RE: Wiper Blades....

[rafal]

I know this topic has been discussed before....but is there anything on the market better than the OEM Bosch wiper blades?
Has anyone tried puting on the flat kind/type of blades (i.e. Bosch ICON or similar)?

[edjack]

insert fit is most important. If the rubber is the lest bit different from OEM, the blades will not work very well, much less fit properly.
Ed in San Jose. BMW CCA member since 1987 (Nr. 62319). Golden Gate Chapter. '97 540i 6 speed. Build Date 3/97. Aspensilber over Aubergine leather.

[PeterBivo]

Cannot go wrong for this price w/free shipping as the dealer will bang u for $45.00 or so:))
E39 wiper refills:)

[JimLev]

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[Craig in Canada]

I've found that there are other inserts which fit (Walmart had some, places like AutohausAZ) but I've found that they usually differ from the dealer rubber inserts in a couple of ways. Most notably I find that the "neck" where the blade pivots is usually thinner on all of the aftermarket blades. When the dealer blades change direction on the wiper stroke the reversal is silent. Just about every aftermarket blade goes "clunk". The degree of clunk varies with the exact vendor.

The dealer blade inserts can last me something crazy like 4 years (my car doesn't sit in the sun). I've just going back to the dealer to get whisper quiet operation like original. I don't know why, with all of the other "OE" parts places like AutohausAZ have why wiper blades haven't been found which are true OE. Maybe they have now, I don't know.

One thing that keeps the blades wiping well is to remove oxidation from the wiping area. I'll often just pinch and wipe along the wiping area with a paper towel while washing the car whenever I think of it. I've also seen recent discussions that ammonia helps to soften/improve rubber like wiper blades so doing this with some Windex on the paper towel (something I used to just happen to do, not on purpose) may really extend the life of the blades as long as they aren't torn.

[Filehorse]

Aftermarket inserts and I have yet to find one that works as well as the OEM insert from your friendly BMW Parts Department. The Bosch insert you get from the Big Box parts store is NOT the same insert you get from the BMW parts counter. I think I pay around $10 for a set of replacement inserts.


Filehorse
Knoxville, TN
BMWCCA #407627

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[Kozmo]

[fritracer]

charges me $5 or so dollars for BOTH inserts. Of course I think she likes me.....Fritracer
Cincinnati, OH
2000 540ia Sport Package 9/99 Silver/ Black

[Miniron]

The only wiper inserts that work correctly are the BMW originals. They are made by SWF, not Bosch.
Don't waste your money on aftermarket inserts that have the wrong shaped crossection that doesn't fit the the insert holder properly.
SWF also make other plastic parts for BMW such as Touring tailight lens assemblies.
The downside of the BMW inserts is that they dont come with the stainless steel strips.
Downunder, Nu-Vison, a Trico company, make a compatible insert and they come with the stainless steel inserts.
If you have some previous owner who replaced the originals with the wrong aftermarket ones and didn't keep the strips you end up buying new blade assemblies just to get the strips. (The Nu-vision ones wern't around at the time.)

[ToddR]

[Filehorse]

strips - always have. You need to ask your dealer what he's doing with yours.


Filehorse
Knoxville, TN
BMWCCA #407627

2002 525i Steptronic Sport/Premium | Build Date: 05/02
81,000 Ultimate Driving miles
Xenons
Style 81s | Bridgestone Potenza RE960 AS
Titanium Gray | Gray Leather
35% LLumar ATR LLumaStar tint
Valentine 1 | Hardwired
Steering wheel position memory w/Alzheimers
"Lifetime" ATF replaced at 40,000; Switched to Valvoline MaxLife @ the 80,000 mile service
"LIfetime" Final Drive gear oil replaced at 81,000; Redline 75W-90 GL-5
StopTech SportStop slotted rotors w/Axxis Deluxe Advanced pads
StopTech SS Braided Brake Lines

2001 E46 325i (Jet Black) Forced Retirement 6/28/09

2001 E46 325i (Orient Blue) Forced Retirement 10/09

1989 E30 325i (Alpine White) Retired

[Craig in Canada]

[Craig in Canada]

Hmm. I don't think mine ever have either - but I don't buy them often. I think it's been 7 years since I bought a set from the dealer? I think I got them in a plastic parts bag.

Good to know about the strips. Maybe I'll question my parts guy some time.

[sktn77a]

My dealer charges $7.00 for two of these. They have been using them for 4-5 years - they are called "warranty replacements" and they are not the same quality as the original OEM rubber insert replacements. But they appear to be all you can get now.

Why the f___ can't BMW use a standard wiper blade - Lexus and other high quality, performance oriented cars use the standard fitting and their wipers work just fine (as good as or better than BMW OEM).

Keith
2001 530i 5sp

[lezonebay]

works looks feels like OEM and it is probably OEM.
comes in a box with both side and looks very professional.

the replacement blade insert works only if the actual blade is in good shape. in that case back to the dealer.


I agree BMW is stupid with these odd wiper arms. E31 is even more weird then E39 and no replacement from anywhere !



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[Miniron]

Downunder the inserts are usually supplied loose in the 2 lengths w/o the S/S reinforcing strips. Next time I get some from the dealer I'll ask where are the reinforcing inserts. Interesting to see what the response is. IIRC it was also the case with my E36. I guess different rules apply downunder.
As an aside BMW like to charge approx 3 times the price for most parts compared to US prices (in AUD$).
Where there is competition in high turnover service parts such as discs, brake pads, filters and wiper inserts etc the dealer prices are more competitive, even cheaper in some cases.
Dealer labour rates are approx AUD$195/hour.

RonR