Wiper/washer operation

It is wintertime now, and with snow and salty roads here in Ohio (not often
yet), there is a problem with my 2002 SL windshield wiper/washer operation.

The wiper/washer operates in such sequence that when I pull the wiper/washer
level to wash the windshield, FIRST wipers make a sweep, and ONLY THEN it starts
spraying, making additional 3 wipes and then stop (assuming wipers are "OFF").
So it kind of bothers me that the FIRST wipe is always done on a dry dirty
windshield, which is not recommended.

Is it a malfunction of my wiper/washer or not? The Saturn was doing that right
from the beginning. My other car (Toyota, which also automatically wipes when
a washer is activated) always first sprays and only then wipes.

Thank you.

 

Hi, Jerry,
Well, I have owned a 70s Ford Maverick, an 81 Chevy Malibu, an 80s
Nissan Sentra, a 91 Mazda 626, a 93 Honda Accord, a 94 Saturn SL, and a 99
Saturn SL; I've driven a number of rental vehicles too numerous to mention,
and I can't remember ever seeing a car behave like your Toyota. They always
seem to make the first sweep before firing a spray.
Regards,
Steve

 

My 2 cents.

....if I remember correctly, the spray motor/pump is on as long as you hold
the stalk inward and when you release there's a few wiper strokes before the
cycle stops. The only delay I think that is happening at first is because
the spray motor/pump is getting the fluid down the line.

Of course I never use the wipers to clean a dirty, dry windshield. Besides
possibly scratching the windshield, it makes a hell of mess and really
pisses off the driver behind you.

 

I sent two emails to Saturn cust. service about that, here are their answers:

First: