Driver Side (Right Side) Wiper Shuddering

Anyone has this problem? The driver's side wiper blade shudders even in moderate to heavy rain. So it cannot be due to insufficient water and hence the cause of the shuddering. My dealer insists that the wiper blades are fine and they are 3-4 months old at the most. What do u think is the problem? Should I change the wipers or upgrade? My only concern on upgrading is that the "modified" or converted wipers may not have been tested by porsche to take the high speeds. Any advice appreciated. Thanks!

Yep - I have that same issue. As it seems, I have not yet owned a vehicle (Porsche and others) that didn't exhibit this "feature". What to do? Well, if it's not the wipers, then maybe you should have the wiper motor checked? Well, as far as I know Porsche uses Bosch blades, not specificly designed for the Cayman (correct me if I'm wrong...) and the speed issue is not something I would worry about. Just go fast enough - then you won't need the wipers

Thanks for the reply. I had a Lexus and a VW that did not ever had this problem. So I wonder if it must be the wiper or some other problem. I dun think it is the motor. Also, my concern with speed is buffetting or whatever that could rip off the wipers or something like that. Thanks for the note tho that with higher speeds u may not need them to be operational. LOL. Been trying to search for Cayman wiper conversions but cannot find anything just yet? Any help from anyone? Thanks!

I have no idea which type of blades are my CS, but the blades do not exhibit the problem you describe - they operate smoothly across the windshield. It might be worth trying a different window cleaner or windshield fluid.

LOL, sorry, just had to laugh... What speed are you driving in the rain? 150, 160? If you are talking normal speeds like 50-60, you'll be fine without extensive testing of the wiper blades by Porsche.

I agree it's most likely to be down to the screen wash, since buying from a main dealer, every time they have serviced either the Cayman S or the Boxster S I had before thay have put a bottle of screenwash in the boot for topping up ( it was always on the bill unless I said to remove it ). I rarely use a complete bottle a year and the wipers never squeek or judder. The blades usually last well too.

try Turtle Wax. No more raindrops on your windshield even at 20 mph. All you have to do is to use the gas pedal

To me, I expect every component in a porsche to be tested at whatever max speed the manufacturer declares, and that includes the wipers. For example, if the car max speed is 180 mph, I expect that at the speed, if I have to use the wiper, the wiper should work and not fly off or be rendered inoperable as a result of the high wind speeds hitting the windscreen. That is why it is a porsche. 99% of owners and probably 99% of the time, the car never gets utilized up to its max or even its top-band capability, but to me, we are paying a premium for that ability to get to that top band if we choose, although most of us would probably not do it. There are courses which allow cars to hit speeds of 150 - 160 mph. I have never gone beyond 150 mph (GPS) or 160 mph (speedo). There were occasions when wipers were needed due to light rain and drizzle at those speeds and it was fine in that non-porsche car. I imagine that it should be OK too for the stock wipers in the Cayman. However, my experience with wiper juddering even at normal speeds make become a big problem at high speeds. At high speeds, the last thing you want to do is to be distracted by having to deal with a juddering wiper which could become worse at high buffeting wind speeds. As most of u may already know, when you choose to drive at the top of the performance bands, a lot of things which we normally would not worry about, suddenly become an issue of concern. The other thing about wipers is that sometimes, it is not necessarily how fast you are travelling, but rather how high the wind speeds are. For example, the mercedes SUV has a wiper that apparently has been tested at up to 50 or 100 mph wind speeds or something like that. Saw an ad for it before. Correct me if I have gotten my facts wrong. However, the ad stated that we normally would not be driving around at that kind of weather with that kind of wind speeds, but it is good to know that when we need to, you know that the wiper and the car can handle it.

I recently purchased a pair of wipers from Autozone, it was from the same brand that GM uses on their vehicles (OEM), forgot the name, but I think it started with the letter a E or T. They are the type that do not have any metal on them, similar to the kind from Rain-X, and have worked fine. I have even taken my car with speeds of 135 mph+ on the track without any problems. They are somewhat aerodynamic, so no lift issues while driving. This is the same wiper type you are mentioning on the Mercedes SUV. I have a new ML350 that comes with the same thing as what I have on the Cayman. Hope this answers your question, you will need a 22" length, but on the passenger side, it may not remove all the rain from the top left of your windshield due to the curvature of the glass.

thanks boobernackle. ur info is much appreciated. as mentioned before, i really wonder why porsce still not using these metal free wipers. btw, is it an easy install, like a clip on kind of thing or wat? possible for anyone to post some pics?

The install will take about 5-10 minutes total. It is really easy, just stick to a good quality wiper and right size and you cannot go wrong. I think I paid around $14 for each wiper about 8 months ago. I hope you find what you are looking for! The instructions on how to change your wipers, if you are not sure how to proceed, I believe my wipers came with instructions inside the packaging. Autozone offered a promotion to install them for free, but I did not drive my Porsche to the store, so I just did it myself.

Clean the blades with glass cleaner and make sure the windshield is clean as well. It's not rocket science so don't obsess it happens occasionally on many cars whether more or less expensive......relax

I changed to the Bosch Aerotwin wiper blades - 22 inch for both sides. These are so called the frameless wipers. I figured instead of me wasting more time with my dealership going back and forth about the usual excuses for wiper shuddering, I would just sort the problem out by upgrading the wipers. Bosch Wiper Blades, Aerotwin The look nicer and appear to work great now without any juddering, shuddering or skipping. And they seem quieter too. Only problem as mentioned before by others is that the increased curvature of the windscreen on the passenger side causes a small area of 5 x 2 inch at the bottom corner where the wiper is unable to wipe. In fact, when at stowed position, the end of the wiper on the passenger side sits a little proud being unable to curve sufficiently to rest on the windscreen. I guess that is the reason why Porsche did not have these wipers as OEM. And looking at this dealer website, these Bosch wipers are not supposed to be on the Cayman or Boxster or even the 911s prolly for the same reasons. http://www.autobulbsdirect.co.uk/porsche-c-822.html

Here is a pic of the passenger wiper not being able to curve onto the windshield. The Bosch Aerotwins installed. Apparently, the wipers are designed with so-called integrated spoilers on the wind side.

Try cleaning the blades with washer solvent or alcohol every time you wash the car. Also, if you use wax or Rain X it will build uo on the blades over time.

Just an update. The juddering has reduced by more than 80%. Occasionally, the driver's side would judder if it got too dry or if it over-wipes. The only other problem to report is that on the passenger or left side, the tip of the wiper would tap the black plastic if the wiper is run at maximum speed. The impact area is pointed to by the green arrow. U can see that even at rest, it is nearly kissing. I suppose a 21 incher would solve this problem, but it would decrease the wiping radius by 1 inch correspondingly. Another option is to find a frameless wiper that could curve down more on to the glass. U can see how the wiper is not adhering to the glass at the last 1.5 inch. If the wiper were to conform better, I think even a 22 inch would not hit the plastic.

Anyone tried this blade before? eBay Motors: Red Oktane Street Performance Cayman 08 07 06 - Porsche (item 280286656262 end time Dec-17-08 18:10:53 PST) Maybe those with red car?

Actually, the juddering is not completely gone. When is a little dry, it will judder quite badly. A few squirts of the windscreen wiper fluid, and it is smooth again, until the "soap" is gone and then it recurs. What is strange to me now is why it only occurs on the driver's side and it still occurs, albeit with less frequency with the Bose wipers. I can only surmise that it is some kind of problem with the windscreen on the driver's side.

I would suggest polishing the windshield with glass polish. Griots Garage sells some; use the more abrasive one of the two they sell. There is very likely a build-up of oils and residue on your windshield, and that may be causing the problem. I do my cars about once per month and never get a shudder. Hint: don't get polish anywhere near the edges of the windshield. This stuff is really abrasive and will scratch paint or plastic (but it is great for glass). Hint 2: don't use the towels for glass polish on anything else.

Thanks. That sounds like an idea. I will try it out and see.

I bought my '06 Cayman S in September and never needed to use the wipers until mid December. I had the squeak/shudder problem on the driver side as well so I bought new blades since I didn't know how long the old ones had been on there and reinstalled the wipers the way they came off. The new blades still had the squeak/shudder problem, but it was less. I had cleaned the blades, tried stretching them a little, everything that has been mentioned here. Well after yesterday, I couldn't take it any more. I planned to switch the two blades to see if it did it on the passenger side as well. As I removed the driver side wiper, I noticed (again) it had a little airfoil built into the blade holder. The foil had been BELOW the wiper. I turned the blade over so the foil was ON TOP of the blade and......... no more noise. When I put on the new blades back in December, I noticed that the driver side wiper was different (had the foil) from the passenger side, but I put it back on the same way it came off. I guess it was mounted upside down originally. I guess my old wipers were fine, it was the upside down foil that was causing the squeak/shudder, not the rubber blade itself.

I've had the same problem for years. I tried everything including replacing my windshield (due to chips). This is the only thing I could find to help the problem. 303 Windshields Wipes I have wondered if it's the same stuff as their vinyl treatment.

Mine shudder occasionally too. I believe it is mostly due to them not being clean enough!

That's what usually does it. Some combination of road grease and wax on the glass and wipers causes the juddering. If they are both cleaned off well, the juddering stops. The cleaning of the glass actually requires some real elbow grease and a good alcohol based cleaner.