If your ignition is fuzed and the wipers are wired through the ignition switch, the fuze could have blown. The starter would still turn over if this is the case unless you have a starter relay running through the same fuze. A brown wire is normally hot all the time and it may have burned rather that been cut. Perhaps it supplies the power to the ignition switch? The first thing to check would be the connections on the battery.
Baldy
