LS430inDE.

Hi gang. I'm from the "other" part of town..lol, doing some research here and have a question.

I used the search tool but didn't find what I'm looking for.

Question---is the wiper blade replacement the same as it has been on the 400 and 430? Basically on those models, you need to turn the wipers ON, then OFF, so they come to rest somewhere on the windshield, and THEN you can replace the blade.

This is due to an oversight (my opinion) to the wiper arms are not able to pivot away from the windshield like 99% of all Japanese cars do, and like 10% of American cars..lol.

Seriously, do the wiper arms pivot away from the windshield, and also, are you very limited on the makes/brands of blades because the fittment/dimensions are so tight?

Thanks!

Mike_TX

I can't answer the rest of your questions, but I've always done the "on-off" thing to position wiper arms to a comfortable place to reach them. How else would you access the inside one?

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LS430inDE.

Which wiper arm are you calling the "inside" one? There's only 2 right? The drivers side and passenger side.

Does anyone here know if the wiper arms pivots away from the windshield?

Mike_TX

If you walk out and look at your car, you'll see which one is on the inside ... it's the one farthest from you, usually the driver's side wiper. The passenger side wiper is on the outside (as in, closest to the outside edge of the car). The driver's side wiper rests on the inside (as in, toward the center of the car). See - inside, outside.

The wipers on the LS460 do pivot, but they raise up only about 5 or 6 inches from the windshield.

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Johnny

I just replaced my wiper blades, and they are the easy-to-install type, with the two stainless steel bars. The two rubber blades 17" & 24" were about $15 from my Toyota/Lexus dealer. After a 1.5 years in service, the old blades showed no visible wear; I checked them using a 10X jeweler's loupe. The blade holders do not pull away very far from the window as the system is semi-concealed - which is probably why they last so long. It was a very simple replacement, but I will probably delay doing so a little longer next time.

LS430inDE.

I appreciate the reply but this is the first and I guarantee ONLY time that I will ever hear of wiper blades referred to inside and outside----as you depict their relation to the edge of the car. 100% of the time, during my past 25 years of vehicle maintenance, they've been called drivers side and passenger side from mechanics to diy'ers to the store placard/ordering guides and even my blonde girlfriend.

After all...if you step out of your car (or as you said "walk out") and look look at it, you ALSO have the forward wiper and the rear wiper. The forward (as in, forward = closest to the edge of your tummy) and rear = behind the forward blade (as in, rear = furthest away from your tummy. The rear is behind the forward wiper. See - forward, rear.

Anyway.......you said they raise up about 5 to 6 inches from the windshield. Do they STAY in that raised up position/detent if you let the blade go or would they smack down onto the windshield?

Mike_TX

Hahaha. The whole thing about inside and outside was about your reference to turning the ignition on and off to reach them. I specified "inside" to denote the one hardest to reach without the on-off drill.

Otherwise I refer to them as drivers side and passenger side, too. I guess my analogy just failed.

Any way, the wipers do smack back down under spring pressure - they don't stay up. When you pull the wiper blade, just let the arm rest against a shop rag or something so it's not able to accidentally damage the glass. But I imagine you knew that.

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LS430inDE.

Cool. Thanks for the info Mike! I'm a little pissed they still are designed like this though. I was hoping they changed the design from the 430, and made them like 99% of all other Japanese cars, where the wiper arms fold/pivot up and away from the windshield, and STAY in that raised up position.