Replacement wiper blades

[Trewithy]

Time for new front Wiper Blades.  Should I stick with the standard Toyota blades or go to Halfords and get a set of Bosch wipers?

[igormus]

i used to change only rubber blades as originals by Toyota and they serve at least 2 years

[Stivino]

I’ve bought my last two sets in Asda for £5 each.  They last about 18 months to 2 years and do the job.  I wouldn’t pay for premium blades because they don’t seem to be much better.

[TonyHSD]

Bosch classic blades are really good and also Michelin and Hella as alternative to the oem ones, if you prefer original full wipers not only rubber you can look for Denso, carparts4less with discount codes works great price. eBay Amazon too, Halfords usually sells at much higher price. 👍

[Marxon88]

Is possible to change only the contact rubber?

 

[Mooly]

I had to get new blades this summer for the Auris. The originals were 11 years old (its true, it gets dry weather use only) and I noticed a small split on the drivers side. The wipe performance was still perfect. So a desperation purchase, I got Valeo Silencio blades and they are without THE WORST blades I have had the misfortune to ever use. If you can imagine trying to wipe glass that has been precoated with a film of oil then that is the result. They leave tram lines and whole patches of water on the screen. I doubt they would pass an MOT.

A truly appalling product. 

[Catlover]

Did you wipe them clean before you first used them, and have you done so since. Certainly in use they need cleaning due to oil in the spray off roads, and I read somewhere the can be a manufacturers greasy film on them when new which is advisable to remove. I have used Valeo blades before and they been ok.

[Cyker]

Hmm, I've never had to clean my wipers before using them! That wouldn't give me confidence in the product for sure...

Since I started using PIAA wipers I do usually give the windscreen a good clean first tho', just so nothing gets trapped under the silicone layer the blades lay down.

[Stivino]

I’ve never cleaned a wiper blade before fitting, ever.  It’s only necessary to clean the windscreen.

Does anyone have a link to the manufacturer’s advice where it says they should be cleaned before fitting, just in case I’ve been missing something?

[FROSTYBALLS]

There are two Toyota ranges of wiper blades: OEM blades and the cheaper Optifit range made for Toyota by Trico.

[TonyHSD]

wiper rubber blades has some sort of coating that helps them bed in similarly to brake pads and disc when new. Best not to clean them at all and even try not touching them on the blades a lot when fitting., perhaps you can use gloves. That’s what I know from the old books, and what I noticed from practice when washing the car and always shorty after I cleaned properly the blades the wipers start smearing the windshield and new ones were needed, since then I only clean them with the washing mop lift the wipers and let them on top of the mop and slide the mop out, do this twice without extra pressure or touching the rubbers by hands and trying to get the rubber blades ultra clean with alcohol or anything else, doing that and I can get up to a year with one set. 👍

[Catlover]

34 minutes ago, Stivino said:

I’ve never cleaned a wiper blade before fitting, ever.  It’s only necessary to clean the windscreen.

Does anyone have a link to the manufacturer’s advice where it says they should be cleaned before fitting, just in case I’ve been missing something?

https://www.actonservicecentre.co.uk/blog/change-car-windscreen-wipers/

Go down to How to change car windscreen wipers - Step 2 Cleaning It.

[Stivino]

3 minutes ago, Catlover said:

https://www.actonservicecentre.co.uk/blog/change-car-windscreen-wipers/

Go down to How to change car windscreen wipers - Step 2 Cleaning It.

That refers to cleaning the screen, not the wipers.

Are there no links from wiper blade manufacturers explaining how to clean the blades before fitting?

[Catlover]

21 minutes ago, Stivino said:

That refers to cleaning the screen, not the wipers.

Are there no links from wiper blade manufacturers explaining how to clean the blades before fitting?

Your right, my mistake with that link.           
It is only in last 2 weeks I read it but cannot recall where.           
It seemed reasonable, as some other items ie car brake disks are cleaned before fitting.

[Stivino]

Normally, new discs have a coating to prevent oxidation during storage and that has to be cleaned off before fitting.

[Mooly]

16 hours ago, Catlover said:

Did you wipe them clean before you first used them, and have you done so since.

Not before for use but I did clean them later and several times since. It makes no difference.

This is after they supposedly clear the screen. They drag water back.  

 

[Stivino]

I think everybody gives their wipers a quick wipe when they are washing their car, do they not?

[TonyHSD]

2 hours ago, Mooly said:

Not before for use but I did clean them later and several times since. It makes no difference.

This is after they supposedly clear the screen. They drag water back.  

 

These are ready for the bin imo. Yes everyone give wipers a wipe when washing the car, but when doing so is where things can go wrong, removing the coating and shortly after the wipers will become smearing and make noise from vibrations. If you want to try on your wipers you can get some antiseptic wipes from Asda and wipe clean properly the rubber blades and you will have immediately better performance but happinesses wouldn’t last long and soon maybe a week or so the wipers will start squeaking and jumping, new once will be needed. 👍 

[Catlover]

3 hours ago, Mooly said:

Not before for use but I did clean them later and several times since. It makes no difference.

This is after they supposedly clear the screen. They drag water back.  

 

They are not good performers. If they were like that when you first fitted them I would have took them back to the shop/store.

[Red_Corolla]

Yes, you can get refills for the Toyota OEM ones. If you decide not to stick with OEM, you can't go wrong with Bosch.

My experience with cheap ones is they can perform just as well when new but start to split in about half the time. But since they cost a lot less, it's not really a problem if you don't mind replacing them more often. Pay your money and take your choice.

[Kojac]

On 1/9/2022 at 7:53 PM, FROSTYBALLS said:

There are two Toyota ranges of wiper blades: OEM blades and the cheaper Optifit range made for Toyota by Trico.

Can anyone help expand on FROSTYBALL info?

What (specifically) are the differences between:

A) Toyota OEM wipers

&

B) Toyota OPITIFIT wipers

I'm hoping for a detailed understanding of the differences.

(Also - Can the rubbers be replaced on either range??? If yes - is it an economically sensible route /consideration?)

[FROSTYBALLS]

The Optifit blades are Toyota's second line range of parts. Main difference is cost - 40-50% less for the Optifit blades, depending on fitment.

Rubber inserts can certainly be replaced on the factory fit blades - I changed the inserts on both of my Auris.

Choice is yours really - whether you go for OE blades or inserts, Optifit, or a third party blade such as Bosch, etc.

[JoaoM]

On the 60.000km revision the shop suggested that I replace the blades. Cost was about 40€. Not sure if they meant just the rubber as in my previous Toyotas or new blades. I'll do it in late September as there's no need to make the new ones suffer the hot Portuguese summer sun. But I'm not sure if I should stay with OEM or go to Bosch Aero Twins (or SWF or Denso...) Price is about the same.

[JoaoM]

Just double checked: they don't replace the rubber only anymore as it was time consuming at the shop floor. And a full pack (front and rear) of optifit brand is 52€+VAT (aprox. 65€). Ouch! Never paid that much on the old Verso.

Would like to know who is the OEM as the originals last 4 winters. Can't find any mark on the blades without disassembly 

[TonyHSD]

The best wipers for these cars are Denso hybrid. You can buy from eBay or third party traders , Amazon or perhaps autodoc,. In uk carparts4less sell these at the best price, they may also do international delivery, you can check. Usually these Denso are the oem for the car, last long, clean nice and quiet and has the best aerodynamic properties, others make wind noise over 60mph. 👍