Wipers....issue perhaps?

[Sleeper4SHO]

Any speeds over 40mph when using the wipers I get a decent patch on the drivers side that doesn't clear on the wipers way back down. My blades are fairly new and if I recall correctly I believe it did this when I replaced them as well.

Anyone else experience this? Have a solution? I was thinking about replacing the driver side blade with the smaller size blade the passenger side uses. Thoughts?

I HATE an unclear/dirty windshield more then anything!

 

[SHOdded]

Pic of the problem area? Usually a wiper arm adjustment is your only option for sweep area if the wiper blades are OEM length. You could also apply a windshield protectant of some sort like Rain-X or Aquapel or FlyBy30 etc to decrease the amount of dirt & grime that does stick. But unless you get side to side wiping motions (like on trucks/buses), hard to wipe clean the entire area.

 

[SHOrod]

If I'm interpreting the original post correctly, the wiper clears fine on the pass from rest to a-pillar, but on the return to the rest position it skips or chatters and doesn't leave an effectively cleaned windshield.

If that's the case, did you replace the wipers with frameless blades like the original equipment, or the "old school" style of blade that has multiple pressure points? If you have the frameless, then I suspect the issue may just be some sort of film on the windshield or an incorrectly seated blade that isn't quite correctly installed.

There are are various products on the market to clean films off of windshields. You could start by trying some isopropyl alcohol and if that doesn't work, step up to something like a waterspot remover. Once you're confident the windshield is clean, then apply a repellent such as suggested above by SHOdded. I generally use Invisible Glass with Repellent. It's a great compliment to the wipers when driving in rain or road spray.

-Rod

 

[SHOdded]

One thought to add: is the windshield original to the car? If it was replaced by non-OEM glass, that CAN change the curvature and affect the wiping action. Has happened to me on a few different vehicles.

 

[Sleeper4SHO]

SHOdded you interpretted correctly....and your post makes much sense. My suspicion was that it was something to do with the air moving up the windshield as the blade is coming down...couple that with your blade theory and i think we may have a winner. When I think back to the oem blades I don't recall the issue. I will have to pick up an oem set and give them a go.

Thanks all.

 

[Sleeper4SHO]

When I wash the windshield washers at a stand still it cleans streak free so I don't believe it to be a film/dirt issue....and it's the original windshield

 

[Spoilt22]

Not really off topic.... My washer fluid pump either took a crap or there is a leak or a kink somewhere. It will flow very little then stop. This happened randomly. Where shall I look first.

 

[Sleeper4SHO]

Spoilt22....I actually had the same symptoms a while back. When I popped the hood to dig into it I noticed the hose attached to the passenger side squirter had come off. I slipped it back on, zip tied it and been good ever since

 

[Spoilt22]

This splice was the culprit. I squeezed the line and twisted the center of it while the kid was pushing the button. Then ran it for a while to purge the line. Works all good now.

 

[esfoad]

Bosch ICON blades are awesome. One more thing, I had to twist the arm on the driver's side a bit to make sure the blade was sitting perpendicular to the glass. The blade was chattering on the down sweep from time to time. Not sure if the car came from the factory that way or changed from pushing snow etc. Anyway once I made sure it was straight the performance has been perfect ever since.

 

[Bosscav]

I have Rain-X blades and have sworn by them on my other cars forever.

At speed they skip on the drivers side on the way back down. No idea why, must be bad aerodynamics on the Taurus.