The issue could be that the arm is loose on the wiper transmission shaft, There is a shaft that comes out of the cowl that the arm bolts onto, the end of it is tapered and has a knurl on it. The nut is tightened at the factory so the metal of the arm is pressed into the knurl and locked in place. Over time the metal of the arm shears off and then it no longer moves with the shaft. On that system it should be easy to tell if this is the problem, the trim cap and nut on the arm will move with the wipers on but the arm doesn't move. The repair in that case is to remove the trim cap, then the nut. Lift the arm off. Now use a pick or similar to remove the sheared metal from the knurling. Then once clean you put the arm back on and line it up in the parked position and use a socket and hammer to hit the arm so it forms a new spline area, then put the nut back on and torque it to 22 ft. Lb. Then test. Now if the nut and shaft are not moving then you will need to remove the arms and the cowl trim to get to the wiper transmission and determine if the drive arm popped off on one end from a bad bushing or if it's otherwise damaged. If it's a bad bushing you can sometimes get replacements at a parts store in the HELP line of parts or ask at the counter. They snap into the metal arms and are snapped onto the drive studs. Sometimes it is easier to just replace the transmission assembly (GM 12336025) than it is to fight with the bushings.
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Tuesday, January 6th, 2026 AT 12:10 AM