I Didn't Know the Windshield Wipers Could Do That?!

[SorryDad]

Ok, so this is probably going to be a "no-kidding, Sherlock" post to the readers but I've had my Maverick since September and really starting to love this thing. One of my disappointments has been that I've grown accustomed to past vehicles owned where the windshield wiper blades could be lifted off the windshield, with the blades in the "parked" position. It's especially important living in a snowy area as it helps to put them up before a snowstorm, and thus easier to clean later. The way they are designed is they sit well below the hood, and thus cannot be lifted. My workaround has been to hit the quick pass wipe and immediately shut off the car once they cleared far enough where they could then be pulled away.

That all changed today - by accident.

We had snow last night and I forgot to put the blades up beforehand. As I was cleaning the passenger side, I happened to push up on the wiper arm when I noticed I could push it up as far as I wanted to clear the hood line - thus, being able to lift the blade right off the windshield! It's a silly thing but that made me happy! (Doesn't take much, anyway so count me as happy as a monkey in a banana shop.) When I finished cleaning off the snow, I returned the blades down and pushed the arm back in its normal parked position.

Hope my little discovery comes in handy!

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[Pointyears]

Ok, so this is probably going to be a "no-kidding, Sherlock" post to the readers but I've had my Maverick since September and really starting to love this thing. One of my disappointments has been that I've grown accustomed to past vehicles owned where the windshield wiper blades could be lifted off the windshield, with the blades in the "parked" position. It's especially important living in a snowy area as it helps to put them up before a snowstorm, and thus easier to clean later. The way they are designed is they sit well below the hood, and thus cannot be lifted. My workaround has been to hit the quick pass wipe and immediately shut off the car once they cleared far enough where they could then be pulled away.

That all changed today - by accident.

We had snow last night and I forgot to put the blades up beforehand. As I was cleaning the passenger side, I happened to push up on the wiper arm when I noticed I could push it up as far as I wanted to clear the hood line - thus, being able to lift the blade right off the windshield! It's a silly thing but that made me happy! (Doesn't take much, anyway so count me as happy as a monkey in a banana shop.) When I finished cleaning off the snow, I returned the blades down and pushed the arm back in its normal parked position.

Hope my little discovery comes in handy!

Note: For vehicles with a service position,
make sure the windshield wipers are in this
position before proceeding.
Note: You can use the service position to
provide easier access to the wiper blades
for freeing them from snow and ice.
Note: Switch the windshield wipers off
before switching the ignition off.
Make sure your vehicle is off before
beginning this procedure.
1. Move the wiper blades to the service
position.
Note: To place the wiper arms in a service
position, switch your vehicle on in accessory
mode, switch on the wipers and switch your
vehicle off when the wipers are at their
highest position.
Note: Do not manually move the wiper
arms to the service position unless the wiper
path is obstructed by snow or ice.

 

[SorryDad]

Note: For vehicles with a service position,
make sure the windshield wipers are in this
position before proceeding.
Note: You can use the service position to
provide easier access to the wiper blades
for freeing them from snow and ice.
Note: Switch the windshield wipers off
before switching the ignition off.
Make sure your vehicle is off before
beginning this procedure.
1. Move the wiper blades to the service
position.
Note: To place the wiper arms in a service
position, switch your vehicle on in accessory
mode, switch on the wipers and switch your
vehicle off when the wipers are at their
highest position.
Note: Do not manually move the wiper
arms to the service position unless the wiper
path is obstructed by snow or ice.

Thanks for that info. This reads like it's in the owner's manual? "Service position" doesn't sound like intuitive terminology.

 

[Pointyears]

Thanks for that info. This reads like it's in the owner's manual? "Service position" doesn't sound like intuitive terminology.

Yep, page 81 of the 2025 pdf.

 

[GBs-LRT]

Ok, so this is probably going to be a "no-kidding, Sherlock" post to the readers but I've had my Maverick since September and really starting to love this thing. One of my disappointments has been that I've grown accustomed to past vehicles owned where the windshield wiper blades could be lifted off the windshield, with the blades in the "parked" position. It's especially important living in a snowy area as it helps to put them up before a snowstorm, and thus easier to clean later. The way they are designed is they sit well below the hood, and thus cannot be lifted. My workaround has been to hit the quick pass wipe and immediately shut off the car once they cleared far enough where they could then be pulled away.

That all changed today - by accident.

We had snow last night and I forgot to put the blades up beforehand. As I was cleaning the passenger side, I happened to push up on the wiper arm when I noticed I could push it up as far as I wanted to clear the hood line - thus, being able to lift the blade right off the windshield! It's a silly thing but that made me happy! (Doesn't take much, anyway so count me as happy as a monkey in a banana shop.) When I finished cleaning off the snow, I returned the blades down and pushed the arm back in its normal parked position.

Hope my little discovery comes in handy!

I had much the same experience with the wipers - and now the reference (thanks @Pointyears, I hadn't seen that in the manual) to how its supposed to work. I did notice the wipers move easily if the vehicle is not on but won't if the ignition is in the on position - hence the warning in the manual.
One thing I did notice is that snow/ice and leaf debris builds up around the wiper posts and is a bit of a pain to remove. Minor issue but so far about the the only negative I've come up with.

 

[commadorebob]

I know moving them to service position is the correct way to do it. But for the one time a year I move them manually to replace the blades, I don't think I'm going to tear them up.

 

[MightyMaverick]

I was told to never manually move the wiper arms since it'll put more strain on the wiper motor. One member taught me to do what you did beforehand which is to hit the quick pass wipe and turn the car off immediately once they hit the center of the windshield. Anytime I wash the car and it's time to clean the windows, that's the first thing I do.

However, I learned the hard way when I took it to the car wash over a month ago. I had the wipers propped up in the air but turned the car on accessory mode which caused the wipers to smack themselves back into position. Luckily, I managed to NOT crack the windshield, damage the wipers or chip the paint. It was a close call.

But yeah, it's a stupid design. German cars do it too. I once detailed an older Mercedes-Benz S-Class, same design. Complicated for the sake of being complicated.

 

[Cherokee]

I didn’t know people were still scraping windshields.

Get a ‘Frost Guard’
Google it.
Has mirror covers also.
Get the right size.

 

[SorryDad]

I had much the same experience with the wipers - and now the reference (thanks @Pointyears, I hadn't seen that in the manual) to how its supposed to work. I did notice the wipers move easily if the vehicle is not on but won't if the ignition is in the on position - hence the warning in the manual.
One thing I did notice is that snow/ice and leaf debris builds up around the wiper posts and is a bit of a pain to remove. Minor issue but so far about the the only negative I've come up with.

When initially discovering I couldn't just lift the blade off the windshield, I'd figured that hitting the quick pass wipe and immediately shutting off the vehicle would be the workaround, as stated initially in my post. It was during the snow cleaning process as I put my hand below the passenger side parked blade that it move up slightly - no resistance. I then decided to give it a little more gentle lift to see how much play was available - and it was sufficient to just clear the top of the hood. That worked for me.

I've finally found other threads in this site expressing my "discovery" and the opinions are mixed: ok to do, don't do, etc.

Bottom line: don't go forcing things and you'll be fine. Besides, isn't the classic marketing tag line "Built Ford Tough"? I mean, if a little pressure on a wiper arm is going to cripple that system, then well, what can I say?

Otherwise, thanks everyone for your .02!

 

[First Sergeant]

When initially discovering I couldn't just lift the blade off the windshield, I'd figured that hitting the quick pass wipe and immediately shutting off the vehicle would be the workaround, as stated initially in my post. It was during the snow cleaning process as I put my hand below the passenger side parked blade that it move up slightly - no resistance. I then decided to give it a little more gentle lift to see how much play was available - and it was sufficient to just clear the top of the hood. That worked for me.

I've finally found other threads in this site expressing my "discovery" and the opinions are mixed: ok to do, don't do, etc.

Bottom line: don't go forcing things and you'll be fine. Besides, isn't the classic marketing tag line "Built Ford Tough"? I mean, if a little pressure on a wiper arm is going to cripple that system, then well, what can I say?

Otherwise, thanks everyone for your .02!

I've been doing the manual, lift them off the windshield thing since new, over two years. Easy does it, then push them back. No problems so far. I would be more concerned about them in extreme ice conditions, hit the wiper switch and tearing things up. Kind of like my old 67 Dodge Charger, where I ripped blades off, bent some things and motor quit working (stuck). Don't remember, I think it blew a fuse.

 

[Tim d]

Ok, so this is probably going to be a "no-kidding, Sherlock" post to the readers but I've had my Maverick since September and really starting to love this thing. One of my disappointments has been that I've grown accustomed to past vehicles owned where the windshield wiper blades could be lifted off the windshield, with the blades in the "parked" position. It's especially important living in a snowy area as it helps to put them up before a snowstorm, and thus easier to clean later. The way they are designed is they sit well below the hood, and thus cannot be lifted. My workaround has been to hit the quick pass wipe and immediately shut off the car once they cleared far enough where they could then be pulled away.

That all changed today - by accident.

We had snow last night and I forgot to put the blades up beforehand. As I was cleaning the passenger side, I happened to push up on the wiper arm when I noticed I could push it up as far as I wanted to clear the hood line - thus, being able to lift the blade right off the windshield! It's a silly thing but that made me happy! (Doesn't take much, anyway so count me as happy as a monkey in a banana shop.) When I finished cleaning off the snow, I returned the blades down and pushed the arm back in its normal parked position.

Hope my little discovery comes in handy!

Can you show a pic? I thought the blades couldn't clear the hood....

 

[Rileyotta]

Ok, so this is probably going to be a "no-kidding, Sherlock" post to the readers but I've had my Maverick since September and really starting to love this thing. One of my disappointments has been that I've grown accustomed to past vehicles owned where the windshield wiper blades could be lifted off the windshield, with the blades in the "parked" position. It's especially important living in a snowy area as it helps to put them up before a snowstorm, and thus easier to clean later. The way they are designed is they sit well below the hood, and thus cannot be lifted. My workaround has been to hit the quick pass wipe and immediately shut off the car once they cleared far enough where they could then be pulled away.

That all changed today - by accident.

We had snow last night and I forgot to put the blades up beforehand. As I was cleaning the passenger side, I happened to push up on the wiper arm when I noticed I could push it up as far as I wanted to clear the hood line - thus, being able to lift the blade right off the windshield! It's a silly thing but that made me happy! (Doesn't take much, anyway so count me as happy as a monkey in a banana shop.) When I finished cleaning off the snow, I returned the blades down and pushed the arm back in its normal parked position.

Hope my little discovery comes in handy!

Am I safe to put my wipers in this service position overnight, and then use my auto start in the morning? Or will my wipers try to out themselves back into their regular position and damage things?

 

[Atlas Blue Angel]

I had much the same experience with the wipers - and now the reference (thanks @Pointyears, I hadn't seen that in the manual) to how its supposed to work. I did notice the wipers move easily if the vehicle is not on but won't if the ignition is in the on position - hence the warning in the manual.
One thing I did notice is that snow/ice and leaf debris builds up around the wiper posts and is a bit of a pain to remove. Minor issue but so far about the the only negative I've come up with.

I agree with your assessment of that wiper post area. It's deep, and there's no clear path for you to brush the snow out of that area. It's the same problem for me when the pine tree beside the house is shedding, and the area fills with needles. it's also where the intake for the cabin airflow is, which can't be covered or the heater/defroster won't work properly.

 

[Waterick]

Am I safe to put my wipers in this service position overnight, and then use my auto start in the morning? Or will my wipers try to out themselves back into their regular position and damage things?

No, DO NOT use auto start or out even put accessory power back on vehicle prior to returning the blades to the down position. You risk damaging the paint on the hood edge as well as possible damage to the windshield as blades will be slapped back onto the windshield.

 

[MaverickDragon]

I agree with your assessment of that wiper post area. It's deep, and there's no clear path for you to brush the snow out of that area. It's the same problem for me when the pine tree beside the house is shedding, and the area fills with needles. it's also where the intake for the cabin airflow is, which can't be covered or the heater/defroster won't work properly.

Pour some warm water over that area. It does a great job at snow/ice removal.

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