[dpostman]

According to Todd: Bosch. I'm not sure what you mean by wipers that look like OEM. They all look like wipers to me.

Project Farm: New Wiper Blades test

Project Farm: Best wiper blades after 1 year

 

[@2011rav4]

Save your frames and get some refills so you can just swap them out next time. It really only takes a couple of minutes. You can find many videos on YouTube if you don't know how to change the refills.

I agree with the other person if you're going to buy new ones then the Bosh icon beams work well.

 

[crisps]

the only thing that looks OEM are the OEM wipers

you could get a whole reel of replacement rubber you can cut off chunks
at home and replace the inserts yourself

---

but if you want great wipers for all weather... bosch icons imho. tried them all over the years,
bosch icons have given me the least BS of all brands, so use them everywhere on all 4 my toyotas
(trico, michelin, piaa, rain-x, OEM)

only the rear wiper on Yaris and Rav4 is the oddball, no one makes a great rear, so I just use trico
for the small rear wiper

 

[jimjaneparks]

I bought my 2022 R4P SE with a little over 7k miles on it from a Toyota dealer (long story for a different time). The first time it rained and I was driving at 65 mph, the driver's side blade chattered so bad it would not clean the window. I was on a trip and so I went to a big box store and bought a Michelin assembly that was listed in the book as a fit. This worked out even worse than the one that was on it. When I got back from the trip I went to dealer and told them I thought it may be a warranty issue with a bad are or perhaps something else. By the way, the blades I got with the cart had the Toyota logo stamped in them leading me to believe they were actual factory parts. The Toyota technician brought me back to the shop and told me that the blades on the car were cheap knock-offs that would never have been on the car when it left the factory. He got a new factory part out and there was a considerable difference. The factory part has a pronounced airfoil on it apparently designed to keep the blade in contact with the glass at speed. I boutht two new factory blades and all is not well. The technician told me that they have had numerous complaints with aftermarket blades not working and suggested that I just change the insert next time they start not working well.

 

[JFox562]

Before moving away from OEM wipers, check out these videos:

 

[cdherman]

My feeling is that the added trash to landfill makes it a responsible choice to find factory Toyota refills and use them. That's what I've done for over a decade with my other vehicles. I disagree that the refills are going to be "old and stiff" -- rubber ages from exposure to sun and ozone. Both very diminished in a package in a warehouse.

However, there was some thread somewhere about silicone wiper inserts. IIRC, no one really had a definite answer. But I have been so impressed with some of the other silicone products out there. Wish someone would make an expensive silicone wiper insert. I'd like to try one. When we moved my wife's pressure cooker to silicone, added silicone bakeware, life in the kitchen has been better in these endeavors.....

 

[robotsindisguise]

i just put rain-x on my windshield and never use the windshield wipers. mind you i'm in california and it rains like 3 days a year.

 

[Widgets]

but if you want great wipers for all weather... bosch icons imho. tried them all over the years,
bosch icons have given me the least BS of all brands, so use them everywhere on all 4 my toyotas
(trico, michelin, piaa, rain-x, OEM)

The Bosch icons I pit on my van were wonderful until one heavy rainstorm while on the highway at 75mph. The passenger side decided to snap in two and go flying. I shut off the wipers quick enough to avoid windshield damage. It was fun getting across three lanes of traffic with limited visibility. Never again.

 

[anav_ds]

The Bosch icons I pit on my van were wonderful until one heavy rainstorm while on the highway at 75mph. The passenger side decided to snap in two and go flying. I shut off the wipers quick enough to avoid windshield damage. It was fun getting across three lanes of traffic with limited visibility. Never again.

Heavy rainstorm and driving at 75mph, tells me all I need to know.

 

[Widgets]

Heavy rainstorm and driving at 75mph, tells me all I need to know.

There is heavy and there is HEAVY. I'm not sure what the differences in the connotations of heavy makes. I was moving at the same speed as the traffic around me, which slowed to 75mph due to the rain. I may have exaggerated the rain, but it was heavy enough that it was difficult to manage without wipers. My point was the wiper blade snapping. Are you trying to say that my speed somehow contributed to the wiper blade snapping?

 

[cdherman]

Are you trying to say that my speed somehow contributed to the wiper blade snapping?

Yes

 

[Widgets]

Yes

Well, then my comment about it breaking is an appropriate warning. The wiper blades should be designed for highway speeds. I have never experienced breakage with the legacy wiper blade designs.

 

[crisps]

I dunno about Icons breaking....I've used Icons for years and they never came close to breaking or falling
apart. even freezing rain and chipping them loose.

all that ever happened to mine are 'edges worn out, need new blades' the frames and mounting
assemblies never broke.

however, I use rain-x and barely use the wipers in the first place, so I do not
have experience with wiper left ON and run for more than a couple minutes. In town under streetlights
I just hit the single-pass with wipers if the beading and overhead lights block my vision. on highway,
jeeze ...I just do not need wipers no matter how much rain or tractor trailer spray hits me. wipers just
get in the way to be honest. again, maybe blip them once in a while but rain-x takes over the job
of being able to see and be safe once wind speed is above 35mph.