Rear wiper

Only for those that USE the rear wiper.

How often do you manually CLEAN the gunk off the rear blade ?
Do you tend to run it when there might be more grime on the window than actual moisture ??

I don't think there are many choices for that size blade.

The one on my first C lasted 3 years.......but I used it infrequently.

P.S. I assume that the spring tension holding the blade to the glass seems OK ??

 

I think Sam above sums it up.

What is speeding up the wear of the rubber?
Grit buildup, using on a dry glass, heat.

Maybe do some preventative maintenance/ cleaning on that rear blade and glass?

 

I've just now changed my rear wiper blade at 85k miles... but it needed it at probably 65k miles. I just didn't need it as much as the fronts. I have swapped the fronts out at 85k miles too. They were slightly streaky, but for the most part still good. I did notice a difference, but I'm not sure if it was from cleaning the windshield or changing the wipers.

 

all of my wiper blades made it about a year and a half. all seemed to wear out at the same time. I do clean my blades of occasionally and use a rubber cleaner on them. they were all changed at about 20k miles.

 

I agree with the premature rear wiper wear assessment but I drive dirt roads and in winter road salt here in rural Canada so I'm not overly shocked. My rear blade tears off at tips, losing about 1.5cm from either end in about 8-12 months. It wouldn't matter as much on a 20" or 28" wiper but on a tiny 8" blade any reduction is unwelcome.

I'm going to order a Bosch rear wiper (Bosch model H240) and hope it clears. 8" original is H200 but there's honestly room for a bit more and every little bit helps when peering through the aft portal. I can confirm that an 11" definitely doesn't fit (tried it) but I'm confident that 9" will and 10" might even fit (H252) though I'm not going to risk it on special order item.

I'll post confirmation once it's fitted.

2012 Prius C (with roofracks!)

 

Awesome info! That rear wiper is already at a disadvantage given that it is mounted/angled best for RHD cars, no LHD version for North America. They were hoping we wouldn't notice.

240mm works out to 9.44" so I think you've got a shot at a good fit.

 

My Bosch wiper arrived and unfortunately it's not a direct snap-in replacement. I did get it to work and it's a big improvement over the previous 8" but I can't say I'd recommend it to everyone. The mounting/pivot pin is smaller diameter so I made a kind of "cylindrical shim" from a short length of split and emptied electrical wire insulation. Also the tip of the blade's plastic body didn't quite clear the plastic surround at the top of the rear window but with a little belt-sander sculpting i managed to gain a couple mm and now it clears, if only barely.

In conclusion, don't go with the Bosch H240 as a direct fit but if others want to keep looking for alternatives the lousy little 8" from Toyota/Trico maybe try for a 220 or 230mm blade that's got the same mount style as used by Toyota. When you find it please tell us all.

 

Isn't our factory rear wiper a 5"?

 

The factory rear wiper is nominal 8" - like having a toddler swipe the rear glass with a mitten. Here in Canada there seems to be only one aftermarket option: Trico model TRI2383520. This may be exactly the same thing Toyota sells as OEM part. They're about $15 online but do nothing to improve over the original.

Update on my Bosch H240 trial is that it failed prematurely due to my efforts at thinning the mount section to make it fit the Toyota wiper arm. The thinned section broke in use and the wiper ended up in a ditch. However, having had a month or two with a working 240mm wiper and the resultant great rearward visibility I'm loathe to go back to the Toyota spec'd 8" so I'm still looking for a 9" or 230mm with the correct mount. For now I've just strapped a toddler with a wet mitten to rear of the car.

I learned that the mounting style is called Roc Loc 2 and was developed by Denso, I think. If anyone can find a 9", 220mm or 230mm wiper with Roc Loc 2 mounting we might have a winner. I'll let you know if I find anything.

 

About a year ago I addressed my rear wiper fix in another thread:
Rear Wiper Fix | Page 2 | PriusChat
By my ruler the modified blade is 9 ¾” (24.8cm) vs. the stock blade at 7.6” (19.3cm)

That blade is still available at love-it-or-hate-it online, and after a year I still consider this a fix worth trying if you dislike the foolish stock wiper.
I carried the old blade around for a while in case my fix went south, but the improvement is good enough that I plan to buy a replacement of the Trico blade and repeat the modification when it's replacement time.