Odd wiper behavior...... any ideas?
 

1 month old 2016 C300.....

The wipers (especially the drivers side) stutters and skips a heavy down pour. It is especially noticeable when it reaches the reverse point of the wiping motion, which is all the way to the left of the windshield during the sweeping motion. It is also makes a very noticeable noise at this reverse point and when it seats in the rest position. like a thud noise. I had the window wiper blades replaced by the dealership. After they where replaced the same exact thing was happening in a heavy downpour.

Now for the oddest part, just now with just a slight mist the wipers worked smoothly and there was no noise whats so ever at the reverse point or at the rest point. Logic tells me that it should be the other way around. The only thing that I can think is that during the heavy downpour, the wipers are moving much quicker then when there is a mist which actuates them much more infrequently and at a much slower speed.

Any ideas?

Thanks

Did you put rain-x or aquapel or any other equivalent hydrophobic liquid on your windshield? My wipers started skipping when I put rain-x on. They stopped skipping after the rain-x wore off.

Yup, it'll do that and hose the rain sensor.

Welcome to the wonderful world of MB wipers! Unfortunately this is a HUGE problem worldwide for Mercedes (and not only on the C). Some cars are better than others, but most users know about this problem.

If you do some online searching for terms such as Mercedes wipers juddering or skipping, you will find lots of suggestions, but mostly frustrated users and stories. Even those who swap out their blades for Bosch alternatives continue to report issues. Some successes (limited) that I've read about are wiper angle adjustment (can only be done at a dealership with special tools), so pursue that and keep hounding the dealer for a solution.

Put a small squirt of mild detergent or window wash (amonia free) into your washer reservoir and just keep tapping the squirt button when the juddering drives you mad. As you've already discovered it temporarily helps to lubricate the blade against the screen but it's very short lived.

mine does this, i have been using bon-ami and it has been helping. with every application it gets a little better

In my case (2017 coupe,) dealership replaced blades-didn't work, re-angled blades with their fancy machine-didn't work, and finally they replaced the windshield-worked for a short time. BTW, I've used Bartender's Friend (a type of Bon-Ami) to no avail. Now thinking about this MB-wide problem, I would think it has something to do with blade mechanism design; and I can't understand why MB has yet to figure out a solution.

yeah, ive gone through a whole can of bon ami, whenever i spray my windshield with washer fluid it starts squeaking and skipping a bit, i wonder if there is still some rain x fluid residue left in my washer fluid tank (previously i had to use this fluid exclusively because it was the only thing making my wipers not skip, but im tired of it). annoying. After the bon ami, the water doesnt bead up anymore (good) but the wipers still squeak loudly when they reach the end of either stroke. I have one more year with this car, and i dont commute with it, so i guess ill just live with it.

Mine just settled down with use/over time.

Just finished a 900 mile trip and it rained almost every day. At times the wipers chattered so much it drove me nuts. Other times, in light rain or drizzle, they were completely normal.

I did try Rain-X and it made things much worse. It is finally wearing off, so maybe things will get better. I have also replaced my blades three times, and that's not helped at all. My dealer adjusted the arms, and that did not help either. My next step will be to buy some glass clay bar and try a deep cleaning of the glass.

This has to be one of the most annoying things I have encountered on any car I've owned. The solution may be to move to a drier climate, where it seldom rains.

Glad I saw your post. Have had my C300 for 4 weeks now and drove in heavy rain last week and experienced this, exactly as you described it. Misery loves company. It's not a big deal for me, I don't drive in the rain that much, but it's good to know what's happening.

My wipers are perfect.. buttery smooth.. in fact everything on my car works perfectly..no rattles or creaking..I think my car is better than everyone else's..I feel sorry for you all