windshield wiper blade question.

[chingon77]

I just recieved some silicon wiper blades online by SilBlade. Apparently the J30 looks like it only accpets wiper blade refills and the blades I bought are meant for wiper arms that have a hook like end that attaches onto the blade harness. Has anyone done any mods on the J30 so the it can accept these kinds of blades?

[infinitidreams20]

as for mods im not sure but i think most people or just me at least use the refills i took my wiperarms off and gave them a little sanding and some trim paint and they look good as new and anyways the refills are cheeper

only problem i have is that you need to buy two different sizes so you end up with an extra pair which i lose usally oh well

[Defiant]

Ah, the marvel of non-matching wiper sizes. I wonder if it seems like a good idea to anyone other than the wiper blade companies. After all, that extra ½" of wiped glass will really matter to... well, surely someone. Whoever replaced mine the last time used a pair of 20" wipers, and they seem just fine. I've not found a brand on them anywhere.As for the bastard J30 wiper mounts, many wipers come with a handful of adapters to cover even these bizarre pins. Short of that, and possibly a better solution, would be to swap-out the whole arms, perhaps with something like Maxima arms. I'd have to tour the junkers and see what's out there. Hopefully, the studs on the cowl, at least, conform to the usual Nissan arrangement.Dopey companies.

[driverdriver]

I've used the OEM Nissan replacements since new, in my expereince they last a long time and are pretty good.

[Defiant]

Bit of an update.I'm not sure what mine had on it, but I suspect they were Bosch. They had a plastic adapter that went on the factory arm, then a 3/16" pin that went into that and then into the blade holder. The 3/16" pin is fairly normal. Also normal are "J-hook" mounts, which almost everything else I've driven and owned had (almost all Japanese cars, other than an Alfa Duetto, and the ex had a [bleagh] Volvo). If you look at the installation directions on the packages at Wal*Mart, the straight arm like the J's is also common..... nearly. For a reason I'd love to be illuminated regarding, Nissan chose to use not only a non-standard width arm but the screw holes are also a non-standard spacing. Some sizes of Tripledge blades come with an adapter that changes a straight arm to a normal J-hook, from which point you're free to use any wiper on the market (including the new single-bar wipers that have no visible frames). And, Michelin blade assemblies also come with the adapter. Both are metal, so they should last a goodly while. My car came with the plastic adapters mounted by one screw, and if it wasn't for last July's 120° days, they may have lasted, but they had deformed from the torsional side-loading inherent in this odd design. Being mounted by one screw instead of two didn't seem to be an issue. I will be drilling the new adapters to take both screws; the Michelin blade assemblies also provide new screws, which, by some bizarre mis-calculation on Nissan's part, are the correct thread pitch.I don't know Arizona's price for Infiniti blades, but online they're about $12. That's not really horrible, except the closest dealer is ten miles in the wrong direction, and I pass two Wal*Marts during commute every day which are still open when I get off work. The Michelin blades are $6.

[Ryaske]

I'll vouche for the bosch wiper blades with the adapter kit. The application chart said to go for 19" but I went 21 and they are fine (K-Mart). They sit slightly higher on the windsheild thanks to the adapters, but all has been well for me.

[Defiant]

Okay. Here's what we're up against. This is the stock J30 wiper arm:

[Defiant]

The genuine wiper -I don't have an example- has the side bracket made integrally with the assembly and screws right onto the arm. I do not know if that hook will separate from the factory blade holder and let you put on an aftermarket piece.As said above, I found that Michelin blades include an adapter which has a side-mount J assembly, shown, but you see there's an issue remaining:

[Defiant]

Yes, the centers of the screw holes aren't compatible. So, you could either drill a hole in the adapter, or perhaps drill-and-tap the factory arm (and I'm sure that bit is hardened to some extent, making both drilling and tapping a pain in the butt [like tapping holes that small is ever easy]). Oh, and no, using the oblong hole and the outer hole won't happen easily, because the adapter's nose is swaged over and would need to be ground off, and would wind up looking less than tidy. Sigh.
Modified by Defiant at 9:08 PM 11/23/2006

[Defiant]

In the end, for now, I'm just using one screw. The car got to me that way, with plastic Bosch pin-arm adapters held on with one, and despite having deformed some in our local heat were still working fine in the car wash. I just didn't trust them to live through a real storm, and maybe a nice embrittling run up to Tahoe.So, with the metal adapters installed, I'll now be able to use anyone's cheap blades off the rack at Wal*Mart.The Michelins were about $6, the factory blades (complete, not just inserts) about $12.

[yodawill2000]

Drill and tap a second hole ?

[Defiant]

Drill and tap a second hole ?

Yeh, I mentioned that option. Of course it's the right thing to do, I just have reservations about how hard that bit of steel is going to be. And if you've used taps that size, well you know "taps" is usually what it takes for one stupid little hole. The one screw is making a very secure attachment, and apparently had been on the old setup as well.

But I do feel guilty about it. We'll see if it gets bad enough to make me do something. Something drastic.

[xxcrashxx]

why not just put a second hole on the little adapter??

[Defiant]

why not just put a second hole on the little adapter??

I'd considered that as well, and it'd be gravy on my end because I have one of those nice hole puncher plier things (the fancy ones with the interchangeable dies and punches). But it's not quite so elegant a solution, and as you well know, this is a Personal Luxury Sedan, and we have certain standards by which we must comport ourselves and our mounts.

I'm already pushing my luck by not just hitting up the dealership for the proper part in the first place. If they were to catch on that I had started putting a bunch of extra holes all over the place like some kind of pincushion, they'd wallop me and take the car away.