Grand Cherokee Windshield Wiper BLANK SPOT?????

I have always had an issue with my '03 Grand Cherokee driver side windshield wiper that i attributed to the windshield washer jet not spraying at the lower part of the blade (towards the pivot end) not cleaning the windshield well. Had been planning on trying to adjust the spray on the jet but made a major discovery the other day. Have high end blades on there and looked where the blade contacts the windshield and noticed that the blade doesn't even contact the windshield towards the bottom of the arm, there's several inches that are up off the glass.

Since it's done this with many sets of blades I am assuming none of them have wiped well. So the question is what is the cause? The spring pulling the arm down? Maybe a bent arm? Would really REALLY like to resolve this issue since I live in Florida and only use my wipers occasionally.... like maybe just a dozen times a DAY :O)

Thanks!

Reply to
infiniteMPG
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Can you push down on the blade pivot/arm and make it contact the glass? If so it could be the arm is bent, usually that just puts insufficent pressure on the blade and it works poorly over the whole length or chatters on the highway.

Check to see if the blade insert isn't hanging up on the carrier. They need to be able to move a bit or the blade won't flex.

Also depends on the wiper design. Some don't have enough curve for the windshield. I use regular AMCO blades on the ZJ. AutoZone and NAPA carry them.

Reply to
DougW

Thanks for the info, I'll check that out tonight. Have used several different blade types on there and none of them wipes at the bottom of the blade, most notable when using the washers on a dirty windshield. Are the arms hardened or anything or can I just bend it back towards the windshield more if the pressure helps? And if there's too much pressure I would imagine that would mess it u, too.

Reply to
infiniteMPG

The arms pivot in the center so they should distribute pressure evenly across the blade. That's why some have all those cantilevers. I did try a curved steel-backed blade by bosch. It worked well for a while then the rubber ripped off. So I went back to AMCO.

Another thought, make sure the bottom of the blade isn't hitting the window trim or air dam.

Reply to
DougW

Finally got a chance to check and even if I press down hard the lower part of the wiper blade does NOT touch down solid on the glass. So it appears the blades I am using are not curved enough to contact the windshield well. Any suggestions for what's a better curved blade or one that has greater pressure towards the ends????

Reply to
infiniteMPG

OEM ... maybe? I've bought all different kinds of blades, OEM are about the same price and seem to last just a bit longer on my TJ.

K.

Reply to
Kate

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