Wipers Leave Streaks - Corolland: the Toyota Corolla Forums

ever_green

ok so winter is here and i have done everything i can with all my cars to be ready. this includes changing wipers, getting winter washer fluids, winter tires etc. for my corolla i had the rain-x latitude wipers which i found them to be horrible. they always left streaks on salt water and slush on my windshield. So i switched back to Toyota oem wipers and i didn't find any difference. specially the passenger side, it just fails to clean the top half part. So i decided to install honda wipers since i am very happy with them on my other vehicles. Honda wipers were probably the worst out of them all and i spent over $58 for them. The driver side requires lots of fluid but it cleans completely after few wipes, however the passenger side just doesnt clean the windshield at all. Is anyone having this problem? i don't know what to do i need wipers that clean.

why would you spend so much on a replacement part that only lasts one or two seasons?? go to wal mart and get some cheapies.. they are awesome for 3 monhts.. throw em out or burn throu them for the summer and get new ones in winter.. at 7 bucks each you cant beat it...

Is the passenger side arm making good contact with the windshield? Streaking at speed or even if you use the wipers while sitting still. Have you tried cleaning the windshield with something else first by hand, then use the wipers? Contaminated washer fluid? Anything added to the washer fluid / windshield (i.e., Rain-X)?

Could be a number of things causing the streaking, usually it is contamination on the wiper blade itself (use alcohol pads to clean the rubber blade), contamination of the windshield (overspray, environmental, anti-fog, water repellent, silicone coatings, etc. - clean before using wipers), or the blade is not making good contact with the windshield. Pretty unusual to have all the blade do the same thing, even the cheapest wipers will work for a short while. So it sounds like the same issue is causing the streaks in all the blades. Given that it doesn't seem to clean the top half, I'd be suspect of the pressure the wiper arm is putting on the windshield. May just be too little pressure to get the blade to make good contact. Sometimes surface contamination can cause the blade to "skip" over the windshield, also causing streaking.

^^^what fishexpo said^^^

The best wiper blades in the world won't work properly if the arms are misaligned or the springs are shot...or if the windscreen is contaminated. One question: you're buying whole BLADES, right? Don't fiddle about with refills...if the rubber is shot, then the rest of the frame probably is as well.

I also agree w/Jarhead about the blades from Wally World. I buy the Michelin brand and they work as well as or better than any I've tried so far...even for double the money. Plus, they're a steal at $7.

ever_green

thanks for the responses. I have changed the whole arm right and not just the refil. i have also tried walmart wipers with no success. The best ones seem to be honda only in snow however but as soon as roads get salty they are all bad.I have so many wipers now its ridiculous how much money i have spent. If my wipers need alignment or springs are shot how do i fix it? I have cleaned the wipers with the washer fluid with no help. I am going to try cleaning the wipers with alcohol, but i have heard alcohol ruins the rubber? speaking of rain-x, i did it take it to a rain-x car wash recently and my previous washer fluid was rain-x de-icer. I made sure to drain every ounce of liquid out of there before filling it with the toyota washer though

Cleaning the wiper with washer fluid will not work, that stuff is so diluted with water, won't have much cleaning power. As for alcohol damaging rubber, that is a no. It will strip some of the rubber molding agent and/or rubber preservative - which is exactly what you want to do to ensure a clean wiping edge. As for bent wiper arms or ones that don't put enough pressure on the windshield, you can try bending them toward the windshield a bit, but if they are really messed up or damaged, will have to pull them off and replace the arm.

Rain-X car washes are hit or miss. They generally spray on the Rain-X after the sealer, which tends to make it streak and runny on the whole car. Rain-X deicer has such a low concentration of Rain-X "product", I wouldn't think it would be an issue, but will certain contaminants on the windshield - weirder stuff has happened to me before.

To see if we can diagnose this streaking, clean the windshield thoroughly - use something like Stoner's Auto Glass, Zep Clear-Vision, or other automotive glass cleaner. Windex is OK, but can make the streaking worse, depending on what is on the window now. Clean the wipers with alcohol, might take a couple of applications to get all the contaminants off the blade. Papertowels folded over a couple of times or prepackaged alcohol wiping pads work well. Get the alcohol as close to full strength as you can get (drug stores and pharmacies generally stock stuff up 90%). Mist washer fluid onto the windshield first, run the wipers see how the work. Then use the washer, see that works. Adjust/clean out the wiper nozzles as necessary to get a strong stream to the windshield. If they plugged up - use a needle to chase out the dirt.

149 posts

You have described doing everything EXCEPT cleaning the glass. Try some of these cleaning suggestions .

ever_green

Cleaning the wiper with washer fluid will not work, that stuff is so diluted with water, won't have much cleaning power. As for alcohol damaging rubber, that is a no. It will strip some of the rubber molding agent and/or rubber preservative - which is exactly what you want to do to ensure a clean wiping edge. As for bent wiper arms or ones that don't put enough pressure on the windshield, you can try bending them toward the windshield a bit, but if they are really messed up or damaged, will have to pull them off and replace the arm.

Rain-X car washes are hit or miss. They generally spray on the Rain-X after the sealer, which tends to make it streak and runny on the whole car. Rain-X deicer has such a low concentration of Rain-X "product", I wouldn't think it would be an issue, but will certain contaminants on the windshield - weirder stuff has happened to me before.
To see if we can diagnose this streaking, clean the windshield thoroughly - use something like Stoner's Auto Glass, Zep Clear-Vision, or other automotive glass cleaner. Windex is OK, but can make the streaking worse, depending on what is on the window now. Clean the wipers with alcohol, might take a couple of applications to get all the contaminants off the blade. Papertowels folded over a couple of times or prepackaged alcohol wiping pads work well. Get the alcohol as close to full strength as you can get (drug stores and pharmacies generally stock stuff up 90%). Mist washer fluid onto the windshield first, run the wipers see how the work. Then use the washer, see that works. Adjust/clean out the wiper nozzles as necessary to get a strong stream to the windshield. If they plugged up - use a needle to chase out the dirt.

thanks for the response. I just cleaned the blades with 99% alcohol and cleaned the windshield using simple green spray. I can't see any bending in the arms, however i am not sure if it is indeed bent or damaged. I had the Honda wipers installed after a car wash which makes me assume my windshield was already clean, and having the new wipers installed after a carwash would eliminated the chance of contamination.

I htink i know what the problem is... i bet you have a mild buildup of oxidation or tree sap or road tar or even paint overspray on your windshield exterior glass..... go to home depot or lowes and get a 4 inch scraper.. they are about 5 bucks.. or if you have a BigLots they are about 2.50.. use that on the entire windshield.. you can use the little one inch scrapers too but the 4 inch is so much nicer...

you will be able to get all the crap off that wiping and most cleaners wont.. jus tbe careful aroudn rubber edges...

Depends on the car wash - lot of the sealers applied at the end of the wash will contaminant the windshield. If you got some sealant, Rain-X, or other "finishing" application added to the end of the wash, there is a very good chance of windshield surface contamination. Replacing the wipers immediately after the car wash could have contaminated the blades worse, as the concentration of that car wash solution is still the highest. Better to have waited until you cleaned the windshields or after a couple of weeks, as the majority of the sealant would have worn off by then.

Simple Green would not have been my first choice - was this the Simple Green Glass cleaner or the All-Purpose stuff, if it was the All-Purpose stuff (have to dilute it a certain amount), chances are you put more residue on the windshield, as my understanding - there are micro-globules of silicone in that cleaner, which is what makes it work so well as a degreaser.

Hard to tell from just looking at the wiper arm. Does it take some force to lift the blade off the surface of the windshield. Does the entire width of the wiper blade make contact with the windshield? Procedure of misting of washer fluid after a new installation, will easily show if a blade misses a spot, you'll know the tension in that arm is too weak. Can't remember on the Corolla, but other cars have a tension nut on the base of the arm (separate from wiper arm nut), under the cover plate.

ever_green

i used the ones made for glass:

http://s5.thisnext.com/media/230x230/Simple-Green-Glass-Cleaner_47125A78.jpg

again i do not notice any irregularity with the windshield wipers. after cleaning today, i noticed the passenger side's wiper leaves a sort of mist that freezes instatly which then evaporates (top part). This probably means if there was salt and road grime it would not be able to clean properly. I do not know how to adjust the tensions for the wipers, but it does seem pretty tense (it smacks back on to the windshield pretty well). but honestly it does not seem to be a contamination issue, i think it just has poor contact at the top which i am clueless on how to fix. there is a snowstorm tonight and my son needs to drive it to college tomorrow, he is doing whatever he can to fix it atm.

Scrub the windshield with kitchen/bathroom cleansing powder

I'm digging the $8 silicone blades I bought at a place called Menards. They stay soft no matter how cold it gets and are chatter free when wiping a only somewhat wet glass.

So as a last resort, have you tried bending your wiper arms so that they apply more pressure? I had a similar issue with an old suby I once owned and that fixed the problem. Don't bend them too much, just enough to exert a bit more pressure. It's worth a shot if this is REALLY bugging you.