Windshield coating - skipping wipers (new car)

[SalmonPride]

Hi guys,

Been here for a while educating myself, just got a brand new GLC Coupe and decided to give it the protection it deserves to keep it shiny and new as long as possible.So I went to a reputable detailer and we agreed to put coatings on almost any surface. I wouldn't spam with the complete list, but all the products used were G Techniq.

The post is about something I experience with my wipers.
So the windshield was polished and coating applied - G1 Clear Vision Smart Glass. Also same coating put on the wipers.

I got the car from the detailer yesterday, it was raining and when I used the wipers they started to chatter and skip. When I use wash fluid or there is some more water on the windshield it is fine, they glide and clean flawlessly, but when I put them on rain sensor and there's less rain drops they always chatter and skip.

Talked with the detailer, he thinks it might be that the wipers have some extra protection by default and couldn't absorb the Smart Glass coating. However I researched a bit more and a lot of Benz customer are complaining of GLCs skipping OEM wipers. I would also be driving it to the detailer in a week or two and we'll try to apply some more coating on the wipers only and see if that would fix the issue.

So my question is could it be that the car is really really new, only 250km on it when I applied the glass coating? I mean should I give it some time for the wipers to break in ? I drove it just once in rain before I got it to the detailer and didn't really notice any chattering, so I think it is the coating and the wipers that were not able to absorb it.

If the second coating and the break in doesn't work I guess we would need to remove the coating or maybe try to get better wipers. I think Benz OEMs wipers are Bosch and not many people are impressed with them.

Any experiences you can share or solutions different than the ones above?
Thanks!

[Bruno Soares]

I’ve had that before and usually goes away in a couple weeks. The one time it wasn’t getting better I replaced the wipers with Bosch Icon blades and all was great after that.

Try to use the wipers less often and let the coating repel the water as you drive.

[SalmonPride]

I’ve had that before and usually goes away in a couple weeks. The one time it wasn’t getting better I replaced the wipers with Bosch Icon blades and all was great after that.

Try to use the wipers less often and let the coating repel the water as you drive.

Thanks, yep, I will try to give it some time. Car was actually ready last Thursday, so that's around 4 days with applied coating , sitting , waiting for me. Will give it a chance till next rain. The detailer said that Bosch in general are bad due to some special coating they have on them, probably he had issues before with that brand.

And what about wipers - you should coat them as well , right? I mean if I would change, it is good to apply the glass coating on the new ones as well?

Regarding your suggestion - I tried to use them less often, but sitting in stop and go city traffic and in general in city traffic it's kind of dangerous not wiping and relying only on repel. I can hardly reach higher speeds to repel the water effectively.

[Desertnate]

Due to spotty experiences, windshields and wipers are the one place I never mess with. The products seem to work great when there is a hard rain, but when you get into a thick, wet, fog or misty/drizzle conditions there is the possibility of smearing and/or wiper chatter.

One thing I've noticed with my German cars is the OEM windshield glass seems to be polished and/or coated with something from the factory. Both my VW and two BMW's tend to bead water nicely and it blows right off. Cars from other makers don't seem to do the same. I've never felt the need to do anything to my German cars.

As for the Bosch wiper blades, I found the Icon's to be excellent and used them on my GTI for years. Highly recommend them if you can get the right fitment. They don't make them for my current car, but I've found the OEM's to be excellent and cheaper than Bosch if purchased from the right place.

[Bruno Soares]

Thanks, yep, I will try to give it some time. Car was actually ready last Thursday, so that's around 4 days with applied coating , sitting , waiting for me. Will give it a chance till next rain. The detailer said that Bosch in general are bad due to some special coating they have on them, probably he had issues before with that brand.

And what about wipers - you should coat them as well , right? I mean if I would change, it is good to apply the glass coating on the new ones as well?

Regarding your suggestion - I tried to use them less often, but sitting in stop and go city traffic and in general in city traffic it's kind of dangerous not wiping and relying only on repel. I can hardly reach higher speeds to repel the water effectively.

I've coated several windshields before, never coated the wipers themselves. I've heard of people doing it but I haven't. Some did chatter for a bit but after a few rains or washes it was good. Some worked great from the beginning. And on a Hyundai I had to replace the wiper blades and that took care of the issue.

Due to how finicky coatings can be on windshield, some prefer to just use a glass sealant and apply it more often. You can't know which one will work best for you until you try. Fortunately it's just the windshield so even if you're not doing it yourself, it shouldn't be too expensive to get it re-done.

[TTQ B4U]

Due to spotty experiences, windshields and wipers are the one place I never mess with. The products seem to work great when there is a hard rain, but when you get into a thick, wet, fog or misty/drizzle conditions there is the possibility of smearing and/or wiper chatter.

One thing I've noticed with my German cars is the OEM windshield glass seems to be polished and/or coated with something from the factory. Both my VW and two BMW's tend to bead water nicely and it blows right off. Cars from other makers don't seem to do the same. I've never felt the need to do anything to my German cars.

]

^^ This. Most German cars and some Lexus come with a factory coating that seems to work VERY well. I did my Audi with a coating at first and it worked too but I'm not sure it really needed it.

I've coated several windshields before, never coated the wipers themselves. I've heard of people doing it but I haven't. Some did chatter for a bit but after a few rains or washes it was good. Some worked great from the beginning. And on a Hyundai I had to replace the wiper blades and that took care of the issue.

Due to how finicky coatings can be on windshield, some prefer to just use a glass sealant and apply it more often. You can't know which one will work best for you until you try. Fortunately it's just the windshield so even if you're not doing it yourself, it shouldn't be too expensive to get it re-done.

Like Bruno, windshields are tricky. I typically use NeverWet for Glass as a sealant/coating and it work pretty well. If I get some chatter, I first try a little Beadmaker to calm it down until the wipers can wear into the coating and remove the "Grabby" tendency of things. Only once has it resulted in me having to re-polish things.

[SalmonPride]

Thanks guys, well what's done is done. Actually today I ran a few dry runs - no water or fluid on the windshield. Didn't hear anything else than the wipers motor, at the 6-7 run they started a bit of chatter, but I guess that would be no normal for perfectly dry windshield. We'll see at next rain, as Bruno said it would be easy to reapply or use other product. Detailer is happy to fix it if problem persists.

One thing I've noticed with my German cars is the OEM windshield glass seems to be polished and/or coated with something from the factory. Both my VW and two BMW's tend to bead water nicely and it blows right off. Cars from other makers don't seem to do the same. I've never felt the need to do anything to my German cars.

Most German cars and some Lexus come with a factory coating that seems to work VERY well. I did my Audi with a coating at first and it worked too but I'm not sure it really needed it.

Just wanted to ask you guys as you mentioned it comes with coating from the factory. I guess when we polished the glass we removed it , but we didn't really do any damage, it was just a factory coating , that would wear off after a while, right? Or there is some UV reflective coating that we might have damaged, this is what worries me. In general does the polishing do any damage?

And my second question would be just for future reference, E class can come with reflective foil coating that prevents heat generation due to solar radiation, some BMWs also have the solar film. If same procedure if applied , I mean if we polish the glass of a brand new car just to remove any stains or eventually scratches would that remove the special UV foil as well or it will be just the layer of factory coating on top ?

[Desertnate]

Just wanted to ask you guys as you mentioned it comes with coating from the factory. I guess when we polished the glass we removed it , but we didn't really do any damage, it was just a factory coating , that would wear off after a while, right? Or there is some UV reflective coating that we might have damaged, this is what worries me. In general does the polishing do any damage?

I've never noticed the factory glass properties wearing off, even after long periods of time. I owned my first BMW for 7 years and 130K+ miles and it never wore off. I owned my VW GTI for 6 years and 75K miles and the glass behaved the same across the entire time I owned it. My current BMW is 5 years old (I've owned it for almost 2) with 50K miles and it's still going strong. Maybe you can polish it off, but I'm not sure what is on the glass or what it would take to remove it.

And my second question would be just for future reference, E class can come with reflective foil coating that prevents heat generation due to solar radiation, some BMWs also have the solar film. If same procedure if applied , I mean if we polish the glass of a brand new car just to remove any stains or eventually scratches would that remove the special UV foil as well or it will be just the layer of factory coating on top ?

I'm only guessing here, but I think those UV foils/blockers/etc are in between the layers of the windshield glass. I do know windshield glass has at least two layers and the safety film that keeps them from shattering like a beer bottle lies between those two layers. I would think that same foil would either be sandwiched in there as well or possibly applied to the inside of the glass as another alternative.

[Mike Phillips]

For what it's worth, I find most glass coatings do or can make wipers chatter.

I always use Pinnacle Black Label Surface Coating. Works great, no chatter. After 30 mph water flies off the windshield.


The other thing I do and educate others on is when it comes to the windshield, because a RUBBER wiper is going to drag over the glass, it's going to micro-abrade anything you put on it off. It's reality. So instead of looking for a one-and-done or set-it-and-forget-it type product, I look for a product that quick and easy to re-apply.

I already know whatever I put on it is going to wear-off, so I find something that's quick and easy to re-apply.

Make sense?

Then after washing and drying my car, because the Surface Coating is quick and easy to apply - I simply re-apply. It only takes a few mists of product and it spread out and disappears as you wipe it.

Truly a versatile product. I also mist it over all the cars I detail after the initial coating install. It makes rubbery coatings feel slick, smooth and slippery. The stuff is bubba-proof.



FWIW and YMMV

[SalmonPride]

For what it's worth, I find most glass coatings do or can make wipers chatter.

Thanks Mike. I do experienced that when I got the car. The coating was also put on the wipers to avoid that rubber chatter, I will try it in the next days, but as I said - no issues with dry window , we'll see how it behaves in rain or when I change the wipers in 6-12 months.

But I guess you are correct - next time I'd rather put something that might last less and save myself the trouble of that chatter.
However I think I am more worried with the polish itself - is it something bad to be done on a new car windshield? We also polished the side and rear windows. We used G4 nano polish.

I've never noticed the factory glass properties wearing off, even after long periods of time. I owned my first BMW for 7 years and 130K+ miles and it never wore off. I owned my VW GTI for 6 years and 75K miles and the glass behaved the same across the entire time I owned it. My current BMW is 5 years old (I've owned it for almost 2) with 50K miles and it's still going strong. Maybe you can polish it off, but I'm not sure what is on the glass or what it would take to remove it.

Thanks, I guess all the properties lie in between the layers as you said, so maybe what's removed is just some kind of factory coating, if there is any at all.

So you are not using any coatings, but my question is - do you avoid polishing glasses as well ? You said 15 years of ownership, but I guess you did polish at some point to deep clean it?

The car came brand new, but had a lot of nasty stuff on the windshield - for example a number written with some kind of white chalk, and also some deposits. I guess the proper way to clean the windshield and all the side and rear windows, would be to polish and remove all of those nasty stuff? I mean we didn't do any harm , polishing is the correct way?

And one more - what about side and rear ? I think it's perfectly fine to polish and coat, right?

I guess it all depends on the detailer doing the job, but just to understand people's thoughts.