# Sedans don't have rear window wipers? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 16, 2015, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515 "2015-09-16T22:27:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2015, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/1 "2015-09-16T22:27:47Z")
I brought in my Mazda for some routine service and ran into the guy who sold it to me. I told him the only thing I wasn’t crazy about was that it doesn’t have a rear window wiper. He looked a bit puzzled and said, “Sedans don’t get a rear wiper.” And he said it in a manner suggesting that nobody makes sedans with rear wipers. This was a completely novel idea to me, but my decidedly non-scientific observations seem to be confirming it. I’ve seen them on almost every type car, including hatchbacks, wagons, SUVs, and vans. The _only_ four door sedans that I’ve seen that have a rear wiper are a bunch of Priuses(sp?). And I’m not even sure it’s classed as a sedan. The Toyota website doesn’t refer to it as a sedan. A bit of online research comes up with a bunch of sites agreeing that sedans don’t get rear wipers. Most of them seem to agree that sedans don’t need them because, unlike a hatchback, a sedan has a smooth enough airflow over the roof to keep the window reasonably clean. But none of these were any more authoritative than any other – all in special interest message boards. Nothing more authoritative than opinion. What is the truth of the matter? ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2015, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/2 "2015-09-16T22:33:43Z")
A lot of sedans don’t come with rear wipers but that doesn’t mean all. [Here](http://l.yimg.com/dv/i/ci/710/mazda-2008-05-15/08_m6_ext02.jpg) is a Mazda 6 with one. Best advice is not to listen to people who work at auto dealerships, especially when they try to make you seem ignorant. ---
**Author:** ![dolphinboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dolphinboy/32/330_2.png) [@dolphinboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dolphinboy)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2015, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/3 "2015-09-16T22:34:31Z")
“… sedans don’t need them because, unlike a hatchback, a sedan has a smooth enough airflow over the roof to keep the window reasonably clean.” That’s the answer I was going to give. Why does it sound incredible? ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2015, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/4 "2015-09-16T22:34:47Z")
It seems to be a trunk thing: any car that has a trunk does not have a rear wiper. This is probably because the typical trunk lid might collide with the wiper arm pivot. They can and I think do make trunk lids that would never be an issue for the wiper arm, but tradition seems to be dissuading them from doing that. Do the Priuses that have rear wipers have unified hatches that open the trunk and rear window together? ---
**Author:** ![WF\_Tomba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d9b06d/32.png) [@WF\_Tomba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WF_Tomba)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2015, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/5 "2015-09-16T22:38:29Z")
Priuses are hatchbacks, except for the early, pre-2005 models. And those didn’t have rear windshield wipers. I think it’s mostly a matter of aesthetics. People aren’t used to seeing rear wipers on a sedan, so it would look “ugly” to them. ---
**Author:** ![Suburban\_Plankton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suburban_plankton/32/219_2.png) [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2015, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/6 "2015-09-16T22:40:11Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > A lot of sedans don’t come with rear wipers but that doesn’t mean all. > > [Here](http://l.yimg.com/dv/i/ci/710/mazda-2008-05-15/08_m6_ext02.jpg) is a Mazda 6 with one. I’d call that a hatchback, rather than a sedan. To me a sedan has a trunk, and I’ve never seen one with a rear wiper. ---
**Author:** ![GreasyJack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@GreasyJack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreasyJack)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2015, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/7 "2015-09-16T22:48:09Z")
The issue isn’t so much that the clean laminar airflow over the back window of a sedan keeps the rain off, it’s that the areas of lower pressure turbulent air behind the rear of a hatchback or wagon tends to pull in road grime and get the window dirty. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2015, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/8 "2015-09-16T22:53:43Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > A lot of sedans don’t come with rear wipers but that doesn’t mean all. > > [Here](http://l.yimg.com/dv/i/ci/710/mazda-2008-05-15/08_m6_ext02.jpg) is a Mazda 6 with one. > > Best advice is not to listen to people who work at auto dealerships, especially when they try to make you seem ignorant. Can you tell me something about the origin of the pic? The rear wiper isn’t listed among the standard or optional items for the 6, or the sedan version of the 3. I wonder if it’s something custom. Of course, maybe it a model from a prior year. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2015, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/9 "2015-09-16T22:56:08Z")
> [@Suburban\_Plankton](#): > > I’d call that a hatchback, rather than a sedan. To me a sedan has a trunk, and I’ve never seen one with a rear wiper. I would call it a sedan. You can see the breaks in the panel that outlines the trunk. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2015, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/10 "2015-09-16T23:03:46Z")
> [@dolphinboy](#): > > “… sedans don’t need them because, unlike a hatchback, a sedan has a smooth enough airflow over the roof to keep the window reasonably clean.” > > That’s the answer I was going to give. Why does it sound incredible? It doesn’t sound incredible, it’s just a whole new concept that hadn’t hit me before. I didn’t expect that my lamentation of an accessory my car lacks would lead to some universal truth about car design was – that was odd, as was my failure to confirm or deny it through Googling with my Googly eyes. . ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2015, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/11 "2015-09-16T23:08:18Z")
Thanks for calling my attention to an everyday phenomenon that I’d never thought about before (i.e. which types of vehicles do and do not have rear window wipers). This sent me to [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windscreen_wiper#Rear_wipers) > [@](#): > > Some vehicles are fitted with wipers (with or without washers) on the back window as well. Rear-window wipers are typically found on hatchbacks, station wagons / estates, sport utility vehicles, minivans, and other vehicles with more vertically-oriented rear windows that tend to accumulate dust. First offered in the 1940s, they achieved widespread popularity in the 1970s after their introduction on the Porsche 911 in 1966 and the Volvo 145 in 1969 which sent me to this page: [The Rear Wiper: A Vital Strand of Porsche DNA](https://autouniversum.wordpress.com/2015/04/30/the-rear-wiper-a-vital-strand-of-porsche-dna/) > [@](#): > > By the mid-1970s, rear wipers became ubiquitous on hatchbacks, estates and station wagons. Such body styles were particularly good candidates for such a feature; with their lack of a rear deck their back glass invariably collects more rear-tyre road spray. Both sites seem to confirm **GreasyJack** ’s explanation: that sedans’ rear windows don’t tend to get dirty to the same extent as hatchbacks’ and minivans’. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Angry\_Badger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b38774/32.png) [@The\_Angry\_Badger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Angry_Badger)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2015, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/12 "2015-09-16T23:11:27Z")
> [@Suburban\_Plankton](#): > > I’d call that a hatchback, rather than a sedan. To me a sedan has a trunk, and I’ve never seen one with a rear wiper. Agreed. Definitely a hatch, IMO. The only sedan (well, saloon in the UK) car I ever remember seeing with a rear wiper was the Ford Orion, back in the nineties. It looked a little odd, really, not a good addition: [https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5095/5462948863\_c62cc09e71\_b.jpg](https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5095/5462948863_c62cc09e71_b.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2015, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/13 "2015-09-16T23:18:45Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Thanks for calling my attention to an everyday phenomenon that I’d never thought about before (i.e. which types of vehicles do and do not have rear window wipers). > > This sent me to [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windscreen_wiper#Rear_wipers)which sent me to this page: [The Rear Wiper: A Vital Strand of Porsche DNA](https://autouniversum.wordpress.com/2015/04/30/the-rear-wiper-a-vital-strand-of-porsche-dna/)Both sites seem to confirm **GreasyJack** ’s explanation: that sedans’ rear windows don’t tend to get dirty to the same extent as hatchbacks’ and minivans’. Thanks for those links, and a great story about the Porsches. I feel like I’ve made some fundamental discovery. 🙂 Who’d a thunk? ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2015, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/14 "2015-09-16T23:28:27Z")
Funny it was just a couple days ago that I commented to my wife that substantially all SUV / family wagons have rear wipers and zero sedans do. At the moment we were looking at the arse end of 4 different brands of SUV / family wagons blocking the view ahead on the road. The rear window on my sedan does get dirty quickly, although I suspect it’s more from our daily rain and ocean salt than from road grime. I’m not sure I’d want a single rear wiper; the hemi-circle pattern would look like crap. But something more comprehensive like the typical dual front wipers would be an option that I bet would sell, at least on the fancier models. ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2015, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/15 "2015-09-16T23:42:47Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > I would call it a sedan. You can see the breaks in the panel that outlines the trunk. Brakes. [It’s a hatchback.](https://www.google.com/search?q=mazda+6+trunk&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAWoVChMI8o7iutn8xwIViQ2SCh0k6gil&biw=1280&bih=864#tbm=isch&q=mazda+6+hatchback+trunk) The brake panels are divided by the trunk seam. There’s a Mazda 6 sedan model and a Mazda 6 hatchback model. A hatchback trunk has the rear window glass included in the lift, a sedan does not. Though in this case, the argument about the sloped rear window not getting a wiper can be argued because the hatchback model pictured looks very sedan-like in how the glass is sloped, so why the need for a wiper - except that it’s technically a hatchback so there is one. I would have looked at you funny, too. I think of the hatch vs sedan thing as common knowledge and would be surprised during a conversation to discover someone didn’t know. I suck at hiding what I’m thinking, so yeah, you would have seen my eyebrows go up. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2015, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/16 "2015-09-17T00:13:15Z")
> [@SeaDragonTattoo](#): > > Brakes. [It’s a hatchback.](https://www.google.com/search?q=mazda+6+trunk&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAWoVChMI8o7iutn8xwIViQ2SCh0k6gil&biw=1280&bih=864#tbm=isch&q=mazda+6+hatchback+trunk) The brake panels are divided by the trunk seam. There’s a Mazda 6 sedan model and a Mazda 6 hatchback model. A hatchback trunk has the rear window glass included in the lift, a sedan does not. Though in this case, the argument about the sloped rear window not getting a wiper can be argued because the hatchback model pictured looks very sedan-like in how the glass is sloped, so why the need for a wiper - except that it’s technically a hatchback so there is one. > > I would have looked at you funny, too. I think of the hatch vs sedan thing as common knowledge and would be surprised during a conversation to discover someone didn’t know. I suck at hiding what I’m thinking, so yeah, you would have seen my eyebrows go up. Ok, I give you that it’s a hatchback – I was fooled by the horizontal metal panel behind the window, a very unusual thing on a hatchback. However, I wrote break and I meant break, not brake. Break, as in divisions, like breaking into pieces. ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2015, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/17 "2015-09-17T00:41:20Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > Ok, I give you that it’s a hatchback – I was fooled by the horizontal metal panel behind the window, a very unusual thing on a hatchback. > > However, I wrote break and I meant break, not brake. Break, as in divisions, like breaking into pieces. Ah. I misunderstood. Thanks for clarifying. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![zweisamkeit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zweisamkeit/32/4360_2.png) [@zweisamkeit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zweisamkeit)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2015, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/18 "2015-09-17T01:04:06Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > I would call it a sedan. You can see the breaks in the panel that outlines the trunk. Some hatchbacks are designed to look more sedan-like. I call them “hatch butts”. 😃 I had a 1991 Dodge Shadow hatchback that had the faux-trunk-butt. This is not my car, but it shows the hatch opened and you can see the trunk butt: [![](https://static.cargurus.com/images/site/2007/12/25/02/46/1991_dodge_shadow_2_dr_es_hatchback-pic-15656.jpeg) ](https://static.cargurus.com/images/site/2007/12/25/02/46/1991_dodge_shadow_2_dr_es_hatchback-pic-15656.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2015, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/19 "2015-09-17T02:36:03Z")
There’s also the matter of where you put the mechanism to move the wiper. It seem like most SUVs and station wagons have fairly think rear doors; thick enough to embed the wiper motor at the pivot point for the wiper itself. Try that on a sedan and the motor would be right at the front of the trunk opening. it would intrude into the cargo space in just the wrong spot; try sliding a big suitcase into the trunk and the wiper motor is in the way. I suppose they could mount the motor to one side or the other, but there’d still be a linkage you’d have to deal with when loading large objects into the trunk. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2015, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515/20 "2015-09-17T03:43:38Z")
Not to start a debate, but historically a sedan was defined as a “car” (not a truck, van, station wagon, or suv) that had 4 doors, while anything else not in those terms was a “coupe” I realize I’m dating myself here and there may be no “official” definition for the term. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sedans-dont-have-rear-window-wipers/731515.md?page=2)