Rear wipers - a simple question from a simple person...

Hello all,

I'm now two weeks into the wait for a factory ordered B6 with all the trimmings. However, while it does have all the fancy kit like a great hifi, cruise control, bluetooth, etc, it doesn't have one simple thing that my current small hatchback does - a rear windscreen wiper.

Now, I know that this is something that most, if not all saloons don't have, but I really don't understand why. Maybe the wind can clear it a bit more than if it is vertical, but then again the angle will get more rain on it and they obviously haven't seen London traffic! Anyone know what's going on?

David.

Welcome, You'll find most saloons don't have rear wipers due to two things I'm told;

1) The rear window on a saloon is at a sufficient angle for the airflow over the roof to clear any rain on the window
2) The reason a hatch/estate rear window gets so dirty is that the back of the car is a low pressure zone which sucks up all the spray from the rear of the car. A saloon window is a couple of feet away from the back so is not in this low pressure zone. So it doesn't get as dirty.

That's how I always understood it.

Unfortunately it's not much help when the car's parked, it's raining and you need to reverse. We've also got a hatchback, and you certainly notice the difference....Might not be a bad idea as an extra instead of some of the unnecessary novelty gimmicks they keep fitting to try to be different (and I'm not just talking about VW).

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Originally Posted by Quatrelle

That's how I always understood it.

Unfortunately it's not much help when the car's parked, it's raining and you need to reverse. We've also got a hatchback, and you certainly notice the difference....Might not be a bad idea as an extra instead of some of the unnecessary novelty gimmicks they keep fitting to try to be different (and I'm not just talking about VW).

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THANK YOU :beerchug:

I often differ from the majority opinion, but thought there must be someone else with some common sense out there!

David

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Originally Posted by carl s

Welcome, You'll find most saloons don't have rear wipers due to two things I'm told;

1) The rear window on a saloon is at a sufficient angle for the airflow over the roof to clear any rain on the window
2) The reason a hatch/estate rear window gets so dirty is that the back of the car is a low pressure zone which sucks up all the spray from the rear of the car. A saloon window is a couple of feet away from the back so is not in this low pressure zone. So it doesn't get as dirty.

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Carl S - Thank you for your welcome. I feel that I should thank you, as even though I still don't see why the manufacturers choose to save money by omitting a rear wiper, yours is the best explanation I've heard for why it might not be as necessary as I first thought.

David.

Simple solution, Use a good reliable water beading glass polish.... You can make the rain bead and stay or run straight off the rear window...

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Originally Posted by PeoplesMan

Simple solution, Use a good reliable water beading glass polish.... You can make the rain bead and stay or run straight off the rear window...

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Is that Rainex or something similar?

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Originally Posted by Quatrelle

Is that Rainex or something similar?

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Rainex is fantastic, I can't recommend it highly enough.

I don't use is on the rear window as I have an estate, but on the windscreen and side windows it's excellent.

The only downside is the wipers gradually wear it away so you need to reapply it every month or so.

Cheers
Iain

My Bora doesn't have a rear wiper and I've never had a problem.

My (departed) Bora was a veritable headache without the rear wiper.....