So the last year or so i have noticed a squeak when the right wiper returns to the cowl. anyone heard the squeak and figured out how to fix it?

 

New blades and don't use RainX. I love RainX but for some reason on these Rams I always end up with the squeaky wipers that jump around on the windshield. If you don't use RainX then it might just be time for new blades...

 

I use RainX and never noticed squeeky wipers unless the windshield is mostly dry. The best thing about RainX is if used on a regualr basis, you hardly ever have to use your wipers. I vote new blades or at least wipe off the ones you have and clean the windshield.

 

I'll vote for new blades as well. How old are they? Being from Oregon, I'll bet you have the chance to use them more than most!

 

Ha ha ha lol yes we DO!!!! they are really not that old. maybe a couple months. the weird thing is it will squeak during really rainy spots. i know what your saying about a dry wiper on a windshield, and it's definitely a mechanical sound, and comes from lower in the truck.....

i was hoping that someone else had already fixed this issue, but this wouldn't be the first time i pioneered something on this forum( the one piece drive line)

I have put 140k on the truck and i bet the wipers were going for at least 45,000 of them lol. so it wouldn't surprise me if a pivot point somewhere ran out grease and is now squeakin, i guess i just need to pop off that black cowl and take a look. Is that very hard get off?

 

Tinbanger,

I was driving down the highway in a light rain on the way to an OSU Football Game (GO BUCKS and Go DUCKS... It's about time you guys put USC in their place!) and my wipers started making a squeak... Within 10 miles or so the passenger side wiper stopped moving and I had a linkage just banging around under that black cowl. It sounded like someone trying to kick a hole through the dashboard! The truck only had about 20,000 miles on it at the time!!!

The cowl can be a little bit of a pain to remove by yourself if you are worried about the paint on the back edge of your hood, especially at the hood corners. If you want to avoid any paint removal, just put an old T-shirt over each of the back corners of the hood. Take out the two bolts on each end of the cowl and once its free you can wiggle it around enough to see how the two pieces (Driver Side and Passenger Side) of the cowl overlap and lock together with tabs.

Long story short, I removed the cowl to find that the long linkage bar that connects the drivers side wiper motor to the passenger side wiper had completely fallen off of the passenger side wiper arm. It's a simple ball and socket design and I could easily press it right back on, but it would fall off as soon as the truck moved or hit a bump. The sockets on both ends of the linkage were extremely dry and looked like they never even had lube from the factory.

Dodge got me a new linkage under the 3 Year 36,000 bumper to bumper warranty, but they broke the cowl when they went to inspect the damaged part and install the new linkage. Dodge refused to simply give me the new linkage or watch me instal it right in front of them at their service desk. Instead, they had some part time oil chage kid drive my truck around back (which I watched from the customer service window) who stalled the truck three times!!! Then I watched him try to figure out how the cowl comes off. He eventually pryed on it with a long pry bar. I watched it break the tabs off and fly appart, scratching my hood. Five minutes later I get the old friendly service guy handing me my keys and telling me it's ready to go. I walked immediately over to the truck and climbed up on the tire. I grabbed the cowl and it fell right off due to being broke and not properly re-installed. The service writer looked at me like I could see through walls and asked how I knew to check that out before I left. I then told him I watched the "tech" break it and pry it off my truck. He calls the tech up front and of course the "tech" doesn't know anything about it.

Two weeks later this "lucky" guy got to go in for a new warranty cowl... This time they pulled a real tech and the new cowl fell right in place, perfect.

If I would have pulled out from service the first time with that broken cowl placed back behind the hood, it 100% would have flown off once I got up to speed on the highway and caused an accident... This is why I never, ever let anyone work on my truck if possible. I just didn't want to shell out $100 for their stupid linkage, so I broke my own rule and settled for warranty work. Who would have thought such an easy 10 minute job would take Dodge two weeks and three different service appointments to fix and get right. I had the cowl off and correctly re-installed in my driveway with one tool in less than 5 minutes.

Sorry for the little rant, but obviously I want others to avoid the headache. Just eat the money, buy it yourself, fix it right, and keep their hands off your rig. It blows my mind that capable people even take their trucks in for real work like rear end pre-loads on differentials and engine work... These guys would strip out your oil drain plug if they thought too hard... I know there are some good techs out there and I have a couple friends who are 100% trustworthy and qualified, but like everything else in life, a few bad ones make it look bad for the whole group.

 

holy cr@p thats a story! well thank you for the info sounds pretty straight forward. easier than a 7.3 turbo install that i did today, i hate FORDS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!

 

Not sure if you're talking about a squeak or wiper blade chatter, but I'll weigh-in.

If chatter and if only in one direction, your wiper arm may be twisted slightly. If the blade is not 90 degrees of the glass, then the side with the larger degree...lets say 100 degrees will be quiet...and the side with the 80 degrees will fight the glass and chatter. Hope that makes sense. So take a look and if necessary, twist the wiper arm in the necessary direction to get the blade 90 degrees again. BE CAREFUL - small adjustments with a pliers usually does the trick.

Aside from that, it could be old wipers. If the rubber is dry, stiff and worn - its going to fight the glass. I've got the best set-up pretty much ever: Trico NeoForm (beam blades) that have a teflon coating for lubercation and I use them in combination with aquapel glass treatment. Although with the aquapel I don't even need my wipers over 45mph, when I do use them my wipers wipe like big dogs and are as quiet as a mouse!!

 

This might help.
TSB 23-014-06
Windshield Wiper Blade/Element Maintenance

http://dodgeram.info/tsb/2006/23-014-06.htm