I think I have been annoyed by windshield wipers on every car I've owned; some didn't wipe clean, some chattered, and most were noisy. My XF's have had wipers which wipe clean and clear, auto cycling works great, but the blades are usually only quiet for occasional wipes. In a steady rain, the right blade develops a squeak at the right edge of the windshield, and the left blade makes a "thunk" at the bottom of the windshield. The 09 had 4 sets of (Jaguar parts) blades while I had it, the 12 is now on its 2nd pair, and all have acted the same. Dealer checked the operation, says it must be the blades have taken a set (because I rarely drive in the rain), swapped with a car in the showroom, will try a new set as soon as they come in.

For what it's worth, used Rain-X on the 09, not on the 12, don't see any difference in wiper noise.

Drove 5 hours on interstate today, once again impressed with what a fine car this is, until running into some heavy rain at the end of the day. Unfortunately, I have 6 more days of travel, with rain forecast every day.

Is this just me?

 

Use a synthetic wax like Nu-Finish and wax the windshield. You may not even need the wipers on occasion. Worked for me! Bugs clean off easier too. Remember, Windex will remove the wax.

 

Thanks for the idea - I'll check it out next week when I get home. Makes sense that wax could cure the squeak, which is half the problem. And using fewer sweeps would cut down on the thunks.

 

If the thunks are caused by the wiper blade hitting something they need to be adjusted or they may be the wrong size blades.

 

If you are using synthetic wax on the wind shield, put it on leave it over night then take it off.

 

Thanks higeorge and dwight for the suggestions. I have some Meguiars cleaner/wax (liquid); do you think I need to find the Nu-Finish? Liquid vs. paste? With any luck, I won't be driving in the rain again until August, so I have some time. And I don't wash/wax my own cars any more, so no need to stock up on supplies.

Regarding the thunk, I see there is nothing at the bottom of the windshield for the blade to run into, and the service mgr says they're adjusted properly, so I'm likely hearing the sound of the blade reversing. Come to think of it, I don't hear it on a single sweep when it returns to park, only when it's raining hard enough for continuous operation.

Will report back after I wax the windshield and get into some rain.

 

Nu-Finish was rated the Number 1 wax by Consumer Reports, synthetic or not for shine and longevity. I've been using it for over 20 years. If I have my car done, I take the Nu-Finish with me for them to use. I haven't tried the overnight trick, but will next time I need to do it. I use the liquid just for ease of use.

 

Sorry I didn't notice your sig before.

I've used lots of different stuff, including Simoniz paste cleaner and paste wax in the 50's, and NuFinish for a long time after it was introduced (70's I think). I was never a good detailer, usually took a week or two to clean the dried wax out of crevices, and the older I got the worse I got, so about 15 years ago I quit doing it myself.

Now that you've given me all the recommendations, I'll probably use the Meguair's, since it's handy. I'll try a couple of coats, rather than leave it overnight, because I remember the Meguair's turns to concrete if you don't buff it soon.

 

I've been waxing all my windows for years and I must say, it does help with the wiper issues as well as makes cleaning it bad weather a snap.

 

I just put Meguiar's cleaner/wax on the easy way - applied with damp paper towel and buffed pretty quickly. May not last long, but only took a minute or so. Far simpler than the Rain-X. Thought about the other windows also, but too lazy. Probably won't drive it in the rain for a few weeks, but will take it out (if we get any sun) to check for streaks. Also put it on the wife's Subaru, which will certainly be in the rain within 24 hours.

I noticed I have a dried-up container of Jaguar Screen Clean Paste, which I used in the 90's, and never thought did any good. Realizing now it is just a cleaner, and needed to be followed with wax or Rain-X.

 

I have been just putting a few squeezes of rainx into my washer fluid.
It works really well. Just as we'll as the washer fluid made with rainx.

Try that. I find that the oils when sprayed helped to keep squeaks and sounds away!
Also under moderate rain and when it's darker you don't have to use your wipers as much.

 

Stainless steel wool is best for cleaning auto glass.

Lubricating the glass with anything is just a short term fix.

 

Back to Rain-X. Was able to try the Meguair's in the rain yesterday, which beaded nicely, but was not slippery enough to easily "shed" up the windshield. Back to Rain-X today, with good results.

Agreed coatings are only temporary, but my objective is to cut down on the number of blade "sweeps", and maybe to make the blades a little quieter.