Window defroster fail on my Christmas trip.

I drove across Washington state to visit my grandkids for Christmas and the first 150 miles were sketchy at best.

10-12 degrees outside with 100% snow and ice-covered roads and a snow storm. Traction wasn't an issue as I kept it in 4-HI and under 60 mph and am running the best AT tires I have ever found in 40 years of driving. So no issues with slipping or sliding. And traffic was light.

But, I couldn't hardly see anything due to ice build-up on the windshield. I don't recall any other vehicle having this happen with the defroster going full blast.

The snow would hit the windshield, turn to water, then freeze at the top of the windshield. Slowly, it would form an ice sheet that would grow larger and eventually creep down and obscure my vision.

I say slowly, but I actually had to pull over and scrape the windshield every 25 miles or so.





I had the defroster on full-bore to the windshield only, had all the other vents closed to maximize air to the defroster vents, and it was so hot in the vehicle that I had to have the passenger window down slightly to keep from burning up.

Still, the windshield would ice over every half hour or so.

I've never had a vehicle do this before, and I have been driving in winter conditions my entire life and in temps much lower than this.

Is this a known thing with the 5th Gens? I've had it for 4 years and don't recall this happening before.

I didn't see it happening to the other vehicles that I met on the road, either.

Eventually, I used a winter hat and gloves shoved over the passenger-side defroster vent to force more air to the driver's side and that seemed to alleviate it...

 

Hey, sounds like we made the same Christmas trip, although we traveled on Thursday so no precip. I have a 2019 5th Gen. My defroster worked fine but going over White Pass my windshield wiper fluid vents iced up. We were behind a semi that was throwing up lots of road dirt and I could hardly see. Once we got to Packwood, they unfroze and I could wash the windscreen. Not the best situation. As you remarked, it was colder than Flugens!

 

I was going to go over White Pass instead of Snoqualmie since they shut down Snoqualmie the day before due to accidents, but I rolled the dice and went my normal route. It was dicey, and there were a few accidents, but I made it over with little issues.

Jack-knifed semi threatened to stop traffic, but we made it around...

 

I had the same issue driving through Spokane a few weeks ago. Freezing rain made my windshield look exactly like yours. I'd chock it up to a weird weather event because I've never experienced anything like it before either. Had to buy more windshield wiper fluid, I was going through a ton to melt the snow/ice haha

Side note, there is a road called Tinkham road that navigates the entirety of Snoqualmie without using the highway. Used that last time Snoqualmie Pass closed. Fair warning, the alternative route is not for the faint of heart. I've been driving my entire life in the PNW and I was mildly sketched. My East Coast wife was not having a good time.

 

Thanks for the info! I'm heading to Boise next weekend between storms, so I may have to take a gallon of winter windshield fluid with me.

@MountainMan maybe if you had a politician onboard for some extra hot air? Or probably better, a couple of hot women in the back seat?

 

I stopped on the way out of town and filled up with Prestone De-Icer fluid and it had little impact, which was weird.

 

Sounds like you fellows just experienced the limitations of the deice system.

 

I’ve had this happen before but rarely. I think it’s just a weird combination of air temp, precip temp and rate, and humidity. Change any one of those variables just a little bit and the problem doesn’t occur.

 

OP what AT tires are you running?

 

Weird. I don’t get it. Did the wipers just stop making contact at the top? Did wiper speed and deicing fluid use have any effect?

I tend to go though a ton of fluid in these situations, which is maybe why I’ve never experienced this. I cannot stand having to look through any level of precipition on the windshield because it bugs out my eyes. I know others hardly touch the stuf, even in salt-spray. LOL, In certain weather, de-icing quantity is what limits my range.

 

They’re going to let it rain now.


3rd of the price!

 

Goodyear Wrangler Ultra Terrains. Great in everything and wear like iron.

 

+1 It’s a 4Runner not an Arctic Cat. If it was blowing scalding hot air out of the vents and still icing then it was simply below the design temp of the system to handle.

Do you have ultra cold rated winter washer fluid in the tank? Did that help at all?

Have you ever had one of those freak arctic blasts that colder than the design temp of your home heating system? Those are even more annoying. Where I live the manual J design temp is 5F, I remember a few years back we had a freak pattern in Jan where if got to -10f a few nights and even with the heat running constant my bedroom was at something like 62. Ugh.

 

Went east over Snoqualmie Pass on Friday 12/23 around 2:00 PM. Has the same issues with visibility which I have never had before. Had to stop to clean the windshield a couple of times. Wiper blade frames were freezing and not letting the rubber glide across the window. Front window wiper defroster was no help. Gave up on trying to keep the back window clear. Too much snow blowing up from the road. Road surface was not bad and the 265.70/17 Open Range A/T tires (Les Schwab house brand) did great. I blame it on the extreme weather conditions. Other people/vehicles were have the same issues.

 

Several years ago I was in Idaho Falls, Idaho and it was 20 below zero and I had summer rated wind shield fluid and the tank was frozen solid. I had to heat water close to boiling on a stove and pour it on the tank and then syphon all the fluid that was summer rated and then go buy ultra cold rated -30 winter washer fluid . If you could have been spraying that -30 fluid on your windshield it wouldn't have iced up. I always make sure I have extreme cold rated windshield fluid in by Thanksgiving now.

 

Winter wiper blades get installed by decemeber. The winter blades will not freeze up ; the metal arms are sealed in rubber.

 

Have you ever used Bosch Icon blades? There’s nothing to freeze. No hinges.

 

Yeah, I’ve been using similar ones for a while. No boots, no hinges…, very easy to crack the ice off them since they move at every point. Just lift them at one end and let them flex.

 

While we’re on the subject of deicing, I’m curious how the side mirror heaters performed?

I park in the garage so I’ve never had a real need to use them. I have run them but they don’t seem to get that warm. Rear window defrost which is on the same switch does work for defogging.

 

Mirrors work great in my experience.

 

I read somewhere putting you visors down may help heat the windshield a little better. Never had to do it but sounds good in theory.

 

No issues with the mirrors that day. Headlights were iced over as well.

 

Same thing happened in my 2018 ram 3500 Christmas Eve when I went to Wenatchee and back. Was happening to everyone on the road on my way back when I was forced to take blewitt pass and white pass. I wouldn’t overthink it much. We have had some crap weather recently.
first picture was snoqualmie at 5:45am on my way over and was -3 at the top
And this was on 82 about manastash ridge about 2:45pm on my way home. Was about 8f and was everything my truck had to keep the ice down. Got way worse closer I got to white pass