Audi A4 and VW Beetles from about '98 onwards About $40 on Fleebay http://www.ebay.com/itm/2001-OE-Genuine-Audi-A4-Quattro-Brake-Vacuum-Pump-8E0927317-/261718176584
The double decker fuel pumps with vacuum pump for the wipers, were offered on all old cars that came with vacuum wipers. They cure the vacuum problem on hills and on acceleration. Last one I bought was for a 59 Ford, it cost $50 more than a standard fuel pump. Rebuilt wiper motors are also available. Rambler, Cadillac, Buick and Packard use vacuum wipers up into the fifties and sixties, Cadillac Buick and Packard had auxiliary vacuum pumps built into the motors. They must have thought well of vacuum wipers to go to the trouble, since electric wiper motors had been available from the forties.
Had many 'run ins' with vac wipers,my solution is to lube the motor,only if it's dry and yes,use lithium grease.I then run the air hose from the motor to the inlet manifold,use a brass tap and you can control the air intake,works great !
During the rebuild of my '57 Pontiac, I discovered the wiper motor was seized. After much thought, and reading through this thread, I decided a $600 electric conversion was not for me, partly due to a great lack of $600, and partly due to the fact that I'm not likely to drive it to Seattle in December. I could probably rummage the boneyard for a suitable electric unit to swap, and I may, if I decide the vac wipers are completely useless, but I've had 'em in the past and they were ok. Here are the results of my rebuild. Step one was disassembly, then a cleaning of all the pieces, of which there are very few. Basically, it consists of a chamber, in which a paddle sweeps back and forth to provide the motion, a top cover 'valve body', that directs the vacuum, and a small cover that slides on the top of the valve body activated by the cable from the switch.
The chamber was in great condition, and a beautiful aluminum casting, once I had all the paint off. The top valve body piece is some variety of pot metal. The aluminum piece was begging to be polished, so I couldn't resist. I cleaned up all the pieces, and painted the two sheetmetal cover parts, and reassembled it with white lithium grease. I made the gaskets using the ball pean hammer method, pressing the gasket material to the part, and knocking the excess away with the hammer. I used a leather hole-punch for the round holes in the gaskets, and referenced the old gaskets for the inner cutouts.
The screws holding this thing together by the way, are super tiny, with a goofy flat on two sides, raised head, that I could only figure to remove and install with a needle nose pliers.
Now, to my questions for those of you who have been in one of these before. In the front part of the chamber, is a separate cast in housing with a little valve arrangement. On the bottom part of that is an inlet or outlet port, and a filter ahead of it. Question one, this filter is a felt sorta material, and I just gave it a bath in hot water and re-installed it. Should I find a replacement? Question two, it seems apparent to me the vacuum hose from the engine would go to the tube on the upper casting, but the lower chamber has the aforementioned nipple on the bottom. Is that an outlet, as in, no hose? My brain tells me yes, but my brain has lead me astray in the past .
Ok question, on my 56 buick wagon.the vacuum hose is on the bottom of the wiper motor, how do I get oil or brake fluid up it to it? While I had the top of the dash off I cleaned and used white grease on the cables and the other parts.Thanks Bruce.
Besides lubricating the motor, squirt some white lithium grease to all the pivot points on the linkage. I did this with mine and it made a world of difference.
My Rambler has vacuum wipers. Best thing about them is the infinite speed adjustment. You can set them to run reeeeaaallll sllloooooowww.
Vaseline works great on vacuum wiper motors. Take it apart, dip the paddle in Vaseline, and reassemble.
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