Why did my windshield wiper fly off on the highway?

September 22, 2024 7:05 PM

I'm driving down the highway through heavy rain. I pull off the highway to get gas, and as I pull into the gas station I realize that my (passenger-side) windshield wiper is screeching at me. The wiper blade has detached itself from the wiper and the J-hook is digging into the windshield. The wiper blade is still on the car, at the place where the windshield meets the hood. I reattach and go on with my journey. But this is merely where my troubles began.

Several hours later, I'm driving down the highway through moderate rain, the passenger-side windshield wiper blade flies off my car. I stop by the side of the road. This time the blade is well and truly gone, but I have a replacement in my trunk, so I install it and continue with my journey.

(Note: I always install my own wiper blades. They have never given me any trouble before this. I am sure that I heard it click securely into place.)

But only a few minutes go by before the new wiper blade flies off the car. It, too, is well and truly gone by the time I'm able to pull off the highway.

This time the best I can do is wrap up the J-hook in plastic so it's not scratching against my windshield, and keep driving (in lighter and lighter rain, fortunately) until I arrive home.

Now that I've typed this out, I find myself thinking, it's probably that there's a problem with the windshield wiper arm itself, rather than my installation of the wiper blades (though I was tired and stressed out, so anything's possible), and I need to take it in to the dealership. But I really don't have time to do so if I'm just going to end up feeling silly because I didn't install the wiper blades correctly. So I must turn to AskMe and ask: has this ever happened to you? Did you figure out what the reason was?

(If it's relevant: 2012 Ford Fusion with about 187,000 miles on it.)

posted by Jeanne to Travel & Transportation (6 answers total)

No I've never heard of this but I think you are probably right that there's something wrong with the arm. Pull the other wiper off and compare the arms. This isn't rocket science, if there's something unusual about it, and you study the two of them next to each other, you'll see it.

Only go to a dealer for warranty work. An independent mechanic will be able to help you - ask your friends for a referral. As your car gets older the dealer will be more and more useless, but they'll still charge you more per hour than anyone else.
posted by fritley at 7:10 PM on September 22

I'm going to guess that the hook part is bent so the hook shape is more "open" than it should be.
posted by Mid at 7:14 PM on September 22

Oddly enough, the only time that's ever happened to me was on a 2013 Ford Fusion. I put a new blade on and never had it happen again, but I do remember that getting it on was a lot more difficult than any other wiper blade I've ever out on. I agree that it's probably an issue with the arm (either your arm or those arms in general).

I also agree that you definitely don't need to go to the dealer. If it were a new car, it might be more likely that they have the part in stock, but with a car that old, it's probably not going to take any longer to get the part from a garage.
posted by jonathanhughes at 7:17 PM on September 22

Often a new blade clicks in but still not locked in.
Click it in then pull with moderate force to test it.
posted by artdrectr at 8:48 PM on September 22

if there's something unusual about it, and you study the two of them next to each other, you'll see it.

and if the issue does turn out to be that the hook on the passenger side has opened up a little, fixing it could be as simple as a gentle squeeze with a pair of vise grip pliers.

Those hooks are generally stiff and strong enough not to spread open on their own via normal wear and tear; most likely cause is somebody having grabbed the wiper and forced it past the end of its natural pivoting range at some point. It doesn't take much distortion for them to become insecure, especially if they're the type that relies on a spring-loaded plastic nubbin inside the hook to secure the blade assembly in place. Squeezing the hook back into the shape its designer intended should be enough to fix it until the next time somebody abuses it.
posted by flabdablet at 10:11 PM on September 22

There is a recall on my Ford F-150 for wiper blade issues. Check to see if there is a recall on the Fusion. I would call a dealer.
posted by JohnnyGunn at 3:18 AM on September 23