How to Replace Windshield Wiper Arm 1999-2011 Volkswagen Jetta

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In this video, we're going to show you how to remove and reinstall the wiper arm. This is a 2005 Volkswagen Jetta, and it's pretty much the same for the Jetta, Golf, and Passat. For this repair, you'll need a 13mm socket and ratchet, or a wrench would work as well. You may need penetrating oil and a wiper arm removal tool. You'll see one of my arms comes off easily and the other arm is a little bit more difficult to remove. You'll need a pick or a small flat blade screwdriver.

Release your hood on the driver's side right underneath. Just pull. Then there's a lever up underneath. Pull it up and then pull your hood up. At the base of your wiper, near the pivot point, there's just a little black cap. Use a pick or a small flat blade screwdriver, and pry the cap up, and there's a 13mm nut underneath, and same thing on the passenger side, wiper with a 13mm socket and ratchet. You might want to hold on to the wiper arm and loosen up the nuts. Then they'll come off pretty easily once you get them loose.

To remove the wiper arms, hopefully you can just push down on the base of the wiper, and you'll see my driver's side works free. I try the same thing on the passenger side, but unfortunately I can see some corrosion and rust on that side; it does not come free. I will try a little bit of penetrating spray and then go back to it. After attempting to break it free by hand, I was unsuccessful. I pull that weather strip back a little bit, which lets me move the cowl panel a little bit. Then that is a wiper arm removal tool. It's just a little clamp with a bolt on top. The bolt drives down on to the stud of the wiper transmission and then the clamp pulls the wiper arm up and off. There you can hear it break loose. I'll pull it a little bit more and I'll take the tool off and pull the wiper arm up and off.

If you need to change your blades over to your new wiper arms, you twist the blade and pull it off and then put it back on the stud and twist it into place.

If you've done any work on the wipers, you'll want to, with the hood closed, turn on the engine and cycle the wipers a couple of times to make sure you get them down into the parked position.

Now you want to put the wiper arms back in place. You can use the dust marks that are on the windshield to just line it up in the same place. You basically want to have it about an inch off that cowl panel. The passenger is in place, and then same thing on the driver's side. You want to have about an inch up off the cowl panel. Now put the 13mm nuts that hold them in place back in place. Then tighten those up. You want to tighten them down gradually, and then you want to tighten them nice and firm. Probably about 20-25 foot-pounds. The pressure from those nuts hold the wiper arm on to the teeth of the gears of the wiper transmission, so they need to be pretty tight. Once you have the nuts tightened up, put those plastic caps back on.

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How to Replace Windshield Wiper Arm 1999-2011 Volkswagen Jetta

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step 2 :Changing the Blades

step 3 :Installing the New Wiper Arm

Tools needed

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How to Replace Windshield Wiper Arm 1999-2011 Volkswagen Jetta

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step 2 :Changing the Blades 2:36

step 3 :Installing the New Wiper Arm 3:08

Tools needed

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