Wiper arms hitting

[Raymond]

The wipers on my car have been slightly off since I've owned it.  (See photo) According to what I can find to read, the Left side wiper blade (Right side of photo) is supposed to rest above the right hand side.  The geometry won't work otherwise.  Unless I attach the left arm so it rests too high, the wipers hit in the middle of the closing swipe.  I've tried several adjustments on the drive push rod behind the glove box.  Is it possible to adjust the length of the left side push rod?  Or is there something else I'm missing?

[kampala]

Ray,

I believe our wipers are supposed to be installed with the passenger side wiper arm on on top of the Driver side wiper arm.   Thats how they are on both my LHD cars.

Yours are the other way around.   


BTW : don't confuse with RHD cars -- these RHD also have passenger side wiper arm on top, so they are opposite of LHD.

[450sl]

Don't know witch one should be on top, but do know the the wiper mechanism is adjustable.....

[Raymond]

The left-hand wiper, as viewed from the LHD driver's seat, is supposed to rest on top, according to the Haynes manual.  Just looking at the structure of the wiper arms, the longer one with the greater angle must be on top, otherwise, it would not be parallel with the bottom of the windscreen when at rest. 

So, is there any way to adjust the arms independently?  Or, how else can I solve the problem of the left arm striking the right arm on the return swipe?

[badali]

Are the wipers the correct length?  I'm not at home to check but if they are too long they may hit...

[mbzse]

The passenger side wiper should be on top.
This means, om a LHD, right is on top. On a RHD, the left wiper is on top.
Wiper blade length 12" i.e. 300mm
/Hans in Sweden

[Paul & Dolly]

I believe the Passengers side wiper should be on top.
My car has always been this way, and the wipers work perfectly with a full sweep

Paul

[450sl]

Under the glove box you can try to adjust the length of the wipermotorarm to the wiperarmassembly.

Don't know for sure if this solves your problem, but by marking the position beforehand, you can do no harm.

[Raymond]

Yes, Paul.  That is how they should look.  The left side one is supposed to be on top.  Unless MB ever made some with different bends on the arms, they never look right the other way.

I had already shortened the wiper blade as short as I dare. 

I tried about a half dozen adjustments to the length of the wiper motor arm.  None changed the relationship between the movement of the two wipers.  That's what I think I need to change. 

[neelyrc]

The issue is with a left hand drive car.  I don’t know about the right hand drive cars but it isn’t an issue here.  As stated by others above, on a left hand drive car, the passenger side wiper should be on top.  If the Haynes manual says otherwise it is wrong.

[ejboyd5]

On an LHD car the passenger's wiper (right side) should park above the driver's (left side) wiper. Reposition your wipers' parked  positions and restore your linkage "adjustments" to factory standard and your problems should be to an end.
Haynes, being British, probably did not appreciate that there was a difference between RHD and LHD cars when preparing their manual.

[Mike Hughes]

Regardless of RHD or LHD, the passenger wiper should be on top.  Think about it:  The passenger wiper moves first and returns last in each cycle, so it is moving just a teeny bit slower.  It also takes the rain drops at the center of the windscreen and carries them away to the passenger side.  The driver's wiper moves after the passenger wiper is out of the way and has to return before the passenger wiper returns, so it is moving just a teeny bit faster. it is not carrying away nearly so much volume of raindrops from the center of the windscreen over to the driver's side of the windscreen.  In a heavy rain the teeny bit faster two-way motion and lower volume of center screen raindrops deliver a clearer straight-ahead line of sight for the driver for most of each cycle.

[snjjahshan]

Hi Raymond,
How did you go adjusting the resting position of your passenger side wiper arm. I have the same problem and was hoping you were able to fix yours.
Regards
Saleem