Roughly 80 percent of vehicle accidents are attributed to poor visibility yet the average driver only gets their windshield wipers replaced every two and a half years. At most they should be changed every year, if not every six months.
Your Acura’s windshield has to put up with a lot: rain, bugs, dust, pollen, bird droppings and more. If your wipers are old and worn and you turn them they may cause an even bigger mess instead of clearing the glass entirely.
The majority of wiper blades are made from rubber and just like your car’s belts and hoses deteriorate over time. Ozone can oxidize the rubber, causing cracks and on hot summer days when your windshield gets extremely hot, the rubber on the blades can lose its flexibility and crack. And when they crack it causes chattering and smearing every time you use them.
It’s also important to keep in mind that wiper blades do not work alone. If your car’s nozzle isn’t squirting washer fluid properly it may need adjusting and if it doesn’t squirt anything at all it may be clogged or you could be out of washer fluid entirely.
Whatever the case may be, it’s very important to make sure your wipers are in good working order and that you don’t procrastinate and leave them on so long that they get cracked and actually make visibility worse. Some companies even make blades that tell you when they need to be replaced and they might be worth checking out especially if you tend to neglect them until your windshield is a smudgy mess.
The next time you notice the wipers on your Acura are causing more harm than good switch them as soon as you can. Replacing wiper blades is an easy bit of maintenance we can all do to help reduce the number of accidents and keep our roads safer. It’s definitely worth it!
JUL
