1999 Chevy Venture, Windshield wipers stop in upright position

Hey Derek , here is how the wipers park position is suppose to work !
Windshield wiper motor park operation is controlled by the body control module (BCM) using an input from the park switch within the wiper motor assembly. The BCM monitors the windshield wiper motor park switch circuit to determine if the windshield wiper blades are at the bottom of the glass. The circuit will be pulled to ground by the wiper motor park switch while the windshield wiper motor is operating. When the wiper switch is turned to the OFF position while the wiper motor is somewhere in mid-cycle, the BCM will continue to operate the motor until the wipers reach the park position. If the ignition is turned OFF while the wipers are in mid-cycle, the wipers will stop immediately where they are. The BCM will park the wipers the next time the ignition is turned ON.
The wipers will not park when they are commanded ON and OFF with a scan tool. The BCM will park the wipers the next time the wiper switch is turned ON and OFF.
The BCM provides stall protection for the wiper motor by monitoring the park switch. If the park switch does not transition for 3 seconds while the wipers are operating, the BCM will assume that the wiper motor is stalled, and will de-energize the wiper relay until the wiper switch is cycled OFF and ON again.
Check for a voltage signal on the yellow wire at the wiper motor assembly , this is signal to the BCM ! If there is no signal you need to replace the windshield wiper motor assembly ? If there is a signal need to have Tech 2 scan tool hooked up to see if The BCM is the problem ! Relay #39 an #40 are the high an low wiper relays in the under hood fuse block ! Do you have a volt meter ,do you know how to do electrical testing ?

More than likely, your little wiper transmission isn't catching correctly. I had this issue with my sisters Buick. Open the hood. Remove the panel located nearest to the bottom of you windshield near your wipers. You should see a small oval or teardrop shaped cover, (approximately the size of a playing card) that you will need to remove to expose the wiper transmission. It just pops off. Turn your wipers on and see if the "tab" on the transmission catches to stop your wipers in the down position. Her's did not. I lubricated it slightly and with careful pressure, bent the tab just a bit. The wipers then caught at the appropriate time, closing the wipers correctly. Remember to replace the cover and the panel on your vehicle when complete. Ever onward! Hope this was helpful for your model as well.

It sounds like they are in the "service position" If memory serves correctly do this to get them out of the service position:

Service position To get into service position:

• After you turn your car off, tap the wiper stalk down. The wipers will move into the service position.

To get out of service position:

• To move the wipers back, switch on the ignition and tap the wiper stalk down.

the park circuit in the wiper motor is bad, or the live to it is there should be a constant live to wiper motor, if its good replace wiper motor

This is all part of the wiper motor, the park is bad in the wipermotor, the motor need to be replaced to fix this problem, hope this helps.

The wiper linkage and blades should be in the neutral position, or where they would normally lie when in the "off" position. Hope this helps. Remember to disconnect the battery while replacing electrical components.

Could be anything but based on experience the probability points to the self cancelling switching in the motor gearbox.

Your windshield arm is in need of repositioning. Take off the cap on the windshield arm and loosen the nut under the cap. Reposition the arm so that it faces 180 degrees flat to the passenger side of the car. Tighten the nut. This should solve the problem you've described.

This is a commoon problem with what is called the "Park pawl stop". The tab is most likely bent and needs to be re-aligned, then the wipers need to be re-timed. This re-timing can be a little difficult, although the re-aligning of the tab is failry simple.

TechJK

This reply probably too late but -
>  Is this a wiper motor problem?
The motor may be OK but the parking switch has likely failed.  It should normally supply power until they reach their parking spot unless the main operator switch is still on and this probably controls a relay that may be faulty.
If you have had the problem corrected, you might post the problem found back here as a comment to aid others.