2001 Subaru windshield wipers

Tiny
MIKETHESKIBUM
  • MEMBER
  • 2001 SUBARU
  • 4 CYL
  • AWD
  • MANUAL
  • 130,000 MILES
I bought a used 2001 subaru outback this spring, and today the windshield wipers failed. A couple nights ago I came home in a heavy snowstorm, and I had to use my wipers to clear snow and water. Today, while I was in school it was snowing fairly heavily. When I finally got to my car, there was about 1/2 inch of snow on the windshield. I used the wipers to get it off and it worked great. I allowed the defroster to run while I cleaned the rest of the car. I then drove a couple blocks to my friends house and parked there, car running with defrosters, for about 3-4 minutes. I noticed that my drivers side wiper was not down all the way. It was up probably about 1 inch above normal down position, because there was snow under it. I cleared the snow and ice from under the wiper by hand. I got back in and drove another block, again stopping for less than a minute. This time when I tried to use the wipers, the drivers side wiper hesitated, and now it starts late. When I engage the wipers, the passengers side starts first, and by the time the drivers side goes, the passengers wiper is above it, blocking it. What happened, what can I do, and how much will it cost me? Im not sure if it means anything, but when the wipers are off, I can move the drivers side wiper along it's path by hand. Thanks guys.
Tuesday, December 4th, 2007 AT 5:14 PM

1 Reply

Tiny
MHPAUTOS
  • MECHANIC
  • 31,937 POSTS
Hi there,

The wipers may have just come loose, To check, have wipers in parked position on the switch, move the loose wiper to correct position, at pivot there is a nut that secures the wiper arm to the pivot, tighten up nut. If nut is tight and arm still moves by hand, the serrations on the pivot that grip the wiper arm may have been overloaded by the snow and have been damaged, if so the wiper pivots will have to be replaced.

Mark (mhpautos)
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Wednesday, December 5th, 2007 AT 3:04 AM

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