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Wiper blade options for Model S

Jeffruby

Member
Mar 10, 2014
112
7
New Model S- dealt with snow today. After the snow melted I ran wipers and noticed that they don't move smoothly back and forth but instead the speed of the wipers kind of whips. Is this normal? I'm sure it is, just did not notice it before.
 

TheAustin

Model X 90D (Former Model S P85)
Sep 12, 2011
266
9
The Hamptons
I've noticed that they seem to "whip" back and forth, especially at high speed...And I also feel like, at times, they don't "stick" to the windshield enough (they often "miss" spots), but yet at other times, they seem to be dragging/squeaking over the windshield, even when it is raining and there is water on the windshield. It's quite bizarre...I've never seen windshield wipers be so ineffectual, on both ends of the spectrum. (In the grand scheme of things, it's minor...But to me it's very noticeable, and frustrating that it should be like this in the first place. with all of the technological advances in the car, how hard is it to have wipers that work well?!)
 

Jeffruby

Member
Mar 10, 2014
112
7
Thanks for confirming the whip. I thought I busted the motor trying to use them to push heavy snow off (they stopped as couldn't push the snow)
 

mattboyd

Member
Jun 26, 2013
43
1
Fredericksburg, VA
I'm not sure if it will help, but eventually you'll probably get a new wiper carrier assembly, as there is a factory update. My car had the issue on any icy day when the wipers just quit working because they stripped somewhere in that mechanism, and the whole assembly was replaced with the updated system.
 
Sep 29, 2013
21
7
Bellevue, WA
Here in the Seattle area wipers tend to be a big deal :biggrin:. The stock blades weren't getting the job done to my liking so I opted for these which have worked quite well: http://www.boschautoparts.com/WiperBlades/Pages/Icon.aspx

The key is to get the 28OE (driver) and 17OE (passenger). I made the mistake of getting the non-OE version first and it has the wrong type of attachment. Here are handy links to the correct ones:

http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-28OE-ICON-Wiper-Blade/dp/B005JU61D6
http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-17OE-ICON-Wiper-Blade/dp/B00F9VNPC0
 

Klaus

Member
Apr 20, 2013
511
60
Here in the Seattle area wipers tend to be a big deal :biggrin:. The stock blades weren't getting the job done to my liking so I opted for these which have worked quite well: http://www.boschautoparts.com/WiperBlades/Pages/Icon.aspx

The key is to get the 28OE (driver) and 17OE (passenger). I made the mistake of getting the non-OE version first and it has the wrong type of attachment. Here are handy links to the correct ones:

http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-28OE-ICON-Wiper-Blade/dp/B005JU61D6
http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-17OE-ICON-Wiper-Blade/dp/B00F9VNPC0

Thanks for figuring those out! I've used Bosch ICON wipers exclusively on our other cars (Lexus, Prius, BMW) and they were the best I could find, except for some outrageously expensive PIAA silicone wipers that I tried once on my former BMW. You had to get the correct one's (A vs B) to make them fit the windshield curvature.

The 17" one can currently not be ordered at Amazon :confused:
 

jamieb

Member
Oct 26, 2013
157
6
Sacramento
Driving in heavy rain on Monday I noticed a weird wiper behavior - in addition to the chattering that others have noticed, I observed that at the low speeds the left-most range of the driver side wiper blade was about 4" from the A pillar; when at high speeds, the wiper came within a half inch of the A pillar. Also seemed to randomly switch from slow to fast without any rhyme or reason. Is my wiper motor mis-calibrated or defective? Has anyone else seen this behavior?

I've mentioned this to my SC and have a scheduled maintenance coming up when they plan to take a look; was told they have replacement wiper motors and assemblies in stock if it needs to be replaced.
 

EarlyAdopter

Active Member
Jun 24, 2012
2,818
2,047
Redmond, WA
Alright! These Bosch wipers are WAY better than the stock ones. No more chatter or squeaking. Thank goodness.

Only problem is the shorter, passenger side blade at a 17OE is a bit short. I think an 18OE would be a better fit. I ordered one of those and will let everyone know.

Photo of the 17OE coming up short against the original blade's wipe arc. The rubber blade ends right below the "B" in "BOSCH"
IMG_20140413_212353.jpg
 

psingram

Member
Apr 14, 2014
40
5
Ferndale, WA
Blades

Hi all, there was a thread here a few days back concerning better wiper blades for the S, now I cant find it. We need the best we can find up here. We pick our Red Rocket up on 6 May and thought I would take a pair down with me. Almost for sure it will be raining. I think the top vote went to Bosh but don't remember the #
Thanks
39306
 

EarlyAdopter

Active Member
Jun 24, 2012
2,818
2,047
Redmond, WA
OK, got the 18. Seems to fit right, doesn't hit the driver's side wiper, but it was actually sunny today here in Seattle so I wasn't able to try it out for real.
 

Ugliest1

S85: "Sparky"
Aug 19, 2013
1,401
1,645
Victoria BC Canada
New Model S- dealt with snow today. After the snow melted I ran wipers and noticed that they don't move smoothly back and forth but instead the speed of the wipers kind of whips. Is this normal? I'm sure it is, just did not notice it before.

I'm not sure this is the same thing (I haven't had any motor problems, squeaky blades, non-cleaning, etc), but my wipers occasionally whip, then suddenly slow, etc. I put it down to the random volume of raindrops hitting the sensor area (in front of the central mirror on the windshield), when the sensor thinks it's raining heavily (or the GPS says it's in Seattle*) it speeds the wipers up.

*just kidding! :)
 

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