What Size Windshield Wipers Do I Need?

Car windshield wipers are as important as any part of the car.

This is because they come to your rescue when the outside condition is not that favorable and causes an impaired vision through the windshield due to either raindrops, fogginess or even snow particles.

They help to clear the windshield on the outer side and hence enable those inside to have a clear view of the outside.

Do you know what size windshield wipers do you need? The windshield wiper that would fit on your car depends on the specs given by the car manufacturers.

The car manual indicates the size of windshield wipers that would fit appropriately onto your windshield. For some cars, the size of the two wipers are the same while on others it is different.

Different cars have different sizes of the windshield and hence the reason why their windshield wiper sizes vary.

The difference in the design shows that some cars will need a longer wiper working on either side for the clearing of the windshield surface effectively.

When replacing your car’s windshield wipers going for the right size will guarantee that you get to enjoy working with advanced features, user friendly and highly effective set of windshield wipers on your car.

How To Choose The Right Size For Your Windshield Wipers

Having the right size of windshield wipers installed in your car would guarantee that your vision through the windshield is improved when you need.

This can be ensured by not only getting your wipers renewed when they are worn out but also getting the right size which will be quite effective in achieving this.

The following are ways you can choose the right size for your windshield wipers:

• Knowing your windshield wiper’s exact size by checking on the car owner’s manual.
• Using wiper blade size finder that can be found in some auto spare parts shops.
• Looking it up on the internet.
• Measuring the size of the windshield wiper using a measuring tape.

Why Size Matters?

Does size of the windshield wipers really matter when you are shopping for a good option to use in your car?

This might be the big question when you are out looking for replacement windshield wipers out there.

This is the same question that rings in the minds of many who might find a better quality of wipers but which are a different size than the one they removed from their car’s windshield.

One reason that shows the size of the windshield wiper matters is that having longer wiper blades installed has its consequences.

For one, the wipers will bump against one another.

The longer windshield wipers may also rub onto the edge of the car windshield and this might cause them to have a higher rate of wear and tear than the case of a normal situation.

On the other hand, smaller windshield wipers will obviously not get the car windshield cleared effectively.

Their size prevents them from running across the better part of the windshield and thus there are some spots that will not be cleaned and hence the driver does not get a clear vision through.

Can I Use Different Windshield Wiper Blades Size?

Using different size wipers for your car other than the appropriate one has some serious consequences that will cost you a lot.

For one, each car has an appropriate size of windshield wipers that is designed for proper fitment on the car and also to clean most of the car windshield area.

For instance, if you opt to fit shorter windshield wipers in your car. They will not be effective in clear most parts of the windshield.

This will lead to impairing the driver’s judgement hence can be quite risky at some times.

Having larger wipers fitted on your car windshield other than the correct ones may cause them to get damaged.

This is because the oversize windshield wipers will hang over the sides of the windshield or even rub against the edge of the windshield. This will then cause it to start to develop wear and tear.

Another thing that may happen is that longer windshield wipers tend to overlap and tangle with one another.

This causes damage on either of the windshield wipers components such as the windshield wiper arms.

Does The Longer Wiper Blade Go On The Driver’s Side?

This totally depends on the type of car that you own.

This is because some cars would have their windshield covered with different sizes of windshield wipers while others might use the same sizes of windshield wipers.

In some cars where the windshield wipers are different sizes, you can either get that the wiper on the side of the driver is longer while that on the passenger’s side is short, while in others this is reversed.

This would be determined with the positioning of the wiper pivots.

Are Windshield Wipers Different Sizes?

The windshield wipers in some cars are of different sizes while on others the size is the same for either of them.

This is because when windshield wipers of various sizes are used to maximize the area covered by either of the windshield wipers.

This helps to clear the windshield effectively and helps a lot when it is raining or snowing heavily and you would need the help of your windshield wipers.

Are Left And Right Windshield Wipers Interchangeable?

Not really, the left and right windshield wipers are not always interchangeable.

This is because one of the sizes of the wiper blades is always an inch or two longer than the other one.

Therefore, installing them in a mistaken manner such that the left goes to the right and the right to the left will cause premature damage on them as they might experience wear and tear.

What Does A And B Mean On The Wiper Blades?

A and B is usually indicated on windshield wipers that are used on car windshields that require to be fitted with different sizes of windshield wipers on either side.

The A on a car windshield wiper blade means that side is for the driver’s side while B indicates the one to be fitted on the passenger’s side.

This is usually the case for cars with a fairly large windshield and the different sizes of the windshield help for the effective clearing when it is raining heavily.

Conclusion

As seen in the discussion above, you need not take for granted the size of the windshield wipers that you install in your car.

This is because the size matters a lot as it would affect the effectiveness and the efficiency of the newly installed wipers.

This is seen when some set of wipers on some models of cars are designed to clear more space on the windshield than in others.

For some car models, the windshield wiper on the driver’s side is longer than that on the passenger’s side.

This is designed this way for the sake of improved effectiveness when it comes to clearing matter from the surface of the windshield.

You should also know of the consequences that come with installing windshield wipers that are larger or smaller than those that are appropriate for your specific car model.

Sources:

1. Auto Glass Express – https://autoglassmn.com/blog/83-what-size-windshield-wipers-do-i-need
2. I Drive Safely – https://www.idrivesafely.com/defensive-driving/trending/how-choose-right-size-windshield-wipers