saildrive2001 wrote:There are very strict requirements for the area of the windshield that must be wiped. The drivers side is more than the passengers side.
Hi,
As I said above my 'pet subject' and many many hours I have been involved in the detail not on car forum discussions but high level 'Board Director/Programme Manager meetings' . Producing the prototypes for a major UK luxury car company with the CAD packaging designers the engineering behind it all to meet legislation today is quite complex for homologation and covers the drivers vision within the wiped area and can vary country to country.
The legislation does not address or need requirement to conform which side of the car the wipe commences from or indeed the
''drivers side is more than the passenger side'' is neither a compliant (However both to me are simply logical but get ignored by many car manufacturers).
Pictured below is a RHD Jaguar of similar periods to my Rolls Royce and the Elans production era. Again this is the 'logical' correct way IMHO yet as the RR picture shows above these are parked totally opposite side. However the RR has a much more complex wiper motor design that has a delay after being used inbetween intermittent use in light rain before the wipers then drop into the parked position so would be an annoying restriction to drivers vision inbetween light rain intermittent strokes if not parked on the passenger side. So there is a lot of technical aspects or cost implications to it all when companies have to make the decisions.
The tight legislation of NA meant at one point Jaguar's, MGB's and some other makes had to be fitted with 3 wiper blades to pass the required driver visual restrictions. Actually today even door mirrors have to conform to certain visual obstruction areas of the driver.
Those amazing huge air intake monsters seen on many American hot rods would never pass the legislation but no doubt similar to the UK other than at point of compliance for initial sale an owner can actually undertake many additions and I believe only one minor UK law states something on forward vision albeit rear vision for trailers/caravans has got some strict guidelines now.
Look at any Jaguar XJ6 (XJ40) between around late 80's to 2000 model year you will see it has a single wiper that just simply flip/flops from the centre so no space taken up with linking two wipers across to each other with levers and rod mechanisms. The wiped area is exactly the same for both passenger and driver. This is unlike other cars with a single wiper that have an articulated exterior design on the wiper arm itself like the Lotus Esprit and some Mercedes that does specifically improve the drivers side wiped area vision.
So the wiped area on the XJ40 is exactly the same whether driver or passenger and indeed whilst it conformed to legislation for NA (Jaguar's biggest customer) it was one of the biggest annoyances (customer feedback complaints) on the vehicle for the driver as there was so much of the screen top corners not wiped and just the area where the higher traffic lights and freeway signs when travelling could be obscurred.
To repackage for a twin wipe as continually requested under Ford ownership could not be done without major body construction investment and a total redesign of the plenum area which was then only seen after 2000 and the replacement new models had twin wipers.
Again as I stated above there should be no argument which way the wipers should sit, the first priority IMHO is to clear the screen for the driver. The issue does then really become whether the design of the car exposes the wipers in front of the driver again something today being addressed by deeper screens to the scuttle with obscuration bands that whilst the wipers sit on glass the area falls below the interior vision of the driver where the wipers park.
Just saying my wipers park to the left or right requires one to know whether the car is RHD or LHD so easier to refer to the fact the wipers park on the drivers side
or passengers side
It is good debate though and for sure 'twin wipers' for the Lotus, MGB, Jaguar's, Triumphs all of the 60's/70's period to be correct should park on the drivers side. My original Elan UK RHD sales brochure issued by Lotus clearly shows this. Any Lotus Elan where parked differently was just stock availabilityat the factory as it appears Lotus Elan's are the most common variable model the question arises on.
BTW Rain X is a great product that can be applied to the windscreen regularly and means in light rain the wipers are less required and one day maybe wiper blades will be old technology as testing for ultrasonic water dispersion on windscreens continues.
Picture 1 show 3 wipe e-Type LHD parking drivers side. Picture 2 ...3 wipe MGB LHD parking passenger side.........figure that one out
Picture 3 twin wipe Jaguar RHD parked drivers side...AAHHH sanity
No doubt TBC
Regards
Steve