What size rear windshield wipers do i need

Q: Are rear wiper blades universal?

No, wiper blades arent universal. Cars come in a whole range of shapes and sizes, from sports cars to SUVs, and each has a different sized windscreen and wiper blade.

Table of Contents Show

Why Windshield Wipers Matter
Installing New Wiper Blades
Choosing the Right Wiper Blades
Why Size Matters
Knowing When Windshield Wipers Need Replacement
The sound of wipers cleaning your windshield of rain and snow is reassuring. Here's how to choose the right windshield wipers size replacement.
The Right Size
Choosing Right-Size Wipers
Choosing the Right Type of Windshield Wipers
Windshield Wiper Maintenance
How do I know what size wiper blades I need?
Does rear wiper size matter?
How do you measure rear windshield wipers?
Are rear wiper blades universal?

It’s easy to forget about your windshield wiper blades - until you need them. By the time it’s raining or snowing and you switch your wipers on, you may find the blades are old and worn and not doing their job properly.

Why Windshield Wipers Matter

Visibility through the windshield is vital for safe driving, so working wiper blades are essential for staying safe on the road during bad weather, dusty driving conditions, and even insect swarms. Changing wiper blades is usually straightforward and often does not require tools, and many auto parts stores can help with the installation of new wiper blades.

Installing New Wiper Blades

When replacing wiper blades on your car, it’s important to know that you can replace either the entire wiper blade or just the rubber insert. You do need a pair of needle-nose pliers to change only the rubber insert, and many people install a whole new blade each time for simplicity. Read the instructions on the new wiper blade package to see how to install the wipers on your vehicle.

Choosing the Right Wiper Blades

Every car has a manufacturer recommended size of wiper blade, specific to that make, model, and year. It is essential to select a replacement blade of the correct size for your particular vehicle. There are several ways to find out the right wiper size for your car:

Look in the owner’s manual
Go to any auto parts store and use their “wiper blade size finder”
Look up your correct wiper size online
Measure the wiper blades currently on your car

On some vehicles, the two blades are different sizes, and it is crucial to install the correct size on both the driver’s and passenger’s side of the car.

Why Size Matters

If you put longer than recommended wiper blades on your car, the wipers may bump into each other, damaging the wiper motor or leading to damage of the blades themselves. An oversized blade also may not conform to the shape of the window properly, leaving uncleared areas and reducing visibility. Or the blade may hit trim around the edge of the windshield.

Blades that are too small for the car do not get the entire windshield cleared, leading to loss of visibility. Always install wiper blades of the correct size for the make, model, and year of your vehicle.

Knowing When Windshield Wipers Need Replacement

Test your wipers at least once a season, and look for these signs of wear:

Streaking on the windshield
Wiper noise on glass
Blades leaving marks on the glass
Blades sticking to the glass

Replace the wiper blades as soon as you see signs of wear, before you need them in rain, snow, hail, or dust, to ensure your continued safety.

The sound of wipers cleaning your windshield of rain and snow is reassuring. Here's how to choose the right windshield wipers size replacement.

The back-and-forth swish of windshield wipers clearing away rain and snow is a reassuring sound. Wiper squeegees (also called inserts or refills), the part that actually touches and cleans the windshield, should be replaced every six months, especially after a harsh winter or blazing-hot summer. Wipers come in many lengths and designs, and it’s important to install the correct size.

The Right Size
Choosing Right-Size Wipers
Choosing the Right Type of Windshield Wipers
Windshield Wiper Maintenance

The Right Size

Installing longer than recommended wiper blades (which include a metal frame and squeegee in one assembly) can cause them to jam and bump into each other. This can quickly lead to damaged blades or premature wiper motor failure. The blade can also strike and damage expensive windshield trim.

Oversized blades may not conform to the curve of a windshield, reducing visibility because the blade is not clearing the entire windshield. Blades that are too short will also not clean the entire windshield.

Choosing Right-Size Wipers

Vehicle manufacturers recommended specific wiper blade sizes for every make, model and year. Here are few ways to determine which wipers are the right size for your car:

Check the owner’s manual first to see what sizes of wiper blades are installed on your vehicle.
Measure the wiper blades currently on your car to determine the length. It’s important to measure both wipers because many vehicles use different length wiper blades. And don’t forget the rear wiper, if you have one.
Visit your auto parts store. All have a wiper blade/squeegee size “look-up” chart. Or you can ask the sales associate to check what size wiper blades your vehicle needs.

Choosing the Right Type of Windshield Wipers

Wiper blades come in many materials and styles. Although you can purchase and install just the rubber squeegee, it pays to replace the entire wiper blade assembly. These are some of your options:

Rubber squeegees: The most common and least expensive. If they work for you, keep using them.
Silicone squeegees: More costly than rubber squeegees. But they can last up to twice as long, wipe away more water with each stroke and are quieter than rubber wiper squeegees.
Beam wiper blades: Usually twice the cost of rubber blades, they are more flexible and place greater pressure evenly across the entire windshield. This makes them better for vehicles with larger, curved windshields.
Winter wiper blades: The most expensive replacement wiper assembly. These are heavier, covered in plastic or rubber to keep ice and snow from freezing or jamming the wiper frame. An iced-up wiper frame loses flexibility. Without flexibility, wipers cannot clear the entire windshield.

Windshield Wiper Maintenance

Sun, smog, dirt, dust and bugs constantly hitting the windshield deteriorate windshield wiper blades. Checking your wipers should be an important part of your normal maintenance routine.

Clean the windshield often: Never use your wipers on a dry windshield. Even a tiny piece of grit can quickly damage a wiper squeegee or windshield. Clean the windshield using a glass cleaner formulated for car windshields. Try balled up newspaper to polish the window glass.
Clean the wiper squeegees: To remove any junk build-up, use a clean, soft cloth soaked with premixed windshield washer solvent, or isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol diluted with water, to clean the entire length of the squeegee. Be sure to protect your vehicle’s finish and rinse with clean water.
Run the wipers every so often: Wiper squeegees need to “flip” on every swipe for the cleaning edge to clear the windshield. A wiper that sits in one position too long can dry out, losing its ability to flip. This results in the squeegees being pushed rather than dragged across the windshield, causing wipers to hop across and leave streaks.
Check for damage: A torn squeegee cannot keep pressure across the entire windshield. Neither can a damaged, twisted or weak wiper blade frame or wiper arm (the part the blade attaches to). That will cause wipers to chatter or jump across the windshield. Your mechanic should have a gauge to measure wiper arm pressure.

Wipers are a critical safety feature. Don’t wait until the next rain or snowstorm to find you need new ones.

How do I know what size wiper blades I need?

There are several ways to find out the right wiper size for your car:.

Look in the owner's manual..

Go to any auto parts store and use their “wiper blade size finder”.

Look up your correct wiper size online..

Measure the wiper blades currently on your car..

Does rear wiper size matter?

Wiper blades that are too small will leave large areas of the glass uncleared, and wiper blades that are too large may hit the top windshield trim, causing premature wear. They might also become entangled with each other, which could cause damage to the windshield blades and arms.

How do you measure rear windshield wipers?

Measuring windshield wiper blades is so simple, you might second guess yourself and wonder if there's more to it. Nope! Use a tape measure to determine the length of the wiper blade along the rubber wiper edge. Round to the nearest inch, and there you go—you've got your wiper blade length!

Are rear wiper blades universal?

No, wiper blades aren't universal. Cars come in a whole range of shapes and sizes, from sports cars to SUVs, and each has a different sized windscreen and wiper blade.