Retrofit heated wipers?

As someone mentioned earlier, a price on replacement of a heated windshield with all the associated TSS wizardry would be a magnificent number.

And with the pages of complaints here about the Tacoma's 'soft windshield glass', it would definitely be a thing.

My guess is that when those 4Runners age enough and start to fail the glass replacement will be a standard glass and just leave that heater disconnected.

 

Design/execution issue, not an inherent weakness of windshields with heating elements. My Forester’s OE windshield lasted about 18 years before it got so sandblasted I elected to replace it. The non-OE replacement has been working fine as well.

 

I just put E0 in my washer reservoir and tape an extra spark plug on each arm, wired to a momentary switch. Not that hard people.

 

well back in my day we died from diarhea, like real men! now people go see a doctor and take medication? has society become that weak?

people want to be comfortable now? back in my day we were uncomfortable and we enjoyed it! bunch of weaklings now. i hate features. my car came with power seats. i threw them out and replaced them with 2 anvils. i'm strong!

 

Heated mirrors were something I thought I would use more often than I actually do. The only times I use them is after I was my truck in the winter to melt off the ice that forms after leaving the wash.

But also I just dont really go anywhere when its snowing. Sometimes I will take the kids sledding in the snow, but generally we just hang out at home in the snow.

 

a lot of this stuff also only applies if you live in a cold weather state, and even more so if you park outdoors. if you live in the south and park in a garage - you can have an opinion, but that opinion is not relevant.

 

my 2014 4runner had it. the heating elements are built into the windshield. I took this photo when a glass shop was installing a new winshield after mine had cracked on the way up to Big Bear.

They don't really work well since they're only meant to thaw your wipers when starting the vehicle. When the wipers are on, they don't stay heated long enough to stay thawed.

 

Isnt that what is implied by calling them “weak”? Maybe there is a better word for it but what you described is exactly what I thought of when the comment was made.

 

I don’t know if it was mentioned but you can bump the wiper stalk quickly and it will move the wipers up a couple inches to be more in the area that is blasted by the defrost.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/bumping-your-wipers.529160/#post-16912659

 

I'm under the same feeling, even as a younger individual by societal standards. I like my vehicles as dinosaur as possible. Less to break and more of your own skills to rely on in the event of things happening.

Don't get me wrong there are some creature comforts I like, like heated seats. It helps me because of my back issues, heated mirrors are nice so you don't have to worry about them frosting up and obviously the rear defroster, but all this other crap is so unnecessary to me. Too many gadgets make people not use their head and I feel like that's why society is becoming dumbed down as a whole, because no one is being challenged to use their critical thinking and problem solving skills to tackle unforeseen challenges that may pop up out of nowhere.

 

Typically the windshield wiper deicer comes in a winter weather package on the vehicles it's an option on. If you live somewhere warm, don't buy it...

My wife's RAV4 has the wiper deicer and I find it very useful. Hell, I'd trade my heated seats to have that feature on my Tacoma. We've gotten close to 100" of snow so far this season. I can't count how many times I've messed with cleaning ice out of my wiper blades.

 

I'm waiting on heated wiper stalk switches and heated light stalk switches.

 

I think many of the people dont realize that ice doesnt just form on the blade edges, but rather in the hinges of the blade itself. This causes the wiper blade to form to the part of the windshield it freezes at. When you turn on the wipers it misses a very large area of the windshield, and no amount of defrost will fix this.

 

I can't believe the wussification that is happening to America. A growing number of weak body and minded individuals are flocking to the warmth of the South. Can't hack it in the real America. They have become so insulated by their surroundings that their minds have melted to the point they can't fathom a place exists where a wiper deicer is a legitimate feature.

 

Agreed. I didn't really care about leather or the moonroof, but I ponied up for premium just for those cheek heaters..but I'd trade that to not have to spend 10 minutes on those kinds of mornings chipping out the wipers.

There's also that thread where some guy's girlfriend chewed up that rubber seal at the base of the windshield...well, wouldn't you know it I dinged mine up a bit today since I couldn't see where it was under the ice/snow, so there's another thing it'd save as well. Of course for that I could also just round over the corners of the scraper a bit. Much more of a non-issue.

I did try the wiper bump trick; didn't seem to move that much but maybe it's enough to help. No ice on the way home today so couldn't test it. Also wondered if maybe the wipers could be re-clocked, but might run in to over-travel on the driver's side and hit the pillar.

After realizing how much this was pissing me off, I also dug this up. Would either have to try and shimmy it down behind the dash or pull the glass out to install (totally worth it...if it works), but it might be a step in the right direction: https://frostfighter.com/clear-view-front-wiper-defrosters.htm

And I forget who, but someone's mom DM'd me this link today: https://www.wipershaker.com/

 

You can get both of them to rest 80 50% on clear glass with quick hands and good timing. Definitely not the be-all end-all solution but helps some

 

I'm confused by a thesis statement that both asserts that we are growing weaker and that a heated wiper is a legitimate feature. Not seeing the logic connection there.


It's like how I always catch hell for saying 4WD isn't necessary. It isn't. We went for generations without it. Dad would scoot along the ice just fine in the old Buick and it's half bald tires. Now: is 4WD nice? Yes. Are we weaker for having 4WD? Probably not. Are we weaker for arguing that 4WD is an absolute necessity in my part of the country? Possibly. Now substitute heated wipers for 4WD. Same thing. They're nice. Owning them doesn't make one weaker, failing to function without them might.

I choose to refrain from commenting on the definitions of "South" vs "Real America" and how either of those pertain to wussification.

 

Maybe I was being a bit tongue in cheek... Just poking fun at some of the arguments/rants being presented here.

When you get down to it, practically nothing is technically necessary. Just funny to me that for some the line is drawn at heated wipers.

 

The Tss added zero to my windshield replacement. 400 bucks done in my driveway. No recalibration needed.

 

In addition to a heated seat and a heated steering wheel, a heated stick shift would’ve been nice on my 4runner… uh, never mind…it’s Friday.

I shouldn’t have said that!