Intermittent Wipers backwards
 

Has anyone noticed on their BRZ limited that the intermittent wipers are backwards? The wiper frequency increases when I rotate the dial back towards me, and the arrow is pointing at the small side of the spectrum. Are there any quick fixes for this, or is it a dealer thing?

I'd suggest you just get used to it ......:)

How about ........ when the arrow is pointing to the "shorter" lines .... this means "a shorter " time between wipes ... :)


humfrz

There are some compromises when making a worldwide platform.

Could be worse... The JPN spec Del Sol I had while living in the UK had both stalks swapped so the indicators we're on the opposite side. Talk about mind being blown when driving that car and going back and forth with an UK Accord that was normal!

All fair, but I feel like a brand new car from the factory shouldn't even have minor issues like that. I'll keep looking into it, it's probably pretty easy to correct.

This isn't an issue, your car works correctly, check your owners manual, it will say the same thing.

I'm afraid there is a loose nut behind the wheel, tighten it up and the problem will go away.

Recalibrate the throttle actuator.

It's not an issue. It functions the way it was designed to and its accurate based on the increasing symbol of the stalk.

Threaten the dealership with lemonlaws.

Depending on brand, the intermittent adjustment is one way or another. It's not a screw up, it's just the way certain brands do it simply because there isn't a standard.

Glad that I'm not the only one that thought it was backwards at first. It's a complete 180 of how my 2012 Toyota Corolla stalk works (even though it's identical in shape and size). Although it makes more sense now, shorter indication, shorter interval. I have learned to live with it.

It's not an "issue."

The indicator on the stalk is not an arrow. It's a line.

At the bottom end the line is thin, indicating that at this position the delay between wipes is small. Turning the knob counter-clockwise makes the wipers work faster.

At the top end the line is fat, indicating that at this position the delay between wipes is large. Turning the knob clockwise makes the wipers work slower.

It doesn't matter how other cars are set up. There is no "standard" way of configuring the wiper control. This is how this one is set up, and if you go looking for a "fix" for something that isn't broken, you'll make yourself look ridiculous.

A+ thread, would read again

I was hoping that there was a way to reverse it. The RAV4 is the opposite direction; it's confusing switching between the two cars.

And all this time, I thought it was Toyota thing.

It's also reversed from my '02 WRX, so why did Subaru and Toyota mess with this, when both of their earlier cars were the opposite?

Wow talk about your First World Problems!
Here is what you do:
1 - Turn on delay
2 - If wrong turn other direction
Total elapsed time between determination of error and completed corrective action <2 seconds.

The question IS:
does the "increasing" direction of the knob increase the frequency (f) of the wipes, or increase the period (P) between wipes?

since f = 1/P.

I'll admit it drove me insane for weeks after switching from my STi, but I did get used to it eventually. Why you think it's a problem is beyond me.

My FR-S works the same way. Wife's TC is backwards.

I assumed it was a Subaru thing since it is opposite of my previous Prius v, previous 4Runner, and current RAV4.


Sent from Tandy 400

CT200h has the same stock but is opposite as well.

The BRZ/FRS is the correct direction according to the stalk itself, the CT is backasswards.

Talk about much ado about nothing.
I submit that if the direction the wiper knob turned drove you insane, the trip was already short enough that you probably could have just walked.

There you have it.

Proof for all the Toyota fans, Subaru builds this car.

Wait, wut?

What do you guys do when you get to a car where the headlights aren't on the turn signal stalk? Assume the fetal position?

.

Was a bit of an adjustment after having the adjustment the opposite way on my previous 2 cars. But nothing to cry to Toyota about. Oddly enough, both my 04 Camry (RIP) and my mom's 13 Rav4 (RIP) both have the opposite adjustment to the FR-S.

As far as I can tell, the wiper switch from an '09-'11 Camry (or Corolla, Solara, Tacoma or Tundra for certain years) should be a direct substitute for the switch in our twins, and would make the adjustment consistent with all the Hondas and Toyotas I've had reason to use intermittent wipers on.

part# 84652-02610

There appear to be new replacement switches for under $35 on eBay, which I presume are third-party rather than OEM parts. I don't know if these would behave the same as the Camry, or if they're actually the same as the twins and sold as different-but-usable substitute. They're cheap enough I might just buy one to see.

Apparently the switch used on prior years of these models, part# 84642-04141 behaves the same as the knob on our cars. I've just confirmed, the '07 Camry (and also '04 Camry which uses yet another earlier switch) owners manuals both say:
In contrast, the corresponding diagram and text of the 2011 Camry Owner's manual shows the opposite, consistent with what I've come to expect.

Somehow Toyota saw it more appropriate to reverse things around 2009, give or take a year depending on model, but that decision never carried over to our cars.

It looks like there's one more part number in the mix, 84652-02710. The markings on the 02610 stalk are the same as on our cars, with small triangles and a windshield icon to indicate mist/int/low/high. The earlier 04141 part appears to have used text instead of icons. Oddly, the later 02710 part number seems to have reverted to the older markings, with text rather than icons, but reportedly, its knob functions the same as the 02610 part.

For reference, see: https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/...switch.241722/

I mean... use the wipers once, see that thicker line equals more delay and not more wiping, map that information to your brain.

Never think of it again.

Problem solved.

???

Might work if you have a single car. Both of my other cars work the other (more intuitive*) way so it always takes mental energy in the BRZ...

* more intuitive for me because it follows righty-tighty/lefty-loosy - tighten to get faster wipes, loosen to get slower wipes. The BRZ is the other way around and I struggle to translate that to "tighten to get more delay between wipes, loosen to get less delay".

I'm sure Wataru Akiyama has something to say about mental energy. LOL

Agree 100%. Apparently, so does Toyota, given they've switched other models of cars to work this way, and not, so far as I'm aware, switched any the other way.

I ordered one of these switches from Amazon to check out - just under $25. The listing gives the -02610 part number, and the intermittent wipe knob does correspond to what I expect for that part number (opposite what our factory wiper switch is). The wipe intervals seem to be a bit more frequent than our factory switches, but then I found the slowest settings on our factory switches to be too slow to be useful, so this may actually be an improvement.

It is indeed third-party; none of the usual inscriptions are present on the plastic. OEM uses delrin for the housing of the base (where the detents are) but the aftermarket part appears to be some other (probably cheaper, less durable) resin. The circuit board inside is also different, using transistors in a smaller form-factor, and different routing, but the pin connections to the main switch body appear the same as OEM. So my impression is it's probably less durable than OEM, but OTOH, depending on what climate you live in, the switch may get used so infrequently you would never wear it out anyway.

Working the lever and knob a handful of times, it feels identical to OEM, and I think it would fit and function just fine. For anybody not hung up on things being OEM, I think the third-party switch is perfectly serviceable, and a good deal at 1/6th of new OEM price.

Replacement is pretty easy and doesn't require removing the steering wheel.

On further digging, 84652-12a20 appears to be also be appropriate. This is listed for 09-11 Camry, 09-13 Corolla, 08-12 Yaris, 11-12 Scion tC. Or if you want to feel better about what car it's from, it's also used for Lexus 11-13 CT200h, 08-10 ES350 and 10-12 HS250h.

I don't know what's different between -12a20 and -02610; possibly different suppliers, or internal design differences, but it seems like they'd be functionally interchangeable.

I picked up a used OEM -12A20 switch. The swipe rates seem to be a little different from the aftermarket -02610 switch, but between measuring the same -02610 switch a few weeks ago and doing so again today there was also a comparable difference. However, those differences are small compared to the difference from the Toyobaru wiper switch.

seconds per swipe:

Toyobaru: 4s, 9s, 15s, 20s
Aftermarket-02610: 13.7s, 11.7s, 7.5s, 4s
-12A20: 11s, 9s, 6s, 4s

Basically from each switch to the next, the slowest rate is dropped, and four speeds (intervals) are spread across the remaining range.


I've found the 20s interval to be so slow as to be practically useless. I haven't yet had real rain/mist to try try the -12A20 in to see if I might miss having something less frequent than 11s, but somehow I doubt it.