The Laughable & Ugly Wiper

[Crissa]

I remember one morning we got an unusual eastern storm at the end of a cold front. It hadn't gotten above 20F for days...

The entire east side of the house was under two inches of solid ice, including all our garage doors. We were living on the beach in Washington at the time, so the only direction the house wasn't designed to deal with wind was the east, all the normal doors were on that side.

The streets were an ice rink and as the sun came out, melt and the last drops of rain were pooling atop the hard ice that was embedded in the ground. The school bus spun out a block from my house as the storm switched to rain. I could just watch it from the ice-rippled window of my bedroom.

We had to chip the car that was outside free of ice, going from the aide that had less ice to the side that had more, it came off in a huge chunk as we warmed up the car.

The most dangerous part of ice is that edge between liquid and solid.

-Crissa

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[Spartacus]

Back to subject:
One item that hasn't been mentioned is the airflow disruption caused by a "wiper ditch" @ bottom of windshield/top of hood. Maybe they tried hard to keep drag to a minimum, explaining the wiper location?

 

[Mr. Keys]

Back to subject:
One item that hasn't been mentioned is the airflow disruption caused by a "wiper ditch" @ bottom of windshield/top of hood. Maybe they tried hard to keep drag to a minimum, explaining the wiper location?

Yup, agreed. The implementation has to maintain the smooth front when the wiper is hidden, and simply pop up the frunk slightly when the wiper is being used.

 

[HaulingAss]

Hard for me to imagine writing those questions in any more biased of a way lol - you really prefer the wiper visible?

Yep, even my Ford F-150 has two wipers visible. And it's the most popular truck in America. Ford (and other legacy manufacturers) know enough to keep their trucks simple, practical, reliable. Hiding the wipers away in a secret compartment with folding flap doors for an oddly important, and strangely vain aesthetic has been tried and rejected over half a century ago. And that was on a sports car, this is a truck!

 

[Mr. Keys]

Yep, even my Ford F-150 has two wipers visible. And it's the most popular truck in America. Ford (and other legacy manufacturers) know enough to keep their trucks simple, practical, reliable. Hiding the wipers away in a secret compartment with folding flap doors for an oddly important, and strangely vain aesthetic has been tried and rejected over half a century ago. And that was on a sports car, this is a truck!

Oh come on, don't compare to F-150 that's looked the same for like 100 years. This truck is named "Cybertruck", and has a completely flat front end. A BAW is not cyber, and is actually kinda backwards when compared to most high end cars that find ways to hide the wipers. Could they keep the wiper? Sure. Should they? Nope

 

[HaulingAss]

Oh come on, don't compare to F-150 that's looked the same for like 100 years. This truck is named "Cybertruck", and has a completely flat front end. A BAW is not cyber, and is actually kinda backwards when compared to most high end cars that find ways to hide the wipers. Could they keep the wiper? Sure. Should they? Nope

It's a truck, not a dainty fashion accessory that has to look a certain way. It's designed to accomplish a mission in a practical manner. That's what Americans like about trucks. Or did like about trucks before they became a suburban fashion accessory.

And, yes, the Cybertruck is a new aesthetic. That doesn't mean it has to be fussy and prissy. The market offers choices, I would encourage you to go with your favorite and not act like you are the only one who knows how it should be. Personally, I love the wiper and would be sad if they buried it under complex trap doors, etc.

If they did that, you know the naysayers would complain loudly how it won't work in freezing weather, that you need access to the wiper to prep them for driving. Come on, you know they would! Right?

It just so happens there no better place to access the wiper to clear ice or tree needles off it before you drive than right along the A-pillar. If you have ever owned a large truck you know how difficult it is to access the wipers mounted under the hood for winter de-icing or wiper blade replacement because the hood is so tall and wide.

 

[Mr. Keys]

It's a truck, not a dainty fashion accessory that has to look a certain way. It's designed to accomplish a mission in a practical manner. That's what Americans like about trucks. Or did like about trucks before they became a suburban fashion accessory.

And, yes, the Cybertruck is a new aesthetic. That doesn't mean it has to be fussy and prissy. The market offers choices, I would encourage you to go with your favorite and not act like you are the only one who knows how it should be. Personally, I love the wiper and would be sad if they buried it under complex trap doors, etc.

If they did that, you know the naysayers would complain loudly how it won't work in freezing weather, that you need access to the wiper to prep them for driving. Come on, you know they would! Right?

It just so happens there no better place to access the wiper to clear ice or tree needles off it before you drive than right along the A-pillar. If you have ever owned a large truck you know how difficult it is to access the wipers mounted under the hood for winter de-icing or wiper blade replacement because the hood is so tall and wide.

Ok, to each his own I suppose. I personally can't imagine a single situation where I would prefer to have a BAW instead of the hood opening a couple inches to let out the hidden wiper. Nothing dainty or fussy or prissy about that. Super badass and perfectly cyber actually

 

[Ogre]

Ok, to each his own I suppose. I personally can't imagine a single situation where I would prefer to have a BAW instead of the hood opening a couple inches to let out the hidden wiper. Nothing dainty or fussy or prissy about that. Super badass and perfectly cyber actually

It would be cool. Maybe they will do it on the Roadster where they have $250k+ to play with.

Even cooler would be keeping the price tag on the dual motor well below $60k.

 

[Deleted member 11233]

I don't know, that big wiper would make a pretty good "whacking stick" or melee weapon in a crowd.

 

[Mr. Keys]

It would be cool. Maybe they will do it on the Roadster where they have $250k+ to play with.

Even cooler would be keeping the price tag on the dual motor well below $60k.

I have no doubt it can be done without significant cost. 4 auto presenting doors is way harder and more expensive. I'd happily pay an extra 100 for it, as I'm sure most everyone would. The expensive wiper would last longer, there's efficiency savings that would add up after thousands of miles, the wiper would always be free of ice after a storm, it could never get caught on low hanging branches when going through woods, it's no longer in view, it looks way better, etc, etc. Lots of benefits really - very curious that this poll is trending the other way.

 

[Mr. Keys]

I don't know, that big wiper would make a pretty good "whacking stick" or melee weapon in a crowd.

Gotta love the Simpsons Let's see how many people Mr. Plow their Cybertrucks lol

 

[Ogre]

I have no doubt it can be done without significant cost. 4 auto presenting doors is way harder and more expensive. I'd happily pay an extra 100 for it, as I'm sure most everyone would. The expensive wiper would last longer, there's efficiency savings that would add up after thousands of miles, the wiper would always be free of ice after a storm, it could never get caught on low hanging branches when going through woods, it's no longer in view, it looks way better, etc, etc. Lots of benefits really - very curious that this poll is trending the other way.

There are a hundred items like “Hide the BAW” which are likely laid out on a spreadsheet and somewhere there is a bean counter and an engineer trying to figure out how many of them will make it into the final product while keeping the final cost sane.

The auto presenting doors are likely a cost **saving** measure. Door handles have to be engineered to take a lot of abuse and require reinforcing the door around it and cuts in the stainless steel panel which can be tricky.

We all have little priorities which might get the hatchet. My personal line item is the sail pillar storage. Others like the ramp. Still others like the idea of a midgate or roll down rear window. There are a bunch of giant threads on that last one. Spare tire?? Vehicle to vehicle charging? Rubberized/ waterproof floor mat? Second console for rear seat passengers? Removable back seats?

I agree… hidey for the wiper would be cool. But lots of things I would worry about adding before a hiding wiper.

That engineer/ accountant team are going to be sweating this list for some time.

 

[Mr. Keys]

There are a hundred items like “Hide the BAW” which are likely laid out on a spreadsheet and somewhere there is a bean counter and an engineer trying to figure out how many of them will make it into the final product while keeping the final cost sane.

The auto presenting doors are likely a cost **saving** measure. Door handles have to be engineered to take a lot of abuse and require reinforcing the door around it and cuts in the stainless steel panel which can be tricky.

We all have little priorities which might get the hatchet. My personal line item is the sail pillar storage. Others like the ramp. Still others like the idea of a midgate or roll down rear window. There are a bunch of giant threads on that last one. Spare tire?? Vehicle to vehicle charging? Rubberized/ waterproof floor mat? Second console for rear seat passengers? Removable back seats?

I agree… hidey for the wiper would be cool. But lots of things I would worry about adding before a hiding wiper.

That engineer/ accountant team are going to be sweating this list for some time.

If it makes the product better and in the long run saves people money without adding substantial cost, then it should be a no brainer in my opinion. Hidden wiper fits that bill. Of the things you mentioned I'd go with the midgate foldown as the one I'd most like to see myself.

 

[Warhawk123162]

Ok here’s my answer, someone tell me why this might not work and look better. Two rare earth magnets on a track at the top and bottom of the windshield inside the truck. The magnets travel back and forth the width of the window. That doesn’t seem like incredibly hard engineering. Then you can put a windshield wiper on the outside that would follow the magnets. A strip of UHMD poly under the wiper blade where it contacts the window. Bunch of engineering here to consider but Just thinking out loud. Did I just give away the intermittent wiper patent? Elon if your listening!!!!!!

 

[Sirfun]

Ok here’s my answer, someone tell me why this might not work and look better. Two rare earth magnets on a track at the top and bottom of the windshield inside the truck. The magnets travel back and forth the width of the window. That doesn’t seem like incredibly hard engineering. Then you can put a windshield wiper on the outside that would follow the magnets. A strip of UHMD poly under the wiper blade where it contacts the window. Bunch of engineering here to consider but Just thinking out loud. Did I just give away the intermittent wiper patent? Elon if your listening!!!!!!

Great idea. In addition to that, if it's magnetic, why not make it removable. Store the wiper in a sheath built into the frunk. Wiper would be like snow chains, use as needed. (This coming from someone living in California, where it hardly ever rains).

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