Rear windshield wiper arm not touching window
 

Anyone have this issue? I've replaced the wiper blade. I've bent the wiper arm toward the window. All with minimal to no effect on having the wiper blade actually swipe across the surface of the rear windshield.

I'm wondering if the spring inside the arm could be replaced/strengthened, but, I don't see it listed separately on RealOEM.

Thoughts? Thank you.

Jay

Is the wiper blade solidly attached or is it a bit floppy? The plastic frame which holds it to the trunk door often cracks. Try pulling the inside plastic off and checking the integrity of the wiper blade motor and frame.

my rear wiper is useless, just smearing the dirty mess
 

I have the same problem, after replacing blade and arm with new items, then bending the arm as well. The spring actually feels stronger than the original. I've also tried blocking the blade from entering the recessed notch on the arm itself, with no better results.
Attachment 81602

There seems to be no play in the mounting; It seems solid to me, when lifting the arm & blade clear, and trying to move the motor thru the glass...no wiggle.

The only other vehicle I've owned with a rear wiper is my HHR Panel...it has no problem with wiping, as the arm has plenty of tension.

I think usually the arm pivot is sticky but could also be that the plastic holding the wiper arm bushing (inside the wiper motor assembly) has broken or cracked.

Consider taking this opportunity to "upgrade" the wiper to the E70 X5. It works and fits perfectly on the E53 X5- plug and play - and gives your X5 a modern look. Get rid of that ancient looking noisy wiper :D.

Rear windshield wiper arm not touching window
 

That's the route I took. Didn't love that it missed the top inch of window butt it was ok trade off.

Of course then I replaced my entire car with e70.

The rivet that the arm pivots on gets corroded and binds and overpowers the spring. I used PB blaster to get rid of the corrosion then re-oiled well and solved the problem. You need to wash rinse and repeat occasionally.

Rear windshield wiper arm not touching window
 

This is true but even when I got my rivet cleaned and oiled it still never pulled tight. E70 arm fixed it

Coincidentally so did "entire e70"

That's right. I find the E70 wiper quiet and effective. It's light in weight, mostly plastic with no weighty metal parts. I recall the E53 one being noisy as a result of all the metal parts in it, and it sounded like someone wiping the windscreen with a closed umbrella.

@ahlem is correct.

Just oil the pivot point once a month in the winter.