So there's no way I'm the first person to have this happen, but I can find any info about it anywhere. The title is exactly what's happening. Car runs pretty well for the age (2003 CL Type S, 180k) It does idle a little low sometimes when I'm at a stop light, but never dies. But If I turn the wipers on, either to clean the windshield with spray or to use them during the rain, the car will lose power, stutter and ultimately stall out.

To give some background info. It first happened on a random day, I got in the car, it was raining, started to drive away and my wipers would activate (like on the INT switch) and if my foot was on the gas, the car had no power and didn't accelerate and then when the wiper stopped the car would jump like if I floored it. When this first happened I had no idea it was the wipers, so I ended up coasting back to my parking space and leaving it and then trying to drive it again at night (now not raining) and the car drives perfectly fine.... I'm like wtf. I chalk it up to a one off (old cars have issues, etc...) and keep driving the car like normal the following days. Then a few days later I'm driving to work and my windshield has some bird shit on it and I hit the spray on the wipers and the car stutters again. BOOM, it hits me, I'm like no f'in way. I try it again, car stutters again... and lastly I pull up to a stop light and try it one more time and the car stutters and dies. So its definitely that. But How?!?!?!?!? lol.

Any help would be greatly appreciated and if there is a thread about this, just point me in the right direction!

Thanks
-Bubba

 

A "wag" but perhaps a vacuum line in the windshield washer system failing? Does it even use engine vacuum in some way?

 

A wag? I dont know what you mean by that? Never hear that term before, can you elaborate please?

 

Sorry meant to quote you here... whats wag?

Thanks

 

WAG = wild ass guess

 

Maybe weak or old battery? They could cause some weird issues and it might be electrical.

 

LOL, I've never heard that used before. Gonna have to add that to my repertoire. I will check into that, thanks

 

Battery seems to be fine, no other issues like dimming lights when rolling windows down etc... I'm gonna see if I can trace any vacuum lines see if that may have something to do with it. Gonna check fuses too, just in case.