Consequences of a dumb move with the wiper arm

**svt** · 05-11-2015 09:30 AM

I'll be the first to admit I made a dumb move...

... and that move happened on Saturday while I was cleaning out dead leaves/twigs/tree stuff from under the hood and cowl. With the hood open, I lifted the driver's side wiper blade arm up to "service position" in order to get some of the tree stuff from that area. I then moved to the passenger side and began cleaning out the tree stuff from that side of the car.

Without thinking, I finished up on that side and completely closed the hood, not realizing that I left the driver's side wiper blade arm up in "service position." A moment later I noticed and opened the hood again. At first glance, nothing seemed wrong with the wiper arm and it was half-way between service position and resting against the windshield.

As soon as it hit the windshield, I noticed that it sat a bit higher than previous judging by the dirt mark. I tried moving it back down, but it wouldn't move. I noticed that the passenger side was lower than it's dirt mark, but I wasn't sure if that was related or not since I didn't touch that side.

I hit the ignition and tried the wipers and they worked... but the driver's side didn't work well at all. It had the symptoms of a dried wiper blade, but much more severe. I sprayed some water on the windshield to test the efficiency and it missed over 50% of the water, mostly just smearing it everywhere. It also hits the pillar on the side of the windshield.

I screwed up and somehow damaged the wiper arm or motor assembly. The arm does not appear bent but it sure acts like it is.

Any ideas?

FWIW, the car is still under warranty and it needs to go in for the 35k service in a month or so.

**BrewDude** · 05-11-2015 09:32 AM

Warranty does not cover negligence that you yourself caused.

Methinks this one's going to cost you...

**b6onboost** · 05-11-2015 10:02 AM

You bent the wiper arm.

I did the exact same thing and had the same results. Didn't wipe well and clicked as it hit the pillar trim. I figured I had bent the wiper linkage/assembly, but it was just the arm.

Since you are warrantied just take it to the dealer and describe the problem. They'll try to adjust or reseat the arm and when that doesn't work they'll just replace it.