Wiper haze, water spots or fine scratches on glass can’t be removed with a regular cleaner. You need a glass polish with a mild abrasive (often cerium oxide-based) and a pad or applicator specifically designed for glass. Here you’ll find products from CARPRO, Gyeon, Auto Finesse and SOFT99, including kits with hydrophobic rain protection. After polishing, it’s worth applying liquid wipers and regularly using a glass cleaner.
How do you polish car windows and remove the distortion caused by the windshield wipers?
Glass has a different hardness and structure from paint, so it needs its own abrasive—regular paint polish won’t repair glass, while glass polish won’t work on paint.
What wiper haze is
Small crescent-shaped scratches or a cloudy band in the path of the wipers are caused by worn or dirty wiper blades rubbing against the glass. Over time, they reduce visibility, especially when driving into the sun or in the rain.
How glass polishing works
Glass polish contains a fine abrasive (often cerium oxide) that gently smooths the surface layer of the glass—much like polishing paint, but with different chemistry and a harder pad suited to the structure of glass.
Applying by hand vs. machine
You can tackle smaller spots with a hand applicator. For more pronounced wiper haze or the entire windshield, a polisher with a special glass pad is worth using—the job is faster and more even.
Hydrophobic protection after polishing
After polishing the glass, it’s worth applying a hydrophobic coating (see kits with liquid wipers)—water will run off more easily, reducing the risk of new wiper haze.
