# Anyone solved the Windshield Wiper chatter issue?



## Dsocohen (Apr 19, 2015)

Had to use my windshield wipers for the first time and they're skipping and chattering a lot. Anyone fixed this problem yet? Are the OE blades crap? Will aftermarket ones fix the problem?


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## sevenVT (Aug 18, 2004)

Never had the problem. I only get chatter if the blades/window are too dry for wiping.

That said, the OE blades don't appear to be crap.

Is there some active/past thread that implies lots of our cars were having wiper blade issues?


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## India Whiskey Charlie (Feb 15, 2006)

Dsocohen said:


> Had to use my windshield wipers for the first time and they're skipping and chattering a lot. Anyone fixed this problem yet? Are the OE blades crap? Will aftermarket ones fix the problem?


Try a thorough cleaning of the glass. Maybe even a coat of Rain-X.


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## Dsocohen (Apr 19, 2015)

sevenVT said:


> Never had the problem. I only get chatter if the blades/window are too dry for wiping.
> 
> That said, the OE blades don't appear to be crap.
> 
> Is there some active/past thread that implies lots of our cars were having wiper blade issues?


Yeah, I'm pretty sure this is a known issue with this car. I've seen other complaints about it.


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## DarkSideGTI (Aug 11, 2001)

My drivers side blade does it even when wet. annoying as hell.


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## J4juke (Jan 31, 2013)

I used my wipers the first time a few days ago and the driver side also did it once it got a little dry. I remember someone posting on YouTube about the same issue and his dealership replaced the wipers and problem solved. I will be doing the same thing when I get a chance.


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## Dsocohen (Apr 19, 2015)

J4juke said:


> I used my wipers the first time a few days ago and the driver side also did it once it got a little dry. I remember someone posting on YouTube about the same issue and his dealership replaced the wipers and problem solved. I will be doing the same thing when I get a chance.


I'm just gonna try a new set as well. I tend to go with Bosch ICONs as they seem to be the best Bosch offers. I'll report my findings.


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## Bruticus (Aug 30, 2014)

I had same problem and, like another said, a good cleaning of the windshield fixed it.


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## Dsocohen (Apr 19, 2015)

Bruticus said:


> I had same problem and, like another said, a good cleaning of the windshield fixed it.


My windshield is brand new. It looks pretty damn clean. Did you clean it with anything special?


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## ERTW (Jan 17, 2000)

Dsocohen said:


> Had to use my windshield wipers for the first time and they're skipping and chattering a lot. Anyone fixed this problem yet? Are the OE blades crap? Will aftermarket ones fix the problem?


Had this problem too. I just replaced the blades with Porsche Macan Blades and they work well. The problem is the 26" long drivers side blade. 24" is a better length for the drivers side.


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## Bruticus (Aug 30, 2014)

Dsocohen said:


> My windshield is brand new. It looks pretty damn clean. Did you clean it with anything special?


Yeah, it's not obvious to the eye. There was another thread about this, not sure which forum/website, and the reason was something to do with the car shipping/delivery process. I don't know if that's true or not. 

I'm not exactly sure what the detailer used to clean my windshield (it was a waterless product) but I do know he used a clay bar on it. After that cleaning, I never had the problem again and I'm using the same wiper blades.


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## Dsocohen (Apr 19, 2015)

The Bosch ICONs don't seem to have the correct adapter for our car. So far I've tried using the Rain X 2-in-1 cleaner on the windshield and then wiping the OE blades down with alcohol. They seem to be working better. I won't know until i get caught in the rain.


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## Dsocohen (Apr 19, 2015)

Dsocohen said:


> The Bosch ICONs don't seem the have the correct adapter for our car. So far I've tried using the Rain X 2-in-1 cleaner on the windshield and then wiping the OE blades down with alcohol. They seem to be working better. I won't know until i get caught in the rain.


It looks like the Bosch AeroTwins will work

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DycXg3w9w7M

Nevermind the picture on Amazon. I believe it's wrong...

http://www.amazon.com/Bosch-3397118...pebp=1440527741625&perid=0V0FA9YCRXM7V9DAFV7C


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## Dsocohen (Apr 19, 2015)

Dsocohen said:


> It looks like the Bosch AeroTwins will work
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DycXg3w9w7M
> 
> ...


Just got them in and they don't work. Part number listed on Bosch's website states compatibility with 8V, but it's really only for 8P. Stupid Bosch. They don't make a wiper that works for our car; that is, unless you do the SQ5 set linked in the YouTube video above. They're the wrong length though.


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## Antariusz (Nov 19, 2014)

I had this problem when the car was new, after about 3 months of cleveland winter, it solved itself... Used a few applications of rain-x to make it better while it was new to help.


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## BlackNight (Sep 22, 1999)

I had this problem for like a day, then it went away. Wipers are working fine.

Lee


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## Dsocohen (Apr 19, 2015)

For anyone looking for aftermarket wipers, I have finally found a set that work. The Trico Onyx or Force wipers have an adapter that fits our cars. A dry wipe of them looks to be smooth. I'll report back more after I hit some rain. And yeah, the 26" length for the driver's side is ridiculous. Both my wife's Inifiniti FX35 and my Nissan GTR take a 22"/19" setup and they have way bigger windshields. I downsized to a 24" blade on the driver's side for the S3. The adapter locks firmly into place, but it's shape leaves a little gap between between itself and the end of the arm. Functionally, it doesn't affect its operation. It's just an aesthetic consideration if those kinds of things bother you.


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## Dsocohen (Apr 19, 2015)

Dsocohen said:


> For anyone looking for aftermarket wipers, I have finally found a set that work. The Trico Onyx or Force wipers have an adapter that fits our cars. A dry wipe of them looks to be smooth. I'll report back more after I hit some rain. And yeah, the 26" length for the driver's side is ridiculous. Both my wife's Inifiniti FX35 and my Nissan GTR take a 22"/19" setup and they have way bigger windshields. I downsized to a 24" blade on the driver's side for the S3. The adapter locks firmly into place, but it's shape leaves a little gap between between itself and the end of the arm. Functionally, it doesn't affect its operation. It's just an aesthetic consideration if those kinds of things bother you.


Update: The Trico Onyx/Force blades work super smoothly and provide a clean, chatter free wipe. The only thing I can add is that I shouldn't have second guessed the 26" OE length. At 24" for the driver's side, there's no overlap between the driver's and passenger's blade so it leaves a small one inch gap that doesn't get wiped. I'll have to exchange my 24" for a 26".


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## oliverchua (Sep 5, 2015)

*Clay bar to the rescue!*

I used my wipers for the first time last week when it finally rained for the first time in a long time here in SoCal. They were scraping really bad. So bad that *not* using them was better than using them. Anyway, I ran a clay bar over the windshield and now it's "smooth as glass." No problems at all; even when dry!


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

DarkSideGTI said:


> My drivers side blade does it even when wet. annoying as hell.


Mine as well. It is extremely annoying. Does anyone have any good suggestion for aftermarket ones?


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## A3_yuppie (Jun 5, 2006)

Dsocohen said:


> Update: The Trico Onyx/Force blades work super smoothly and provide a clean, chatter free wipe. The only thing I can add is that I shouldn't have second guessed the 26" OE length. At 24" for the driver's side, there's no overlap between the driver's and passenger's blade so it leaves a small one inch gap that doesn't get wiped. I'll have to exchange my 24" for a 26".


Bosch says 24" for driver side and 19" for passenger side; is Bosch wrong?


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## A3_yuppie (Jun 5, 2006)

oliverchua said:


> I used my wipers for the first time last week when it finally rained for the first time in a long time here in SoCal. They were scraping really bad. So bad that *not* using them was better than using them. Anyway, I ran a clay bar over the windshield and now it's "smooth as glass." No problems at all; even when dry!


So the solution is to clean and then clay bar the windshield?


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

A3_yuppie said:


> Bosch says 24" for driver side and 19" for passenger side; is Bosch wrong?


The OE ones are 26" and 19". I measured them.


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

A3_yuppie said:


> So the solution is to clean and then clay bar the windshield?


I tried cleaning it and it only worked for a little while. After a couple of days of rain, it chattered again. None of my previous cars did this. I really think the OE wipers are junk.


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## willoc (Jul 21, 2015)

Autozone has some wipers that fit - I think the part # was DLA-26 for driver side. I didn't replace pass side yet, driver side seems to be the one with problems. Of course it hasn't rained since I put the new wiper on, but I'm pretty sure it will be fine.


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## A3_yuppie (Jun 5, 2006)

VWNCC said:


> The OE ones are 26" and 19". I measured them.


Good to know. Thank you. Fortunately I did not order them from Amazon.com just based on Bosch's and Amazon.com's fit data.


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## A3_yuppie (Jun 5, 2006)

VWNCC said:


> The OE ones are 26" and 19". I measured them.


Good to know; thank you. Fortunately I did not just order them from Amazon.com based on Bosch and Amazon.com's fit data.


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## T1no (Sep 22, 2012)

yeee same problem. any solutions without switching ?


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## A3_yuppie (Jun 5, 2006)

T1no said:


> yeee same problem. any solutions without switching ?


Bruticus and Oliverchua suggested using a claybar on the windshield, which I am going to try to do this weekend. I agree with the others who said that just washing the windshield is not going to help much or for long.

I just ordered Bosch Evolutions which are on sale at Amazon.com for $22 for two; the part numbers are 4843 (26") and 4838 (19"). The photographs of the connector on Amazon.com appear to match that of the stock wiper when I took it off to take a picture.


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

A3_yuppie said:


> Bruticus and Oliverchua suggested using a claybar on the windshield, which I am going to try to do this weekend. I agree with the others who said that just washing the windshield is not going to help much or for long.
> 
> I just ordered Bosch Evolutions which are on sale at Amazon.com for $22 for two; the part numbers are 4843 (26") and 4838 (19"). The photographs of the connector on Amazon.com appear to match that of the stock wiper when I took it off to take a picture.


Claybar-ing it won't help for that long either. I have once brought the car in and the dealer claybar, polished and cleaned the windshield really well. At the time, it did stop the chattering, but it still screeched a bit. After a few months, the chattering came back.

None of my previous cars (all VW) had problems like this. These OE wipers (and the Golf VII as well) are infamously bad.

I have ordered some Trico Exact Fit and will see how they do.


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## cowboyzx6 (Mar 7, 2015)

Had the same problem.
Dealer replaced mine at 5k service and so far so good.


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## Bruticus (Aug 30, 2014)

VWNCC said:


> Claybar-ing it won't help for that long either. I have once brought the car in and the dealer claybar, polished and cleaned the windshield really well. At the time, it did stop the chattering, but it still screeched a bit. After a few months, the chattering came back.
> 
> None of my previous cars (all VW) had problems like this. These OE wipers (and the Golf VII as well) are infamously bad.
> 
> I have ordered some Trico Exact Fit and will see how they do.


It's been over a year after I had the claybar done and the problem hasn't returned. I suspect that those who continue to have the problem probably have some additional variable at play. I don't know what is, unfortunately.


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

Update...

Okay...so my driver side OE wiper was chattering like crazy today...I swapped the driver side wiper with the 26" Trico Exact Fit. It is now swiping very smoothly. No more chattering! :laugh:


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## sgt_cr (Mar 18, 2015)

I got the same problem, I got a pair of ANCO 19 and 26, the problem is not has bad as the OEM but still annoying, so are the TRICO Exact FIT worked out? have those resolve the problem?

is 26 and 19 the right size?


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## sgt_cr (Mar 18, 2015)

Im trying to place an order of the following blades: http://www.amazon.com/Trico-26-1-Ex...id=1446962546&sr=8-1&keywords=Trico+Exact+Fit

and its sayng it does not fit my A3 :/


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

sgt_cr said:


> I got the same problem, I got a pair of ANCO 19 and 26, the problem is not has bad as the OEM but still annoying, so are the TRICO Exact FIT worked out? have those resolve the problem?
> 
> is 26 and 19 the right size?





sgt_cr said:


> Im trying to place an order of the following blades: http://www.amazon.com/Trico-26-1-Ex...id=1446962546&sr=8-1&keywords=Trico+Exact+Fit
> 
> and its sayng it does not fit my A3 :/




I measured the OEM blades before ordering the TRICO, so yes 26 and 19" are the right size. I only ordered the driver side wiper as it was the one that chattered like crazy. I swapped it out and the chattering is gone. There is a pdf on the costco webste listing out the application fitting list for different cars. *The A3 needs the 26-16B and 19-16B.*

Here is the link to the pdf.

http://www.costco.ca/wcsstore/CostcoCABCCatalogAssetStore/Attachment/TRICOExactFitApplicationGuide02-25-15.pdf


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## Flying Tomatoes (Nov 29, 2012)

Ours use to do this but it seems to have fixed its self after a few uses.


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## willoc (Jul 21, 2015)

OK so the Autozone (Duralast) blade works just fine and solved the problem for me. Also if you are an Amazon Prime member, you can get (2) Bosch Evolution blades for $22+tax...mine are on order for future use.


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## A3_yuppie (Jun 5, 2006)

A3_yuppie said:


> Bruticus and Oliverchua suggested using a claybar on the windshield, which I am going to try to do this weekend. I agree with the others who said that just washing the windshield is not going to help much or for long.
> 
> I just ordered Bosch Evolutions which are on sale at Amazon.com for $22 for two; the part numbers are 4843 (26") and 4838 (19"). The photographs of the connector on Amazon.com appear to match that of the stock wiper when I took it off to take a picture.


Unfortunately, Bosch Evolution wipers do not fit. The raised connector at the center of the wiper blade is just a bit too wide for the stock mount.


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

A3_yuppie said:


> Unfortunately, Bosch Evolution wipers do not fit. The raised connector at the center of the wiper blade is just a bit too wide for the stock mount.


I can confirm that Bosch Icons also do not work for the same reason.


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## A3_yuppie (Jun 5, 2006)

VWNCC said:


> I can confirm that Bosch Icons also do not work for the same reason.


So I suppose there is no point to try the Bosch Clear Advantage, which is now on sale at Amazon.com; how many different models of wipers does one company need to make!?


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## sgt_cr (Mar 18, 2015)

VWNCC said:


> I measured the OEM blades before ordering the TRICO, so yes 26 and 19" are the right size. I only ordered the driver side wiper as it was the one that chattered like crazy. I swapped it out and the chattering is gone. There is a pdf on the costco webste listing out the application fitting list for different cars. *The A3 needs the 26-16B and 19-16B.*
> 
> Here is the link to the pdf.
> 
> http://www.costco.ca/wcsstore/CostcoCABCCatalogAssetStore/Attachment/TRICOExactFitApplicationGuide02-25-15.pdf


I can confirm that the "TRICO Exact fit" DIT NOT fit with my A3 Sedan 2016, what a waste of money T_T I should have listen to amazon.


Can anyone confirm which blades will fix the issue and DOES fit :/ 

PS: the problem is not the length of the blade, its the connector that does not matches the connector of the car....


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

sgt_cr said:


> I can confirm that the "TRICO Exact fit" DIT NOT fit with my A3 Sedan 2016, what a waste of money T_T I should have listen to amazon.
> 
> 
> Can anyone confirm which blades will fix the issue and DOES fit :/
> ...


That's weird. The TRICO EXACT FIT 26-16B fit my Canadian spec A3.

I am starting to suspect that the different markets have different wiper blade adaptors. Someone on another forum said that the Bosch icon fit their A3, so I went to buy it to try it out. It did not fit my car. The connector was too big.

If the TRICO EXACT FIT connector was too small for your car, maybe the Bosch Icon 26" will fit yours.


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

Okay, another update...

So, I went out and bought some PIAA SiTech wiper blades (26" and 19"). These are very high quality and are definitely better than the Trico (which was already better than OEM). Now, I finally get chatter-free and screech-free wiping! :laugh:


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## Chio-4 (Jan 20, 2004)

I changed mine out after my windshield was replaced underwarrenty .. I went with 26/19 inch Bosch Icon they work great!! they supply different adapters that need to be changed on the wiper


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

Chio-4 said:


> I changed mine out after my windshield was replaced underwarrenty .. I went with 26/19 inch Bosch Icon they work great!! they supply different adapters that need to be changed on the wiper


The Bosch Icons they sell in Canadiantire does not come with adapters.


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

itr_1211 said:


> Do these come with the adaptors? or need to reuse the ones from the stock ones?


The PIAA Si-Tech came with 3 adaptors. One of them is specifically for the 19mm PTB and Audi (it is the only one specifically called out...feel special :laugh: ).

You got your S3 yet or are you waiting for the RS3? :laugh:


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

itr_1211 said:


> Sweet, I might look into these as these. My wipers are streaking with only 5000 kms
> I got my S3 way back in June but waiting for the RS3 to arrive
> Are you going to switch over to the S3 yet or still upgrade your suspension? :laugh:


There is no point to upgrade to an S3 now when we know the RS3 is coming. :laugh:

Either that, or wait for the next gen S3. In my case, it is way too much depreciation to eat to upgrade to the S3.


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

itr_1211 said:


> Haha, yeah I should've waited also. I was thinking of upgrading the exhaust on the S3 but that money could go towards a down payment for an RS3 :banghead:


Knowing Audi though...by the time the RS3 comes out, the next gen S3 will probably come out 2 years after that...and knowing that the next gen S3 is probably gonna be almost as good as the current gen RS3 (just like how the current S3 is almost equivalent to the last gen RS3), so I am not sure if I should pull the trigger on the RS3 or wait for the next gen S3.


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

itr_1211 said:


> Sweet, I might look into these as these. My wipers are streaking with only 5000 kms
> I got my S3 way back in June but waiting for the RS3 to arrive
> Are you going to switch over to the S3 yet or still upgrade your suspension? :laugh:




Okay, an update about the PIAA wipers. I finally got a chance to use it with rain at night and I must say.....I DON'T like it!

While the PIAA wipers are extremely quiet (absolutely no screech or chatter), it leaves behind a faint haze with every wipe (disappears in a sec or 2). It is not noticeable in daytime, but at night with oncoming traffic, it is distracting and potentially dangerous. 

I swapped back to the OEM ones.....and the chattering again drove me nuts....so I gave them a final chance and did an extremely thorough polish to the windshield with paint polish and they are now chatter-free (crossing my fingers).


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## VWNCC (Jan 12, 2010)

itr_1211 said:


> Have you tried claying it first? Paint polish might be a little to abrasive I would think.
> Those piaas and tricos could've bought another set of oem replacements :laugh:


O, no worries, I got refund for the Trico and will no doubt return the PIAA as well.


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## jared_703 (Aug 17, 2016)

I installed the Trico force blades on my 2016 S3 and everything appears to be good so far. Will report back once I get some real rain.

They came with an adapter that works nicely for the s3. Trico's video's helped and made for an easy install. Hope this helps anyone who is struggling with the dogsh*t OEM blades.

TRICO Force 25-190 High Performance Beam Wiper Blade - 19
TRICO Force 25-260 High Performance Beam Wiper Blade - 26


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## radbaldguy (Feb 23, 2016)

jared_703 said:


> I installed the Trico force blades on my 2016 S3 and everything appears to be good so far. Will report back once I get some real rain.


I've had the Trico force blades on my S3 for about a year now with no chatter issues; I really just stumbled upon them, as they were one of the few that had adapters to fit the car. They perform well, without any chatter. I haven't had to do any of the polishing or clay barring others have mentioned. I occasionally reapply Rain-X but it's probably been 10 months since I last did. My two biggest complaints are: (1) I don't like the way they look, they're not as sleek as the OEM blades; and (2) when you're at speed with the wipers going, there's some sort of air pressure behind the blades that causes water to pull back an inch or two toward the blades as they reach full extent and goes back down (think the vertical line where the wiper stops in front of the driver-side). This is probably a bigger aero-dynamic issue for the car generally than it is for the wipers and I don't remember whether it happened on my old OEM blades.


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## DarkSideGTI (Aug 11, 2001)

My OEM blades took a little while to stop chattering, but work great now.


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## jared_703 (Aug 17, 2016)

DarkSideGTI said:


> My OEM blades took a little while to stop chattering, but work great now.


For me, chattering was a performance issue in that the blades did not perform well when wiping the windshield. They would stick and act as they were worn. After buying a set of oem replacements, they only lasted one or two months. I figured this was some sort of quality control issue related to OEM blades after reading about this problem on multiple forums.


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## STI2GolfR (Aug 1, 2015)

I just got a used 2016 S3 with 8k miles and traded my Golf R and this is a frustrating problem with the Audi that I can't seem to fix. I've never used a clay bar. Is it difficult to use?


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## jared_703 (Aug 17, 2016)

Bumping this up. Has anyone else had any good experiences with aftermarket blades?


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## radbaldguy (Feb 23, 2016)

jared_703 said:


> Bumping this up. Has anyone else had any good experiences with aftermarket blades?


Did you try the Trico blades? I just put a second set on after a year with my first set and they’re fine, no chatter.


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## Spinnetti_ (Aug 15, 2016)

Blades do dry rot, especially here in TX or other hot climates. have fresh blades, and wax the windshield. Mine work like butta.


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