Just a quickie to see if I can fix this in the half hour of daylight left between getting the kids to sleep and it going dark...

Are the 2001 Fabia wiper arms on splined spindles or smooth spindles?:confused:

I ask because after having the windscreen replaced a couple of weeks ago the drivers side wiper now hits the winscreen surround. I've not been bothered up until the other day but with the recent weather it's driving me nuts.

PS I did a search but didn;t spot anything definitive so gave up and asked!

If it's the same as the Octy and VW Bora then yes they will be on splines.

If they have been off recently then should be a piece of cake to alter.

I think from memory when you take the nut cover off then a 10mm socket or spanner is all you need.

HTH.

They are, had the same problem recently myself.

I've had this as well on my 05. They are on splines and mine were seized on- I had to buy a puller (which only lasted just about long enough!- they were *tight*). I coppereased them and cleaned up the splines before refitting.

I've had this as well on my 05. They are on splines and mine were seized on- I had to buy a puller (which only lasted just about long enough!- they were *tight*). I coppereased them and cleaned up the splines before refitting.

I 2nd that. I also recommend using another nut to stop the pulley slipping off. If you use the original you might chew the threads. They arms are on TIGHT!

Thank you - it sounds like I need to move both round one spline and if they have been off I should be OK but we'll see (I'll maybe get a puller on the way home just in case).

No need for a puller. Slacken the nut off, raise the arm to the up position and rock it from side to side. The splines are on a taper, so it only needs to move a little to release.

:agree: A lot of people make the mistake of trying to get them off with the wiper arm down, which puts a sideways pressure on them and means you aren't pulling in line with the spindle. Raising the arm as Si says takes that pressure off and they usually pop up fairly easily.

13mm nut that holds them on.

OK another slight issue - the wipers when parked are currently only about an inch from the plastic trim panel at the base of the windscreen - I get the feeling that moving the arms on the splines will mean that the wi[ers when parked will actually sit ON the trim panel. So any other suggestions? - worn mechanism perhaps? - any parts that could be changed?

PS Car has Valeo retrofit aero wipers on standard arms.

Also can someone measure where thier wipers sit please for comparison. ie upper end of drivers wiper in relation to plastic trim panel/top of windscreen and passenger edge of windscreen.

No need for a puller. Slacken the nut off, raise the arm to the up position and rock it from side to side. The splines are on a taper, so it only needs to move a little to release.

That was the case on my A3 and the wife's Lupo, but trust me, the fabia ones would not shift without the puller, and the puller got damaged as well. They were *very* tight. There was a fair bit of corrosion on the splines, literally sticking them on- rocking the arm just flexed the spindle and/or the panel below.

Doing what you describe worked first time on the other cars, but they didn't move at all on the Fabia- even though it was much younger than the A3 or Lupo.

Well I tried earlier today and could only just get the 13mm nut undone - the wiper arms themselves are definitley not going to come off without a puller though as it's difficult enough to get the arm up with the bonnet position!

Will watch this one with interest Mark, as I have the same problem with the driver's blade hitting the A-pillar. Think it might be because I'm using the slightly longer Bosch aero blade that's available. It never did this with the std blades on.

So think I'll just go with the shorter version when they're due for replacement, rather than mess about with the arms themselves.

Steve

OK a quick update...

I have given up on trying to get the arms off for the moment... boy are they well stuck on!

So, having had a closer look it seems the problem has been created by two things:

The first is a change to Valeo Aero wiper blades rather than Bosch ones. The end caps and metal splines on the Valeos sit closer to the windscreen than the Bosch ones so are more likely to hit the winscreen surround anyway.

Secondly, having had the windscreen replaced I've now noticed the curvature side on is sligtly different to the original so, whilst it is fine it does sit slightly deeper into it's recess, meaning the winscreen surround sits a bit higher from the screen than previously.

The above two in combination means that the end cap of the wiper blade hits the windscreen surround.

My current solution has therefore been somewhat heath robinson and has involved using my trusty multitool to pare off the side and base of the wiper blade end cap. This has removed maybe 5mm off the side of the end of the blade and, touch wood, seems to be working. All I need to do now is try it on the motorway to be certain!