Checking the condition of the brushes and the initial position of the wiper arm
Tool for checking the initial position of the windshield wiper arm
1 - Key
2 — Windscreen wiper arm
3 - Locking screw
Over time, road film builds up on windshield wipers, reducing their effectiveness, so wipers should be washed regularly in a mild cleaning solution.
Wiper blade assemblies should be inspected regularly. If inspection reveals hardened or cracked rubber on the blades, replace the blades. If inspection reveals nothing unusual, wet the windshield, turn on the wipers, let them run for a while, and turn them off. Uneven marks from the blades on the glass or streaks on clean glass indicate that the blades should be replaced.
If the wipers do not clean the windshield well enough, the following reasons may be possible:
- a) When the car passes through an automatic car wash, wax particles get on the windshield. These particles can be removed by adding a detergent with wax-dissolving properties to the windshield washer fluid;
- b) Filling the reservoir with a glass cleaner with wax-dissolving properties can significantly improve the performance of the windshield wipers;
- c) Grease-dissolving cleaning agents are not able to completely clean glass.
Damage to the brushes can also be the cause of poor glass cleaning; the brushes should be replaced.
During operation of the windscreen wiper mechanism, the mounting nuts may become loose, so they should be checked and, if necessary, tightened each time the wipers are checked (refer to Chapters Body and On-board electrical equipment for more detailed information on the operation of the windshield wiper mechanism).
Replacing brushes
See Section Replacing headlight and windshield wiper blades in the Chapter User manual.