[Dark Silver S]

On my '03 S, I have an aero device on just the driver's side wiper. It's clearly designed to keep the wiper from lifting at speed.

Why only the driver's side?

Does anyone else have just one?

Where can I get another one?

If I replace the blades, will the device fit on them?

[MiniMan7]

Yes, I have just one on the drivers side, I have no idea what it is for however.

[MiniMan7]

Quote:

Originally posted by obehave
At higher speeds wipers tend to lift off the windshield.
The chunk on the drivers side provides resistence which keeps the blade pressed against the glass better at higher speeds.

That makes sense, but what about the passenger side?

[Jeep-2-mini]

My guess - its not exactly vital for the passenger to see where they'r going, so as a cost saving measure the chunk is only provided for the driver

[3GGG]

Quote:

Originally posted by Jeep-2-mini
My guess - its not exactly vital for the passenger to see where they'r going, so as a cost saving measure the chunk is only provided for the driver

This was covered on MINI2 before a while back- I recall the explanation was that on the drivers side the wiper is closer to the airflow at the edge of the screen. Just going from memory...

[MiniMan7]

The aerofoil wiper is infront of the driver over here (left side).

[JR9907]

I have both a 2003 mini cooper s and my wife has a cooper.I purchased 2 left side wiper blades and installed them on the pass sides of both cars.At high speed both wipers now stay on the glass.

[JR9907]

I have found in the lower part of the pass side wiper it does not hit the glass properly.With the drivers side wiper on the pass side it hits at all speeds (at least to 125 mph in Montana in the rain 1 week ago.

[fishie <///><]

Quote:

Originally posted by JR9907
at least to 125 mph in Montana in the rain 1 week ago.

hail to the lack of speed limit in montana.

[MiniMan7]

I've never really had a problem with em.

[Dark Silver S]

So the consensus is that MINI left it off on purpose as a cost-saving measure? A part that must cost all of 10 cents to manufacture, and 30 seconds to install? [/sarcasm]

The single device certainly is better looking than some of the after-market products that achieve the same effect. But I'd like to be the judge of whether or not I look out the passenger side, thankyewverymuch!

Not meant to be offensive or flaming, but, obehave, you do have a knack for stating the obvious.

[flipper]

I recall reading somewhere that wiper 'lift off' is not achieved at speeds below 150mph & I have never noticed a difference between the two wipers they all wear out too soon IMO.

[olerud400]

I have not noticed a problem with my passenger windshield wiper but I HAVE noticed one with the driver side. It's not fitting right so in rain or when attempting to clean the windshield all i get are nasty smudges.

[GordonD]

Quote:

Originally posted by obehave
Mine got that way just before they fell apart last month. I'm pretty anal about cleaning my windshield and I usually wipe the blades at the same time. It also gets bad if you had a brief rain and then it dries up. This just floats road oil which gets sprayed on the car and then just dries(solidifies?) up on your blade. Next rain---instant goo.

My OEM blades got deformed by ice buld up over the winter and I changed them a couple of weeks back to PIAA silicon ones.

When you put them on you treat the windscreen with a special cloth (smells like RainX) and then run the wipers dry for 5 minutes. Apparently there is some interaction between the material of the blade and the stuff you spread on the glass. So far they have worked really well - no smearing - and even bug and bird ***** will come off just by spraying/wiping.

they are hellish expensive but a clean windshield is valuable.

They don't have the airfoil but are slotted so air flows through them and presumably doesn't produce any lift

[Dark Silver S]

I waas hoping that the airfoil would fit in those slots. we shouldn't lose that feature just because we change out the blades.

[blake]

It's not money-saving, it's just aerodynamics!

If you were to put your vehicle in an air tunnel, you would see that the laminar air flows "bend" to the left and right when meeting your windscreen. The "passenger" side wiper points with the flow while the "driver" side is pointing aginst the flow, therefore the driver's side needs something to counteract the tendency for the air flows to lift the wiper up.

[GordonD]

I think that windshield wiper "technology" is the one thing that car manufacturers have totally ignored and we are essentially using the same stuff as Henry Ford did - just electric motors rather than vaccuum ones.

if you have one of the modern minivans or other vehicle with very long slopped wind windshe3ilds you will find that the blades aer parked on a part of the screen which tends to get very cold and is 'in front' of the heated portion so melted snow etc runs down onto the cold blades and forms a nice ball of ice.

Why couldn't windshield wipers be mounted on the roof and then they would be easy to keep clean when not in use. I don't believe the roof redesign would be that hard and - now I think of it - didn't the old cars have it there? What happened ? Is it aesthetics or a valid reason?

[chughes163]

lol dont talk to me about windscreen wipers! this week has been a complete PITA with regard to them - I had to replace them on our ford fiesta so i went down to halfords. I told the guy with the poor complexion behind the counter it was a 1999 Ford Fiesta...he spends roughly 10 mins going through his book finding the correct ones and eventually supplies whats needed....i get home and attempt to put them on the car and discover he has given us completely the wrong sizes...considering halfords is 8 miles away from home it was a bit annoying....

so off i trot back to halfords with the original wiper blades in tact - I couldnt bring them the first time round as the car was in use. I show the guy whats needed and he says their out of stock..great...

so i go to the next nearest halfords where im met by another spotty bloke behind the counter - he then says that they have 1 of the blades in stock and another similar one which is 1 inch bigger that 'should' fit...anyway luckily it did....but what a load of hassle!

I asked him about the spoilers on the wiper blades and for some reason the manufacturers only suggest you put 1 spoilered wiper on the drivers side...he didnt know the reason behind this...(what a surprise!)

[GordonD]

chughes163

this sounds like a trip to our eqivalent of Halfords Canadian (or as it's affectionately known Crappy) Tire. It appears that they are not allowed to hire anyone who knows anything or knowns how to find out.

I try to avoid it but sometimes I have no choice. I usualy sit in the parking lot for a few minutes before going in doing a Tantric Mantra which - if I'm not held up in the checkout line for more than 5 minutes - will get me out of the store with blood pressure this side of congestive heart failure.

My motto - if you want to talk to a car guy go to a car place - screw the money. And I'm Scottish

[Dark Silver S]

Quote:

Originally posted by blake
It's not money-saving, it's just aerodynamics!

If you were to put your vehicle in an air tunnel, you would see that the laminar air flows "bend" to the left and right when meeting your windscreen. The "passenger" side wiper points with the flow while the "driver" side is pointing aginst the flow, therefore the driver's side needs something to counteract the tendency for the air flows to lift the wiper up.

That's interesting. I would have thought that the laminar flow went "up" the windscreen rather than left or right. In fact, as I think about it....

Using my windscreen as an example - the aero device is placed so that the air flow, if going straight back (creating a high pressure zone at the surface of the windscreen), presses the wiper into the screen WHEN THE WIPER IS PARKED. AT the end of the wiper sweep, the aero device would cause the wiper to go to the left, if that was the direction of the laminar flow. And the passenger wiper should see some lift at the end of it's sweep.

I guess I'm going to have to find the nearest wind tunnel or the nearest wind tunnel simulator and check this out.