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Front passenger wiper blade not making contact

halfbakedj14

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April 13, 2010
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Year, Model & Trim Level
96 explorer
I've recently replaced my passenger wiper blade control arm and installed some rain x latitude blades. They blades works great until it reaches the middle of the windshield. When it gets to the middle the middle of any blade I use it comes off actually and misses a wide area. The tops and bottom still make contact but the middle constantly lifts off as if there isn't a lot of pressure when it gets to that point.is this a control arm problem or is there any way I can make it apply more pressure?
 



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I had the same problem after installing my new Bosch Icon wiper blades, I have a feeling it has something to do with it being the constant pressure, spring blade, instead of the normal 6 point touching blade,over the past 2 weeks though it seems to have gotten better.
 






Take it off completely and reinstall it. If necessary lubricate the plastic to metal connection with windex. If it's not "clicked" in completely the blade will tend to do that.
 






Well it's locked in pretty tight, it seems to happen with any blade I put in. I even switched control arms, put the driver side on the passenger side and it still did the same thing.
 






The same control arm did the same thing? Is the spring gone?

The blade mount should audibly click when inserted into the arm loop properly.
 






No the spring is still there, I don't get this issue with either control arm when I use them on the drivers side, just on the passenger side. All the blades I've used are locked in, they make the click noise.
 






Does your have random spots where it lifts off like mine? My driver side is right before it parks, and the passenger one is at the top of the motion, sue the passenger one is not a big deal because it only does not clear right where the mirror is, but still, would like it to work.
 






Well its obviously not a control arm problem. I use Goodyear Assurance blades for three years now on six different vehicles, available at Costco for 8 bucks, and I've never had a problem.
 






Mine skips a huge shark fin shaped spot on the passenger side on occasion too. I took a pair of channel locks and sqeezed that little hook thing that attaches the spring to the arm. Helped a lot
 






Mine skips a huge shark fin shaped spot on the passenger side on occasion too. I took a pair of channel locks and sqeezed that little hook thing that attaches the spring to the arm. Helped a lot

So just squeeze the hook that the blade attaches too? I'll have to give that a shot. It's just annoying, it get the first 75% of the window but as soon as it get's the the middle it leaves that shark fin spot of my window right near the middle of the window.
 






I also had that problem with Bosch Icons and I suspected it was the wiper arm not exerting enough pressure on the blade I bent those damn arms all up and nothing helped. I threw it all in the garbage pail and got some wiper arms from the breakers and $8 Duralast winter blades which have been great.

I like the look of the bracketless wipers but wont buy them again.
 






Not the hook that the blade hooks onto. Down by the hinge there is a spring and theres a metal hook thingy that attaches the spring to the arm. If you sqeeze that thingy it puts more tension on the spring thus putting more tension on the wiper
 






I figured out what it was. Turns out that the little nub that the wiper blade arms connects to on the hood of the car by the windshield wasn't making tight contact with the wiper blade control arm. So every time the blade went towards the middle of the window it completely lifted off since it wasn't making a tight contact with that nub. I put some electrical tape around the nub to widen it and put the wiper blade control arm back on it and it made a world of difference!
 






The springs on my wiper arms don't put enough pressure on my windshield. I will have to see if I can compress the spring a little bit. I am just using a standard wiper blade, nothing fancy. They just don't stay against the windshield.
 






For what its worth, Kenworth used to sell an add on spring tensioner for their wiper blades. I think they were also available as aftermarket items at truck stops. They fit on the wiper arm to apply more tension to tbe blade. I honestly don't know if any are still available or not. Might be something you might want go check into.
 






Try NAPA AccuFit

My wipers were always from the Ford dealership and worked great until this last replacement a couple of months ago when the configuration changed a little. I tried 4 different blades and my driver window had lift-off right in my prime viewing area. Also tried the Costco Goodyear wiper blade a little better but still very bad. Tried the suggestions on this post and none worked. Went to NAPA today and purchased NAPA AccuFit 60-022 and they work great. Probably because of the internediate pressure points under the main wiper arm. Maybe a problem for those in northern climes in the winter but I don't have that problem.
 






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