oops that didn't work... Rear Aero Wiper Mod

So obviously, not every mod I do goes well.  Here is a prime example.

After upgrading the front windshield wipers with the awesome Bosch Aerotwin wipers, people reminded me that I hadn't done the same to the rears.

Unfortunately, I haven't found a model from Bosch that works for the rear window yet, as the air is coming in the opposite direction than for the windshield. So I suspect to have an aero effect, the shape of the aero blade would have to be reversed.

I did stumble upon, however, an "aero" blade on Rakuten here in Japan, for a very cheap price - around 1000 yen! Recalling that when I measured the OEM rear wiper, it was 450mm, I ordered it, figuring it would be an easy mod to do (and a way to complete the Bosch wiper blades post).

It arrived quickly (the green is a clear plastic cover protecting the rubber blade):

 But I immediately noticed that there was a difference:

The clip area on the Bosch wiper is much nicer - no weird holes, and enclosed. I guess this is why the non-Bosch ones are "universal"?  But "who cares" I thought, these will be in the back, no one will notice. 

Comparing with the OEM rears, the length looks pretty good!

Now to check to see how they fit.  Good news was, they fit on the "J hook" perfectly, without drama. The BAD NEWS was - after the J hook fit into the universal clip - the wiper itself was too long!

oops....

The OEM wiper is a comfortable 2cm away from the spray nozzle.  This photo shows the new aero blade just grazing the spray nozzle, but in actuality the blade would rest on top of the nozzle a bit more. So even though the blade LENGTH is the same, the location of where the arm meets the blade is different.  If I were to order another of the same series, to be safe I would order the shorter 400mm.

But there MUST be a Bosch for the rear, and this mistake only cost me 1000 yen, so I will keep looking...  oh and as for the rear nozzle, it appears to be stuck somehow to the glass, so I'm not going to mess with it. Stay tuned!

Another Modern Upgrade.... Wiper Blades

Well with this recent cold weather, I'm not too inclined to go out and work on the car. However, last time I washed my car (after the visit to Midori Seibi and Do-Luck) I noticed that the wiper blades on my car, were a bit dodgy in that the metal ribs that run along the sides of the rubber blade itself were working themselves loose. This would then cause the blade itself to come loose from the frame. Like this:

 So even though I don't drive much, if at all, in the rain (basically unless I get caught on the way home), I was worried that, if for some reason I had to use the wipers, then Murphy's law would mean that the rubber blade would slip, and then then metal frame would scratch the glass (and numerous attempts to fix this problem by forcing the metal rib back into the rubber had not been successful). So I had to figure out a way to fix this problem.

Solution:

There seem to be several brands of these new one piece wipers that replace the frame and fit the car. But (at least here in Japan) Bosch seemed to be the only one that had a specific listing for my car, and had items that reflected the different sizes left and right, for their top of the line Aerotwin wipers. Plus of course the aerodynamic nature of these wipers was cool, especially as the OEM driver's side blade frame has a small built in spoiler just for that purpose (to prevent the wiper from lifting off at speed). The design also promises more evenly spread out wiping ability, and the rubber blade itself is easy to replace.

These are an easy install, they come with an adaptor (Bosch calls it "Quick-Clip") that allows retrofitting to most cars by attachment to the U-shaped wiper arm end. However, here is a tip for our cars - the instructions state that the cover can be opened up to let the U arm fit over the internal clip - this is not true on our cars. Due to the curved nature of the wiper arm, the covers have to be gently forced off (after insertion of the arm), then the U hooks over the clip, then the cover can be snapped back into place. Like so:

I was also going to take this opportunity to re-paint the wiper arms, as the original flat black paint had been rubbed off in some spots - except it's just too cold and I wasn't about to start spraying black paint in an enclosed garage... so that small project will have to wait for warm weather.

Anyway - here is a before picture with the OEM blades (excuse the mess in the garage...):

And here it is, after fitment of the BOSCH wipers:

So what do people think of how they look on the car... a bit too modern perhaps? OR subtle enough that it works? I'm sure their superior performance alone justifies them, but in my opinion they just look a bit weird...the OEM mini spoiler was actually kind of cool.  Also, I wish there was a way to keep them half hidden under the hood.

Oh, and what should I do with the rear wiper? Same thing? The question here is, does it need to be aerodynamic in nature as well?