[Arun Varma]

I find that an unobstructed view of the rear is critical and the rear washer and wiper is an absolute must! I echo the distress one of the members voiced seeing many cars with pillows and toys blocking the visibility of the rear view! Some cars come with an active rear view camera that shows what's happening in the back of the car through the head unit. While they are useful, I believe that they cannot supplant the view through the rear windshield. So yes, I think they should be made mandatory in all cars with an upright design.

[RGK]

I had Figo without rear wipers and it was very painful to do a reverse during the rainy season (I used to get down and have quick look before doing the reverse). Presently in my ES, the rear wiper does the job nicely and have a sensor-based reverse assist.

Retrofitting the rear wiper is a painful job and may need a lot of alterations.

[Naztone]

I have both a sedan (Fiesta 1.6S) and a hatchback (Alto K10) - The el cheapo Alto does not come with a rear wiper and in the monsoons the rear window turns almost opaque drastically affecting visible objects to the rear.

So yes - a rear wash n wipe should definitely be mandatory for hatchback / SUVs.

[TheCarLover]

I have faced the issue in my first car which was a base model and without rear wipers it was a pain in rainy days.

I made sure that my second car would have it.

I would in-fact recommend of having a wiper for sedans. I own one and the moment dust accumulates while driving or in rain, the rear visibility takes a beating.

I do not believe since sedans are more aerodynamically shaped that the rain water is going to disperse better.

With what I have experienced, I would want to have rear wipers for sedans as well.

[pcpranav]

Having wiper and washer-spray is always better, but still not the perfect solution. Also important to have water filled in the reservoir ! Preferably, water mixed with some cleaner - shampoo, specific liquids etc. And dont forget to annually replace the wiper blades (psst I have seen tons of vehicles with torn blades !)

The wiper would only clean the circular area, leaving the surrounding area still unclean. Especially, if muck is splashed or dirt accumulated then area outside wiper's scope is very bad to see through. In this case, periodically we need to have a nice cleanup of the whole rear windshield during the trip itself - could be stopping at a fuel bunk / dhaba - which would hardly take a minute.
Meanwhile, before starting a ride, I would anyways give a quick cleanup on the windshield.
Next is the washer's spray - in some vehicles its nicely sprayed along lines of wiper's scope (my earlier Xylo was good). However in some vehicles the water dispensing mechanism is very bad, just oozing water in center line without spreading (my current Fortuner 3.0 is an example)

Also the rear defogger (those heating filament lines in glass) are also helpful, but that feature is also not available in many models. To make matter worst, some people apply dark films on the rear windshield, this lessens the visibility even without rains!!

Long back I had a scenario in another car, rear wiper was not working (some motor issue if I recall). Since it started pouring heavily when I was returning from office, I stopped at a paan shop, got 2 packets of dry tobacco leaves and rubbed over the wet windshield. This did a bit help to clear the water while I was driving slowly to reach home. My hands were stinking crazy because of that tobacco, hahaha.

In few other cases without rear wiper, I have used Rain-x and found very effective (tried on SUV, Sedan, Hatchback cars). In any case, the key is manually cleaning the whole windshield Before the trip starts, and also during the trip as needed.
Often I have stepped out of car in running rains, doing a super quick (30 sec) wipe on glass with a tissue - in moderate rains I encounter only some water over myself which is far better case than driving with bad visibility.

These days there many coatings available (eg. ceramic) which Im sure would perform better than applying Rain-x with bare hands. In absence of rear wiper, I may recommend doing this coating to get some benefits.

Summarizing, it should be a company fitted rear wiper and defogger in all models. Certain aspects should be "model" specific.

regards,

[NovemberKing_91]

I wrote to Tata explaining the issue and requesting a solution. I hope they come up with some recommendations, for this can be a part of a safety feature.
Let's see how they respond, if they do.
Until, then, we keep brainstorming and keep loads of newspapers handy

[Rolling_Stock]

One thing is about prioritizing the right features your need in vehicle. Basics Vs Gizmos. Hence, choose a variant that enhances your drivability.

On long drives, I deliberately keep all stuff in the boot.
It creates opportunity to stop and get down from the car (compulsive pit-stop) to retrieve things as an when needed. It gives a much needed break.

Another smart approach if your are too lazy, is to take help from wife to retrieve things during stops. When she is about to get down, hand over a couple of tissues and request her services to wipe-off the muck on the rear windshield.

[rst89]

As everyone has said, rear wiper along with rear defogger are important safety features that all cars must have but in name of saving money, OEMs don't put it.

If there is rear washer, it's well and good.

Our government needs to come up with stronger safety norms, if they are not able to frame them, blindly follow the European norms minus ADAS features.

[bled_soul]

When I was looking to buy a new car for myself back in 2019, venue was thrown out of consideration for the ride quality majorly, but one of the other vital reasons was the lack of rear wash wipe on its top end auto variant. Having owned a wiperless hatchback before, then upgrading to one with a rear wash wipe, I was certain that I didn't want to live the whole opaque rear windshield life yet again. Ecosport being a more engaging car overall while having a proper top end auto, sealed the deal further for me. Got the last piece in mumbai with sync3, post which ford removed sync3 from automatic (don't know why, but happy I didn't make the cut. :P)

[rideon74]

One of the first and most important features when I was hunting for a new compact SUV was the rear wiper feature. With our climatic conditions, we can do without ADAs or some other features, but the rear visibility when reversing is a must.

[sbm]

What stops them from offering option where customers can choose features or atleast feature packs for their car? I know they want to push people towards the higher variants but wouldn't people be more inclined towards a car that offers customization option rather than the one that pushes them towards top end only for one feature that they really need?

[NovemberKing_91]

Hi all,

I received a response from the Tata Team saying that no provision for retrofitting is available at the TML authorized service centres yet, but a request for fitting this as an accessory was raised to the appropriate team.
I doubt there will be much headway in this fashion.

I ll try to reach out to people in higher echelons of the Tata Motors management to see if I can get their attention. In the meantime, if anyone else is also game, please do send out enquiry emails to your respective car manufacturers asking for a retrofit of rear windshield wipers on a safety front.

Cheers!

[Kosfactor]

Originally Posted by NovemberKing_91

Hi all,

I received a response from the Tata Team saying that no provision for retrofitting is available at the TML authorized service centres yet, but a request for fitting this as an accessory was raised to the appropriate team.
I doubt there will be much headway in this fashion.

I ll try to reach out to people in higher echelons of the Tata Motors management to see if I can get their attention. In the meantime, if anyone else is also game, please do send out enquiry emails to your respective car manufacturers asking for a retrofit of rear windshield wipers on a safety front.

Cheers!

The wiring harness, wiper stalk, rear glass and even the metal stamping of the rear hatch can be different for a model with \ without rear windshield wiper.

No OEM will be receptive to the idea of retrofitting features from higher end models, they may as well sell you the higher model with all the necessary features at a fair price.

[NovemberKing_91]

Originally Posted by Kosfactor

The wiring harness, wiper stalk, rear glass and even the metal stamping of the rear hatch can be different for a model with \ without rear windshield wiper.

No OEM will be receptive to the idea of retrofitting features from higher end models, they may as well sell you the higher model with all the necessary features at a fair price.

Fair point there! I am in for spearheading a management change, where they agree to have the base model too fitted with rear wipers and washers. If they can manage to provide 2 airbags, ESP, ABS from the base variant, how much more, per car would it cost to have the rear wiper and washer in place?

[Kosfactor]

Originally Posted by NovemberKing_91

Fair point there! I am in for spearheading a management change, where they agree to have the base model too fitted with rear wipers and washers. If they can manage to provide 2 airbags, ESP, ABS from the base variant, how much more, per car would it cost to have the rear wiper and washer in place?

Possible if there is demand, but there is significant cost involved. You can check out the retrofits BHPians have done for their vehicle, it was not cheap at all.

You need wiring harness, defogger equipped rear glass, wash bottle, pump, nozzle, wiper mechanism itself to name a few. An OEM fitted one will also activate automatically when you are reversing the vehicle when front wipers are on. So connection to BCM too is needed.

Like EBD, CSC etc, ESC is now part of ABS module. Eventually as the ABS module gets upgraded to new generation, ESC will come standard in most vehicles down the line.