wiper problem

I am sad and confused.

the wiper mechanism has malfunctioned and the drivers side wiper now wipes past the a-pillar. this has cause it to gouge the a pillar thru the paint and down to the metal.

i have no idea why it does this only when its set on 'fast'.

the rest of the time, it doesn't fly past the a-pillar. I have no idea where to look or what to adjust. the nut on the arm is already tight.

halp?

 

Remove wipers (weight reduction), treat windshield with Rain X or other wax type thing.

 

i do not drive at speeds steady enough to take this idea seriously

 

I really had zero problems running wiperless on my Miata.

Even when sitting in stop and go traffic it worked well enough to keep the windshield clear enough to see. The wind would start clearing it almost completely at about 25mph.

 

i think i've only used my wipers on "fast" no more than 10 times or so in the 6 years i've owned my car.
the other wiper speeds won't suffice?

 

I'm not sure you drive as much as i do to have a simple direct comparison...

and the rake angle of the miata windshield is different than an impreza, so your performance will probably be different than mine

 

The linkage of the arm is most likely worn or broken. We replaced probably four different wiper motors last year all with the same issue.

 

ok, can you give me a suggested starting point to see if its an outside-the-motor problem?

i want to at least try and mend it, but i can't be too sad about any part that puts up with 210,000 before giving a problem.

 

pull the problem arm and see if the splines are worn

 

or pull both arms, remove black plastic cowl panel and check the linkage. flashlight and mirror may help

 

Drove my 2014 impreza WRX STi to work yesterday while raining with Rain X only using the delayed and mist wiper settings.

Rain X or other wax product still works WONDERS for keeping your view clear, and it will help you not use that fast setting and further screwing up your paint.

 

More than likely worn splines on wiper motor linkage. I had this same problem when I first got my wrx

 

been living with this problem due to various reasons.

finally got the shrouds off and able to mess with it. At rest the whole linkage has more than 5 degrees of play at the wipers.

but at the same time, the teeth on the driver's wipers are partly stripped...

 

what i mean to say is the wiper arm itself is stripped of its teeth about halfway into its hole. the motor part that it mates to is fine as far as teeth. so i think i have 2 separate problems at this point...

 

a new wiper arm is gonna be about $40...


but i have no idea how to troubleshoot all the play thats in the whole thing.

suggestions?

 

i can tell already it wont fix both wipers moving in unison with too much play when at rest. that means the motor itself or some part of the assembly.

i will have to replace the drivers arm regardless because its stripped, but i'm wondering how to diagnose everything else.