Rear window wipers???

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dougboyy
Ok I was stuck in traffic on the highway tonight and it got me thinking....

Why do SUV's and wagons with an almost vertical rear window have wipers on them? Where as sedans with more slanted rear windows dont? Shouldn't it be the other way around? The more angled rear windows of SUV's and hatches would allow snow/water to slide off more easily, and therefore have less of a need for a wiper compared to sedans/saloons.

oH and then there are those with a very slanted rear window and yet they have wipers such as integras, celicas and so called "fastbacks"
 
Bubble Bunny
Ok I was stuck in traffic on the highway tonight and it got me thinking....

Why do SUV's and wagons with an almost vertical rear window have wipers on them? Where as sedans with more slanted rear windows dont? Shouldn't it be the other way around? The more angled rear windows of SUV's and hatches would allow snow/water to slide off more easily, and therefore have less of a need for a wiper compared to sedans/saloons.

oH and then there are those with a very slanted rear window and yet they have wipers such as integras, celicas and so called "fastbacks"
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Have you ever seen how much dirt builds up on those back windows? The air flow over the car effectively deposits dirt in mass there, when the back end is just a vertical setup. The wiper is very nice at that point. Same with moisture and such, just accumulates there and since the air flow doesn't directly pass over it, not much movement once it gets there.
 
Just design for some cars. They were bigger in the 90's on sports cars and such but not really anymore.

Basically what Azuremen said and also I am sure it is harder to see out the back windows when they are wet when compared to smaller cars.

What I really don't understand is windshield wipers on headlights. Do they really make that big of a difference?
 
Yeah, the vertical surface that makes up the rear of a vehicle creates a low-pressure zone which sucks all the grime the vehicle kicks up off the wheels. There's no airflow, just turbulence, so the grime settles on the the tailgate and the window.

Back in the day when station wagons were the Big Family Vehicle (No minivans, no SUVs, so soccer moms had to - - - wait: no soccer, either - - - anyway, had to make do with station wagons, or estates as the Brits call them) air deflectors were used to create airflow over the window. Some were built in, like across the top of this '70s Ford LTD:
LTD%20rear%20spoiler2.JPG


Others were add-ons, like the chrome wing things on the rear pillars of this Plymouth:
65Vallr.jpg


Ah, those were the days!!!!

BTW, my '95 Probe GT had a rear wiper. At highway speed the hatch window didn't get wet in even the hardest rain, but in town the wiper was a lifesaver.
 
TVC
What I really don't understand is windshield wipers on headlights. Do they really make that big of a difference?
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I wipe my head lights off all the time. Makes a big difference when dirt and water are on the road, as the grime collects on your head lights and rapidly reduces their effectiveness.
 
You could always do the JDM rear wiper mod for your sedan... a rear wiper on a sedan helps a bit in the rain, but, as said, sedan rear windows don't really get all that dirty. I find that just having the rear window heater on gives me enough of a view to get by.
 
I've got one on my Celica, and its only used every once in a great while. If I'm traveling above 50 MPH, usually the aerodynamics of the car keeps the rain/snow/whatever off the rear window so I can see. Otherwise, I'll have to turn it on.

As for trucks/vans/SUVs, its a case-by-case deal. We have one on our Envoy, had one on the Astro, and they're on all the family Tahoe/Yukons (etc). We use them occasionally, although it seems like they really only come in handy during the fall and spring when back roads get really muddy and you can't see squat after a quarter mile.
 
Azuremen
I wipe my head lights off all the time. Makes a big difference when dirt and water are on the road, as the grime collects on your head lights and rapidly reduces their effectiveness.
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You just reminded me of a video I saw of a demonstration (I think it was made by SAAB or something) and they have headlights covered in dirt then they use the wipers and it cleans them. I keep think they are always for rain and I keep forgetting about them actually getting dirty. :ouch:
 
yeah, back windows tend to accumulate goo. HOWEVER, a lot of people don't bother looking straight out the back window, OR they forget that there's even a wiper THERE.

as for sedans, I've had a couple that were in severe need of a rear wiper. both were fords. you get in more than a misting rain, and you can't see out the back window at all, because it turns into a distorted glob from the wind coming straight down it.

I think that a lot of back windows are neglected because people are training themselves to actually use their side mirrors.
 
You mean use their side mirrors to look directly behind them? :eek:

I'm lucky my car has a rear wiper because that darn rear glass always fogs up depending on the temp outside. The cold AC flow blows right on it.
 
Omnis: how do you think truckers do it? I use them as a back up aid, aiming them down the sides of the car. I rarely look out the rear view mirror(cause the morons behind me always seem to have their high beams on, just before they blow my doors off, going 70-80 on ice or slush, passing me)
 
Azuremen
Have you ever seen how much dirt builds up on those back windows?
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That was my first thought. I love my rear wiper :p. Seriously, even in a light rain, the back window mists up in an instant.
 
I hate not having a rear wiper. I suspect that the main reason it’s not done on most sedans is because it’s a bit of an engineering nightmare, due to the way the trunk opens. On a fastback, you can easily mount it on the trailing edge.
 
Sniffs
Omnis: how do you think truckers do it? I use them as a back up aid, aiming them down the sides of the car. I rarely look out the rear view mirror(cause the morons behind me always seem to have their high beams on, just before they blow my doors off, going 70-80 on ice or slush, passing me)
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Truckers have more than one mirror on each side.

Anyway, when my rear wiper goes down, it sounds like a moose dying in childbirth. It's fine on the upstroke, though. Anyone else's like that?
 
Omnis
Truckers have more than one mirror on each side.
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The truck I normally drive doesn't. But trucks have bigger mirrors and are a hell of a lot easier to reverse than cars so it's no big deal usually.
 
Omnis: actually, my FRONT wipers do that. they're weird, and I've had nothing but trouble. my rear wiper is a top mount, rather than a bottom like modern cars.

also, I have half decently sized set of mirrors, not teeny little ones. after all, this is off a truck based SUV
 

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