Lexus ES Windshield Wipers

Smoothie

For the past few days, the windshield wipers on my '04 ES 330 have not been retracting all the way when they are turned off. Is there an easy way to index them corrrectly?

btc1

It sounds like they may be in what they call winter mode. We just had a snow and icestorm here and the wipers on my '04 ES 330 wouldn't go all the way back down near the cowl area--they were about 3 inches higher than normal. Spoke to a Lexus/Toyoto/Scion specialty repair shop and he told me about this winter mode. To fix it all you have to do is apply equal downward pressure on the arms (not the blades) of both at the same time while they are in the off position and they will go back down into the summer mode. Hope this fixes your problem.

Smoothie

Thanks for the tip!

silblade

Wiper blades are like squeegees. The arms of the wiper drag a thin rubber strip across the windshield to clear away the water.

When the blade is new, the rubber is clean and has no nicks or cracks. It wipes the water away without leaving streaks. When the wiper blades age, nicks or cracks form, road grime builds up on the edge and it doesn't make as tight a seal against the window, so it leaves streaks. Sometimes you can get a little extra life out of your wiper blade by wiping the edge with a cloth soaked in window cleaner until no more dirt comes off the blade.

Another key to streak-free operation is even pressure over the length of the rubber blades. Wiper blades are designed to attach in a single point in the middle, but a series of arms branch out from the middle like a tree, so the blade is actually connected in six to eight places. If ice or snow forms on these arms, it can make the distribution of pressure uneven, causing streaks under part of the blade. Some wiper manufacturers make a special winter blade with a rubber boot covering the arm assembly to keep snow and ice out.

andyp4

I had to replace the front windshield on my 08 Lexus ES 350. The drivers side windshield wiper now rotates to far and the wiper continues past the windshield onto the frame of the vehicle. Is there any way to adjust this?