My D90 is at the dealer for service right now due the sprayers not coming on right away (probably a bad pump/check valve). It appears JLR hasn't figured out how to design a good wiper system as my loaner Disco Sport isn't great either (drove through some snow and subsequent snow spray on the way back from the dealer today).

I also own a 2020 Sprinter which has, by far, the best windshield washing system I've had in any car I've ever owned. Mercedes has a fantastic wet wiper system that's been around for about a decade, and the tech has trickled all the way down to their cargo vans.


I really wish JLR would catch on, but maybe the tech is patented. But that wouldn't stop someone like me from attempting a retrofit!

I had some old wipers I replaced last season laying around and discovered the driver side wiper on the Sprinter is the same length as the two on the Defenders. Looking at the connection points, I think it would be as easy as knocking out the swivel pins (they are just press fit into the plastic connection points on both wipers and swapping them over. Once my car is back from the dealer, I am going to take a few measurements (bracket width and pivot pin diameter). This might require some small custom parts, both of which would be easy to mock up and make.

Once mounted up, it's just a matter of removing the sprayers from the wiper arm and plumbing the existing rubber hoses into the single barb on the wiper. The Defender hose is in two sections due to multiple sprayers mounted on each arm. I plan on replacing the whole rubber hose with one section from the cowl connection point.

Last variable is pump pressure. I have no idea if the stock pump supplies sufficient pressure for a system like this. It may dribble out of all the orifices on the wiper, or it may make a glorious Bellagio style water show on my windshield. I'll find out once it's mounted.

The blade assembly also appears to take standard blade refills, so it would really just be a one-time expense to do the retrofit unless the orifices end up getting clogged or damaged.

I will report back once I've done more fiddling around!

 

Looking forward to your next post. You may have a new source of income!

 

BTW this technology (and I use that word loosely) is called Aquablade and was developed by Valeo awhile ago and a good # of manufacturers use it/license it/use valeo as a white labelled parts supplier for it in their parts channels. LR is using it on the rear wiper of most newer (22.5 +?) Defenders. Not sure what year yours is but do check your rear wiper. I have a 2020 that has the old style...

 

I have a ‘22 and still have the old style wiper. Not sure if it’s worth the cost to retrofit though — I have the ClearView rear mirror and haven’t found a need to look through the rear glass!

 

I have the same two vehicles, a 2023 Defender and a 2022 Sprinter, and I totally agree that the washer system on the Sprinter is much better. Good luck with the project!

I also think the Merc's adaptive cruise is superior, especially when comparing a cargo van to a lux SUV -- but that's a gripe for another thread.