I’ve gotten a lot of the mechanical issues taken cared of on my 2002 Audi TT over the last year. Now, I’m in the middle of a home remodel and I don’t really have a workspace right now for my project. So, the TT has been sitting on the street and used every month whenever I travel for work. I haven’t gotten to doing any sort of detailing on the car either inside or out, so visibility is an issue when I’m looking out the windshield.
My wiper blades are the same ones that were on the car when I bought it from the previous owner more than a year ago. The rubber part of the blades were mostly broken off so I would just hear screeching as it scraped along my windshield; I knew I had to replace the wiper blades quickly.
Wiper Blade Replacements for the MK1 Audi TT
In my opinion, it’s just never worth replacing the wiper blade inserts for the original windshield wiper blades. Just get the full wiper blade replacements; you can swap them out in just a few minutes. Many people on various Audi TT MK1 forums swear by Bosch Icons, which I have yet to try. I used Michelin Guardian Wiper Blades that I got from Costco, but I will probably the Bosch Icons next time from Amazon.
The MK1 Audi TT (model years 2000-2006) uses 21″ wiper blades for both the driver and passenger side of the windshield.
BOSCH ICON Beam Wiper Blades – Driver & Passenger Side – Set of 2 Blades (21A & 21A)
Replacing the Wiper Blades on an MK1 Audi TT
Swapping out the wiper blades with a full wiper blade is extremely easy on the Audi TT. It took me about 2-3 minutes total to swap them out.
Simply open out your windshield wiper arm, press in the clip while pulling downwards to pull the wiper blade away from the wiper arm. It will release from the U-shaped tip of the wiper arm, and you can pull the whole blade off.
As a safety precaution, use a towel or a thick rag to protect the windshield while changing your wiper blades out. There is always the chance that the wiper arm accidentally collapses and hits the windshield, causing it to crack.
When installing your new wiper blades, have the wiper arm open. Get the wiper blade onto the U-shaped tip of the wiper arm, and pushing the wiper blade up into the U-shaped arm until it clicks into place. Make sure it’s secure by seeing if the wiper blade can pull off of the wiper arm or not–which it should not be able to.
And it’s really as easy as that. It’s a good idea to change out your wiper blades regularly to ensure that you have good visibility when you need it. It’s such an easy job that it makes sense to change them out whenever you feel that the wiper blades aren’t doing a good job of cleaning the windshield anymore.
