the-arse processes for OOS purchases, it sat (not by choice) and the battery died. replaced it and *now* this happens with no issues prior to these symptoms.
many say it’s the car telling you the vehicle battery is less than 50% and/or possibly the fob. it took a while for the old battery to die and never once did i hear beeping when turning the ignition to off, with the rear wiper actuating uncontrollably after that.
and never could i forget being woken up out of my sleep by the panic alarm multiple times. that made me unhook the battery cause i was over it.
i pray someone’s found a fix and it’s points to some sort of connection issue w/ the battery.
I'm troubleshooting this issue on my 2006 4rnr. Neighbor told me the rear window wiper was turning on and off a couple days ago. We had a heavy rain so I'm sure the root cause is the sunroof leaking. Puddle in the driverside footwell when parked downhill and right rear passenger side when parked uphill.
I'm getting around 3.5v at the ECU-IG fuse under the driver side dash fuse box when the key is turned off. Pulling the fuse next to it (IG1) it bumps up to 4.1V. Turn the key on and ECU-IG position goes to 12.7V.
The battery would not take a charge anymore. Installed a new battery yesterday and pulled the ECU-IG fuse so it wouldn't drain the battery overnight and threw the charger on to top it off.
I'm going to pull the rear hatch panel today and see what it looks like and clear the moonroof drains.
New battery didn't fix the electrical issues. Now the key FOB isn't working where before it did.
Cleaned out all 4 moonroof drains. Front were easy, but spent 2 days on the rear. Cleared the passenger side rear first removing the 2 interior panels to get better access to fish up the tube.
Trimmer line wasn't stiff enough, so switched to 12ga copper ground wire to get all the way to the moonroof to clear the tube.
Working on the driver side rear drain, I was able to access the upper rear drain hole with a straightened metal coat hanger. That was easier than fishing wire from the jack stand location. Lot's of redwood needles and debris came out.
Used a compressor to blow air through the line, then attached a wet vac at the rear end of the tube while pouring water from the moonroof. That worked to get the remaining crud out of the line.
Tried accessing the passenger side rear tube from the moon roof and clogged that line again. Used the wet vac, 12ga copper wire and compressor to get it clear again. It probably would have clogged up again if I hadn't done this. There was a lot more stuff coming out of the line this second time than what came out first.
Front carpeting is still wet so that's coming out tomorrow and I hope to run down where the electrical short is occurring. I'll pull the plug apart that's shown a few post up in this thread to see how it looks.
Cleaned out all 4 moonroof drains. Front were easy, but spent 2 days on the rear. Cleared the passenger side rear first removing the 2 interior panels to get better access to fish up the tube.
Trimmer line wasn't stiff enough, so switched to 12ga copper ground wire to get all the way to the moonroof to clear the tube.
Working on the driver side rear drain, I was able to access the upper rear drain hole with a straightened metal coat hanger. That was easier than fishing wire from the jack stand location. Lot's of redwood needles and debris came out.
Used a compressor to blow air through the line, then attached a wet vac at the rear end of the tube while pouring water from the moonroof. That worked to get the remaining crud out of the line.
Tried accessing the passenger side rear tube from the moon roof and clogged that line again. Used the wet vac, 12ga copper wire and compressor to get it clear again. It probably would have clogged up again if I hadn't done this. There was a lot more stuff coming out of the line this second time than what came out first.
Front carpeting is still wet so that's coming out tomorrow and I hope to run down where the electrical short is occurring. I'll pull the plug apart that's shown a few post up in this thread to see how it looks.
I had a very similar problem. I woke up in the middle of the night hearing my fourth generation 2007 4runner alarm going off and noticing the rear wiper and the headlights on, despite the engine off and doors locked. It was a bizarre sight to see. Additionally, there were some clicking noises occurring behind the dashboard. The issue was not caused by a weak battery because I replaced the battery in vain.
I took the vehicle to the dealership and ultimately found out that I had clogged sunroof drains going down the A pillar that caused water intrusion and corrosion into my fuse box located on the left side of the steering wheel. I had to replace the fuse box.
Regularly clean and test your sunroof drains. Lesson learned.
I took the vehicle to the dealership and ultimately found out that I had clogged sunroof drains going down the A pillar that caused water intrusion and corrosion into my fuse box located on the left side of the steering wheel. I had to replace the fuse box.
Regularly clean and test your sunroof drains. Lesson learned.
