Do you tear wiper blades in the winter?

I refresh wipers just before winter. I do put the arms up before a storm to keep them from freezing to the window.

But when did wipers get so expensive? Even aftermarket from WalMart end up being $40 or so. I remember when I could replace the refills for a couple dollars, less than $10.

It happens alot if wipers are left down during icing and are still frozen when you try and use them.
Also, wiper blades should be changed at least once a year IMHO. I change mine in the Fall ... they seem to always start to streak before a year is up ... maybe planned obsolescence by the manufacturer now-a-days.

It's so they can use a longer wiper blade that will stay inside the boundary of the windshield. If it didn't pivot, the end of the blade would go off the windshield.

....for wiper blades in the winter.

Stay away from "old wives tales"

I've left them up before snow, sometimes by just turning off the car while the wipers are mid-wipe. I think that ended up damaging the wipers even more as the wipers reset automatically after I started the car.

I think the best technique I found was to start the car with the wipers down and turn on the windshield defrost. While the car is warming up, I brush the snow off the entire car. By the time I finished, the ice had melted enough that the wipers could do their thing without damage.

Fortunately for me both wipers are the same length. I replace the driver side, and then move that over to the passenger side. I don't need 20-20 over there. This works for me, and that used wiper is never really that bad overall anyway. Mine have never torn.

I just don't ever remember seeing them on a car, except when I saw 1960's GM in my family, and I also had a 1970 Pontiac LeMans Sport in the early 90's.

When I first got the Toyota car in 2016 (it's a 2006), I started fiddling and adjusting the pivot because I thought the wiper was not perpindicular to the road...only to put it back where it was! But that car, the wipers cannot lift up and stand up. they can only be lifted to replace...

I use Bosch Icon wipers because I find them effective and other wipers often make me feel that I am failing an IQ test when I install all 42 pieces.

Before the virus hit I would treat the windshield with Rain-X regularly. It is effective at keeping the windshield clear of rain at speed. In a mist it is worse than no treatment. It *seems* to lower the friction and lessen the likelihood of wipers getting iced to the windshield.

I can't remember tearing a wiper in many years. I recognize that you have reason to not use the Bosch wipers but perhaps the Rain-X suggestion may help.

It works in colder temps than the blue juice. Just don't let it get to the rubber on the interior of the car if your windows are cracked and you clean the windshield. It's methanol based and will turn rubber into goo. Ask me how I know.

I never tried to validate this, but I've heard that the Rain-X windshield washer fluid (or additive?) can interfere with the level indicator (which warns you about running out of fluid).

I had a bad experience with blue crap. Driving at ~55mph and ~-5°F I used the washer and it pumped out of the spray-head and then froze on the windshield. I couldn’t see a thing. I presume that evaporation brought the temperature of the liquid down to it’s freezing point. Now I only buy so-called premium fluid and hope that it is good enough. I can no longer find the Prestone that was advertised as good to -34°F.

I keep my wipers in the up position before a storm so they do not stick.

One thing you can do to prop up the blades is wedge some sort of ball under the blade to just slightly lift the arm. I use an old tennis ball to lift the blades from the windshield in a Porsche that is garaged. Works great and the blades don’t take a set.

Bosch Icon wipers are a silicone rubber that remains flexible at very low temperatures. The blade is more durable and well worth the premium as they will last for 3 years or longer. Noe that we've moved to a more temperate clime in the Carolinas, I find they also hold up well in the heat and sun.

I replace my driver side wiper 3 times more often than the passenger side. I don't move the driver to the passenger though.

That Valeo is OE on many cars, German, American, not sure about Japanese.

So I guess if I can use aftermarket, I use Valeo.

As mentioned on the wife's GM, OE is the only one I use, made by Valeo (has to do with the pinch tabs and the frame needing no adapters).

I noticed that as late as the mid 2000's, Japanese cars still had the old style wipers where an insert can be replaced inside the frame. Often people threw that out and years later discovered they can't try OE wipers (inserts) unless they rebuy the frame portion. My mom is in that boat with her Acura. These tend to be less aerodynamic if you will.

It's like when people throw out the plastic sleeve on batteries if they are still under the hood (only my 2006 and 1998 are such, the other 2 have vent tubes with one in the trunk and the other under the floor in the rear). I did that on the 1998 and years later? Fender starts rusting away from battery gassing, stupid.

I got tired of replacing expensive wiper blades every Winter and bought a garage. I figure I'll break even in the year 3221.

Seriously though, I've had good luck with Rain X blades. They are spendy but for me, they are usually good for a couple of years. There can be issues with the type of retaining clip on some vehicles though.

Young wives nonsensical ideas?

I hope to have this solution someday (one car is in the garage and has been its entire life, a 2007 car).

In reality, I was thinking a new car that's purchased should not be left outside 24/7/365, ideally. It makes a difference. But it seems nowadays even people who have 2 & 3 car garages have their cars outside and "junk" inside. Or maybe they lease all the cars and it doesn't matter....

And yesterday, I left my wife's wiper blades off the glass....

I use the beam type blades,on my GM. Don't use the ones where the blade is offset from the wiper arm. It reduces the amount of pressure

In my case here are the GM numbers.
Wipers: 24" 19304558
17" 19304552

Don't know if that helps. I drive parts for a GM dealer one day a week, so I'm lucky enough to get employee pricing. However, I feel that it's worth spending on blades that clear the windshield.

A lot depends on how cold things are at the start. When I lived in Sunnyvale California, I was horrified to see neighbors sloshing a bucket of water over their windshield to get a head start on clearing off the frost (it did not snow often enough to count). Horrified because I'd lived in much colder places where that would not work well at all. But it worked for them. I parked my car in our garage, so did not need to find my own method. As common in California, my neighbors used their garage for anything from extra bedroom to storage, so street parking was usual.

When driving home in the snow I try to remember to turn off the defogger before arriving home. That avoids melting and refreezing the snow on a warm windshield.

yep, I don't always remember though.

There has been price creep over the years.

owned a Subaru but thought I heard all of them have a defroster grid on the front windshield in the wiper area....

JEEPS Do.

Unfortunately, not all of them. This was a huge disappointment with the Grand Cherokee.

I don't know anything one way or the other about the Rain-X fluid level indicator issue, but have read that it interferes with the automatic wipers setting on vehicles that use a forward facing camera (usually in the rear view mirror).

I love Rain-X on motorcycle helmet face shield. The rain just beads-up and gets blown up and off by the wind.

The wipers on my Rav4 will go up. The wipers on the Camry will also go up, that is if Toyota hadn't put the hood in the way on the driver side. That was stupid. You can't even change it without raising the hood.

What year? My 2020 Cherokee Limited does.

Here’s an article with a different take on things.

https://www.nj.com/news/2021/02/should-you-leave-your-windsh...

Personally, as an engineer, I suggest the National Weather Service stick to weather and leave the subject of spring design to engineers. And as far as AAA recommendations, they have gotten to be a outfit with less than perfect recommendations that potentially result in service calls and a potential battery sale.

Over this past weekend, some representative of AAA was recommending you start our car every few days and let it idle for 20 minutes. That is so far against most recommendations that I replayed it just to be sure I hadn’t heard it incorrectly.

Where someone said it is illegal for a car to idle. I don’t recall whee I read that but even idling for 20 minutes is ridiculous.

The car is incapable of being driven off without the keys. So a newer car with a remote start that shuts off the car when the door is opened, or is disabled from moving is okay, but otherwise no.

Worse for the car than letting it sit 6 mos imho.

I posted about AAA here before because I've been a member since 2014 and never once used it. My mom's probably been a member since the 90's, has used it. Everyone paying high fees and averting risk and seemingly ok with it! I bought in to the "well our newest car is a 2011 better be careful!"

I was also told on another forum no need to worry about ethanol and Sta Bil on a modern car, due to the venting / evap, unlike old cars....

I remember in the 80s and 90s that there were companies that sold lifetime wiper blades. They were made out of some sort of silicone. They were not cheap ($20 to $40) but they really lasted. Whenever I bought a car, I would replace the OEM wiper blades with the lifetime ones and I would never have to replace them. I see some places online selling them, but the reviews I have read stated they were terrible. Does any place still sell good lifetime blades?

This comment is a little off the original winter oriented topic but since we have gotten into general questions of wear I'll throw it in. For the kind of rain we usually get in New Mexico, using RainX generally means I don't turn on the wipers at all.

That is not quite true because below about 40 mph the wind doesn't just sweep away beaded up raindrops the way it does at higher speeds.

I like the effect for better visibility and less distraction from the wipers themselves, but I suspect it also reduces wear and tear on the wiper blades, just because I am using them so much less.

We end up replacing our blades not because of wear from use but from exposure (sun, ozone, etc.). Our blades end up drying out and that's why i replace them.

Rain X, love it but my wife hates it. That "driving through snow" feeling as the rain slides up the glass is very disorienting to her. On the other hand, i rarely turn on the wipers and then the rain is really coming down.

used to use it all the time and loved it, when you went to pass a smi truck in the rain right at the back trailer tires where you usuaally can't see could see clear as a bell from the water running off the winshield, the more water the better you could see.

My biggest problems with RainX have just been the trouble of needing to apply it again every few months (at most) and learning how not to have it smear. If I used more than a very little, and don't use a good moistened cloth for the final polish after some delay, it left a nasty smear I did not like looking through. Come to think of it, I'm overdue for a new application. As I drive so little during COVID times, and it rains so little here in Albuquerque, I've not driven in the rain for many months.

This is spot on, a light mist doesn't roll off the windshield very much, if at all, with rainx, on the flip side a nice heavy rain and you barely need the wipers at all.

When it is cold, you usually run defrost and scrape window frost/ice/snow before using wipers.

the front twice and the back once,
usually lift them off the glass when I park for the night,
this winter did not -got told it didn't cause em to stick
next winter going to lift them off the glass when i park for the night