Bonrath Sport Wiper Installation Instructions
by Toby Erkson

It is recommended that you have a Haynes shop manual to reference during this procedure as it has better instructions on the windshield wiper system than the Bentley. Use pages 12-13 and 12-14. However, for a nice exploded view of the wiping system please see page 92-2 Wipers and Washers in the Bentley shop manual.

Remember, the compass directions of the car are always in relation to the centerline of the car with someone sitting in it. Thus, FRONT is where the headlights are, REAR is where the exhaust tips are, LEFT is the driver side of a USA car, and RIGHT would be the passenger side of a USA car. For those who know boats, LEFT is still PORT and RIGHT is still STARBOARD. This is important to understand not only as a standard but also in helping you to understand these instructions because most of the time you will be facing the rear of the car, thus your left & right will not be the same as the car's left & right :-)

These instructions are based upon the installation of the Bonrath unit in my 1995 Jetta III GL OBD I car. This document is meant as a reference to be used in conjunction with the supplied Bonrath instructions along with a Haynes shop manual for someone who is comfortable and skilled to work on their own car. As always, it is best to test fit and 'eye-ball' everything so there will not be any surprises during the installation.

Good luck, it's really not that hard, so let's begin!

What the parts look like:


1. Removing the stock system.
Make sure wipers are parked (turn on car, activate wipers ONCE, wait for them to stop moving, turn car off).

Open hood.
Remove horizontal rain gutter/fire wall hood seal.

Remove wiper arms:
First, place masking tape under the wiper blades on the windshield. This will help position the wipers in case you have to put the stock system back in. Next, label the left wiper because the left and right wiper blades are different.

Pop off wiper caps, exposing the hex nut that holds the wiper arm down.

Remove the retaining nut with a 13mm socket, then remove the washer (a magnet helps with this).
Wiggle arms free.
Remove all rain gutter trim fasteners.
Remove the left and right rain gutters.

Disconnet wiring harness from wiper motor.
Notice that the butt-end of the motor is facing the left fender. It's orientation will be changed on the Bonrath frame.
Use a 10mm socket to remove the three hex nuts that hold the wiper frame to the body.
Remove the entire wiper frame from the body of the car.


2. Preping the car.
Unbolt the ECU with a 10mm socket and wrench and push it over to the right side of the lower gutter (near the fresh air intake).
Place the Bonrath frame in the space where the stock unit once was, making sure the chrome spindle mounting plate is mounted on the spindle, mounting holes on the upper side of the plate (side closest to the windshield). The mounting holes should line up with the ones where the stock wiper frame mounted. If the Bonrath spindle and the gutter mounting tab interfere with each other then that tab will need to be removed (as was my situation).

Using a scribe or fine-tipped permanent marker, draw a horizontal line across the center rain gutter mounting tab.

Cut the tab off along the scribed line using a hacksaw or cutting disc.
The cut should be fairly close to the body so it appears that the tab was never there.
File the rough edge so as not to cut yourself or scratch the Bonrath during assembly.
Paint the exposed metal with primer so it won't rust. I recommend a rust-conversion primer like POR-15 or Corroless as these primers will not let moisture through. The rain gutter will cover this up and it will not be seen.


3. Changing the wiper motor.
Using a permanent marker, mark a reference line on the crank and frame. This will allow you to put the stock crank back in the proper position in case it ever needs to be returned to the stock configuration.
Remove the crank hex nut using a 13mm socket. Use a pipe wrench to hold the crank so it won't turn the wiper motor.
Pry the crank from the motor shaft; a large flat-bladed screwdriver will easily work.
Use a 10mm wrench to remove the motor mount bolts.
Pry plastic wiring harness clip off tab and orient the other direction (rotate 180º).
Pry off circular clip that holds the small metal cylinder (part of wiring harness if you have it, about the diameter of a nickel). Clip this back on to the metal cylinder. You will put this back on facing the other direction once the Bonrath frame is fully installed.

Bolt motor on the Bonrath frame so the butt-end of the motor is facing the center line of the car, torque bolts to 5Nm. The motor will be on top of the Bonrath frame, on the side with the spindle, just like the stock system.



4. Wiper sweep placement.
Figure out where you want your wiper to park, either horizontally or vertically, and the direction of sweep. This is important to figure out now because once you have the Bonrath crank secured to the motor and mounted in the car it will be a real pain to change the park/sweep position!
To make it easier for you, place the Bonrath in the car, loosely attach the wiring harness, and turn on the wiper system to the intermittant position. Use a piece of tape on top of the spindle if you need to represent the wiper arm more clearly.





Once you have decided, mount the Bonrath crank to the motor shaft, torquing the crank retaining nut to 20Nm. Again, use the pipe wrench to hold the crank.


5. Installing Bonrath frame.
Place the center mounting plate on the Bonrath frame very loosely.
Put the Bonrath spindle base under the stock mounting point and put the center mounting plate on top of it (sandwich the stock mounting point).

Bolt the Bonrath frame to the car, torqued to 5Nm.
Secure ECU using supplied extension bracket.



Use the supplied foam to create a cushion between the side bolt head and fire wall.
Push the spindle up against the center mounting plate and finger tighten the black plastic spindle retaining nut.
Reattach wiring harness.


6. Modifying the plastic rain gutters.
Fit left gutter and cut a slot to accomodate the spindle-
Install left gutter, mark underside where spindle touches it.
Remove gutter and cut out plastic.
Repeat until the gutter fits around the spindle.
Since this piece slides under the right side it will be easier to remove a slice of it instead of trying to make a hole that surrounds the spindle. Trust me.
Remove left gutter.
Fit right gutter and drill a hole to accomodate the spindle. This will take a little more care because this will be seen.
Install right gutter and trace around the spindle where it touches the bottom of the gutter.
Remove gutter and use a 5/8 inch drill bit for the hole.
Put the supplied hole covers in the rain gutters-
Re-install the rain gutters. This was difficult for me so I had a friend help pull the right side (once it was mounted) while I mounted the left side and slid it in to the right gutter. Just be patient and be careful so you don't break or bend a gutter.
Put trim fasteners back on gutter to secure it to the body.


7. Mounting Bonrath wiper arm.
Put Bonrath wiper arm on spindle, placing the arm where you want it in the park position.

Spin the retaining nut on the spindle then tighten down with the supplied Bonrath wrench-
To make sure the arm is secure you must firmly press down on the arm hinge while tightening the nut.
Make sure the nut is tight but don't put all your weight into tightening it!

Put the Bonrath wrench in your car just in case the wiper arm becomes loose...(don't ask why I know this :-)
Close hood.
Wet windshield and test wiper.
If you don't like the park/sweep you can loosen the arm, realign, retighten and test again.
When satisfied with the wiper arm placement you can snap the supplied wiper arm cap on.



Done!

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