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rear wiper

12K views 14 replies 6 participants last post by  caravan and yaris 
#1 ·
my neighbour just bought a 2010 grand caravan and when i went and took a look at it. I couldn't help but notice that his rear wiper arm is made of metal and uses a a metal wiper blade. I was wondering does anyone know why they switched back.
 
#3 ·
anybody got a picture? there are plenty of pictures of them with the newer, more modern-looking rear wiper, but I haven't seen any with the old-style wiper.

Another possibility is that this is just a one-off. Original got damaged in transit, and they grabbed what they had in the parts department. My guess is the center post from the motor is the same size. As long as the overall length from the nut to the edge of the wiper is not longer, and the wiper blade is the same size, it would function the same.
 
#4 ·
The clip broke on the plastic wiper arm on our 08 GC... It no longer allowed for the wiper blade to snap into place.. Dropped by the Dodge dealer to replace it..
The parts guy said that the part # for the plastic arm was superseded by a new one.. When I picked up the new arm the next day, I was surprised to find that it was a new metal arm.. At first I was't too sure if I liked the look of the metal arm.. the plastic arm was more modern looking.. However, I realized it was just a rear wiper arm, once on the car It would be hard to tell them apart unless I knew what i was looking for, the chances of breaking this arm was slim to none, and I could once again replace the wiper's with normal off the self replacements sine it was the normal Hook type attachment like the front wiper arms, rather than the push on type...

It wasn't cheap though... In the end, to replace the old plastic arm, They had ordered in the Wiper arm, a new wiper blade, and plastic cap to cover the bolt.. total cost was $89 canadian ... You could save yourself about $20 if you didnt order the wiper blade and purchased it somewhere else, since the dealer charged $35 for it....

I'm sure I still have the receipt with part numbers if anyone wants it..
 
#6 ·
Sounds like it WAS both. The plastic one may be more fragile, and more expensive to produce/replace to boot. I didn't know the plastic arm used a special retaining system for the blade.
 
#10 ·
Well, I saw one today on the back of a van while driving home. Looks just like the older style steel wiper arm. I personally think they make the van look less modern - its a step back for sure.

If the plastic wiper arm was giving Chrysler problems due to breakage, they should have addressed the issues and improved the plastic wiper arm - not revert to an ancient style!

Chrysler needs to get the little things right.
 
#14 ·
$35 for a blade is nuts.
I once saw a workorder at a dealer that showed they charged the customer $90 for a pickup u-joint.Its $15 everyday at the parts stores with around a $28 list price....
The sad part is most every OEM part is made by a supplier that (usually) makes aftermarket replacements too.Its just that the profit structure is so to allow dealers to floorplan all those high dollar 4 wheeled gas hogs on the front row and in the showroom.Its high time that OEM dealer parts outlets pop up WITHOUT new or used car sales.A small building with all OEM parts would be very cost effective means of parts distribution.And maybe just maybe more independent reepair shops would buy original parts instead of aftermarket low line (econo grade) parts that fail in short order but give the shop a high gross profit %...
 
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