Rear Wiper Delete
 

Has anyone removed the rear wiper? I am wondering how difficult it would be to do this and make it look clean. Never liked the look of a rear wiper.

I have found it to be very useful actually. The vertical angle of the window gets piled with water and sludge quickly during a rainstorm, making it impossible to see without the wiper. It may look clean, but your visibilty might get shot...

I figure Rain X will keep the rear window pretty clear in rainstorms. And Joyriide, you and I do not have any snow to worry about down here in sunny South Florida.

Someone has to have done this mod!

Right, but our rain is no joke. Driving over rainy streets and having all that kicked up behind blous still cks our view a bit. RainX works to an extent. It will let the water bead and slide off, which is why its a good idea to use on your windshield (the slanted position of the glass and aerodynamics of the car allow wind to push the water right off). But on the rear window, there isn't much wind blowing straight UP, so you might actually even experience a much more cluttered amount of waterbeads blocking your view.

Hey if you end up taking off the wiper, make sure you can put it back incase u regret it.

Joy

RainX doesn't let dirt slide off...

Sure the water will bead off, but the dust & residue will be left behind...

In my book safety wins over looks. I'd leave it, but if you take it off, i'm looking forward to seeing the pics.

:iagree:

I'd be curious to see that mod, too...
not a huge deal, but I've used my rear
wiper once in 5 yrs/55K miles.

It's impossible to keep the grit off of
the rear window; using ther rear wiper =
mini van, scored/patterned, rear window look, imo.

Does anyone have any experience removing the inner panel on the liftgate? It looks like I will need to remove the wiper motor to delete the rear wiper then plug the hole. Might give it a try over the weekend.:rolleyes:

I pulled the fuse on the rear wiper on my Expedition. I had graphics for my business on the back window and could not use the rear wiper. Didn't miss it one damn bit!

Yeah - I'd like to see it too - sounds interesting. One needs to be diligent with the rear wiper or one will find beautiful concentric scratches on the rear glass - I wouldn't worry about missing it too much if ya' like the look...

P.S. mD - I'm not purposely followin' you around tonight - I'm not that kinda guy, really... ;)

Ok, I decided the rear wiper had to go.

The modification is about 50% complete. The wiper itself took about 30 seconds to remove. Then you have the post it was mounted to sticking out of your rear window.

To get rid of that post I need to remove the wiper motor. As of this writing, all of the liftgate trim is removed and I have easy acess to the wiper motor. Disconecting wiring to the wiper motor is as easy as pulling its connection to the wiring harness. My next step is to start the car to ensure no warning lights of any kind come on due to the disconnection. I am pretty sure none will but I want to be sure before I go any further.

My short term fix to the hole in the rear window will be some electrical tape. I will measure the hole and get the appropriate plug. I am sure with my tint the plug will be barely noticable.

I am taking a lot of pictures and would be happy to have this written up as an article when I am done!!

Now.. if it will just stop raining I could get this finished!!!!

any trouble taking out the interior trimming of the lift gate?
any pointers?
i am planning to open up mine and attempt to fix the sagging wiper arm:mad:
btw...i think you will be the first on this board to have this mod, :thumbup:

Is there anyone else who sees the irony here? :rofl:

Yeah if the bloke had a garage he could finish the job!!!!!

LMAO re: the irony!!! Damn this rain!!!

This bloke does have a garage but it has a restored 74 CJ-5 Renegade that does not go out in the rain!!:rofl:

All done!! Except for the plug. The tape is doing the trick for now. The trim is easy to get off and somewhat of a bitch to get back on, but you can learn form my experience. I will write it up when I get the pics downloaded on Monday.

I think this will be a cool mod that others will want to try!!!

irainy!

not tryin to hi-jack the thread but doesnt it seem like as soon as it rains the rear of the X get sooo freakin dirty! and i mean real dirty! i understand the dirt prolly just piles on the rear and does not "slide" off as easy as the other dirt might, but i dunno, my car stays pretty clean after some rain and a lot of driving, but the rear gets messd up!! the only thing i can think of is applying a crapload of wax on the rear so the dirt has a chance to slide off instead of staying on the paint

I would like to see that too as I was thinking of doing the same thing! How would you plug the hole though?

I dont know if anyone else has seen it but I remember a good few months ago coming across a guy (US) who had removed his rear wiper and replaced with about a one inch dia panel stopper.

I must say it looked really good, he had posted some pics but they were posted in respect of his exhausts tips not the wiper removal. I tried searching for it but cant find it. Does anyone recall seeing it.

The picture was of the rear and sides of the X, it was black, debadged, all the light lens' were dark tinted ie rear and side, he had a 4.8i looking exhaust tip I think they were ractive's. The pictures were taken at a meet and were on grass with a few X's nearby.

Any ideas anyone.

PS Imola, I never really use my rear wiper I find either RainX or EagleOne takes the water away including the dirty water if I need it too. Its only when I am stood still I have vis problems but when I move off its no problem.

I agree. Had rain in Dallas this am and my back window was coated and had to use my wiper. Probably worse here with dense pollution.

I just done the wiper delete also, took all of 20mins to do it. Very easy to do so even if you remove the wiper and see what you think for a few days but deside you dont like it then you can always put it back! I'll get some pics up in the next few mins........

Here you go!
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j7...p/DSC00439.jpg
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j7...p/DSC00443.jpg
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j7...p/DSC00442.jpg
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j7...p/DSC00441.jpg
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j7...p/DSC00440.jpg

nice mod:thumbup: . but does it look clean at close up view? could you post a close up pic?:)

It would look as clean with the right product to cover the hole. At the moment I just used some black tape, but tomorrow I'm going to source something. I think a very small black sticker cut to the exact size will do the trick or even some window tint film possibly.

icic :) i think window film would do the trick. Or just a painted shiny black round plastic cover.

Yeah I was thinking a black cover or rubber gromit but not sure where to start looking. Probably DIY store or plumbing store

Does look nice though.

yeps. i think if the cover is obvious, there won't be any problem as long as it's painted so that it would not look cheap :)

Here is a new look of the rear wiper deleted. I just found this item laying in my garage, it does the job well and I think I could possibly do a rear camera conversion withing the housing.
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j7...p/DSC00449.jpg
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j7...p/DSC00448.jpg
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j7...p/DSC00445.jpg
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j7...p/DSC00444.jpg

Looks good, what is it?

The cover I used in the last pictures is a housing for a kenwood speaker a small tweeter infact. I'm going to look at purchasing a camera or nite vision camera tomorrow to adapt into the housing.

Here is a picture of how it looks. I have a bit of electrical tape over the hole. I just need to find a 1 1/8in plug to fill the hole.

Did you take the motor out as well or just the fixing thread?

Its looks good but could you tell me what the exact diameter of the hole is?, is the screen curved at all at that point? What thickness is the screen hole, is it just the thickness of the glass?

Thanks in advance?

I took the motor out. It is the only way to leave it right plus its a simple unplug job and can be reinstalled very easily too, 3 Torex screws hold the motor in place. The hole is roughly 2.4cm,
The screen is slightly curved and yes it is just the thickness of the glass

Sudesh, where did you get your " V8 " logo? Thanks in advance.

J.Seven

I purchased the V8 badge from ebay! But I looked at loads before I purchased this one as I just wanted the right thing. There are many types on ebay so have a look!

Iv been suggesting this mod for ever I'm glad it has finally come to attention

http://www.xoutpost.com/173677-post3.html :)

Thanks mate but I hate to push but could you let me know the exact size of the hole as I know a couple of sites I can get panel plugs. Before I did the mod I would want to have them in my hand ready.

You said roughly 24mm but Silver says 1and 1/8 inch which I think is about 28mm. Could you or silver let me know the exact diameter please, I would be grateful.

Thanks Again

Ok I just took the cap off and mesured the hole. On a normal mesuring tape the hole reads 2.8cm. That the best I can do without getting a tool to mesure the inside exactaly. I have ordered a bag full of different grommets and hole caps etc so that I can have everything handy when the rear view camera arrives. As soon as the gromets come I can let you know the exact size I used to plug the hole!

Thanks Mate,

I have ordered some plugs as well from the same firm as I bought for my roof rail deletion plugs. They sell them individually so only a few pence each I have ordered a few lock tight types around that size.

Send me some details on the supplier you purchased the plugs from. I have a bag of 90 assorted coming that I got on ebay but, would also look into the type your getting as they are only a few pence and can always be put to other uses.

www.conrad-direct.co.uk

Look up under ' Hole stops' If you ring them direct you can get cheaper postage.

Here is another look at the wiper deleted, with the best hole plug I have installed. Basically in the pics below I used the original grommet for the wiper and turned it around so the long rubber stem went inside, then I pluged the hole with a rubber cap that finished it all off nicely, plus it is 100% water tight as I give it a pressure wash test and, there was no need for any glue, stick tape or anything like that.
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j7...5/DSC00467.jpg
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j7...5/DSC00466.jpg
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j7...5/DSC00465.jpg
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j7...5/DSC00463.jpg
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j7...5/DSC00462.jpg

I think it would look alot sleeker without the "V8" badge just my opinion

Sudesh

Looks well nice job, good thinking on the reversal method of the washer.

Sorry to say it but I agree lose the V8 badge and go for either the Black and white roundel or the carbon black and silver. I have the carbon ones they look much better IMO with the black.

You can use stickers from Bimmian or get the whole roundels from Chromeline UK. IMO its worth considering.

Yeah thinking about possibly removing the V8 badge also just to make everything clean at the rear. Would like to see the black and white or carbon roundel!

This is the Bimmian sticker look on the car but now I have the proper carbon black and silver roundels as on the picture underneath from www.chromeline-design.com (he will do them cheaper than the price on the net)

The stickers come in loads of colours and cost about 15 quid but you get stickers for wheels, steering etc.

http://static.flickr.com/87/236097030_eea700f30a_b.jpg


http://static.flickr.com/83/249204805_a4681f3a2e_o.jpg

How do you remove those badges and is it possible to install the again later?
Want to remove mine as well as I think it looks better without.

Thanks for the pics! I must say I do like the black and silver roundel! Thats next on the list now and I think the same roundel all round, bonnet wheels steering etc would be very nice!

I used a heat gun to soften the 3M adesive that holds the X5 badge. Then with care, as the badge will be hot, I used my hands to pull the badge off. It just came away with ease. But be careful as heat guns can melt tailights etc and possibly damage bodywork if held to close.

I pinched my wifes hairdryer!

Yeah hair dryer can work too! I just used the heat gun as I had it anyway. But hair dryer may be a safer bet if your unsure on safety issues with the heat gun!

OK here is a pic with the V8 badge deleted also which I must say I do like! Just need the black roundel's now.
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j7...5/DSC00470.jpg
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j7...5/DSC00469.jpg

I agree - looks better without the v8 badge, but the stock X5 badge would look OK I think. Since your X's butt is so clean now, you should get rid of that sticker in the window and get stealth (white) bulbs for the blinkers - maybe after you get your new roundel! Looks good...

Totally agree. Looks well.


Go to www.chromeline-design.com

Ask for Ben, ask for his best price not the web price. He's a sound bloke

0870 774 0168.
+00 44 1527585483

Yeah I'm going to get the silver blinker bulbs to clean the lenses up a bit!

Here is the finished product. I bought a plug at a local hardware store. A little bit of Black RTV silicone sealant from NAPA and the job is done!!

My X5 no longer looks like a mini van!!!! :nanana:

This mod's starting to grow on me! Looks good!

HAHAHAHA!! Someone FINALLY agrees with me! Where are Laura and Greg?????