Has anyone replaced their wiper blades recently? The dealer refused to sell me inserts They "claim" toyota only sells the entire assembly for the wipers (the pair cost around $60) that come with the TCH..

 

I've also been told that they don't sell the inserts which I'm inclined to believe. If you go to the parts store, there are very few inserts available anymore, and none for the high-end blades. I'm very happy with these blades and wipers from Toyota. It's rare that I get more than a year out of a set and I'm at 16 months and still getting excellent performance.

Robb

 

I have swapped all of our cars over to Bosch Icons. So far, I like them better than anything else that I have used. The only problem is that they are almost as expensive as the OEM wipers from Toyota.

 

Is there any particular reason for chosing the Bosch icons???

 

Every other brand I tried didn't last as long or wipe as well. I tried 7 different wiper blades over the course of a year on our family cars. I liked how the Icons performed and put them on all of the cars as the others wore out. The ones that started the test on my wifes Pilot are still going strong after 18 months. She had been replacing them every 9 months or so.

 

The Toyota dealer here near Toronto still sells wiper inserts, $6CAD (<5 USD) ea with free installation. Although I've never had to change my TCH wipers yet, just finishing my 3rd winter and they are just now starting to get a little worn, probably change them next winter. I know they offer inserts because I had my Sienna blades changed late last year.

 

I recently bought a set of inserts from http://www.brandsport.com/. Left $6.97, right $6.47 + shipping. They claim to be "genuine Toyota." Who knows; they fit, and are working well. Had to transfer the metal strips from the old ones... the inserts were rubber only (and came rolled up).

 

I got the inserts at my dealer, but they jacked up the price to around $10 a piece...not too happy, but I do like the assembly.

 

The April issue of Consumer Reports recommends the Anco 31 Series and the Michelin Rainforce wipers. Their testing showed them performing well and both were priced under $10 per wiper.

 

KenSoren: Yes, Consumer Reports did recommend these wipers, but they are not "beam-blade" wipers like the ones that come with the TCH.

For those of us who want the "beam-blade" wipers, CR also recommends the RainX Latitudes (routinely carried by Auto Zone, Pep Boys, Advance Auto and sometimes with buy one get one free deals).

Personally, I like how sleek the OEM blades look, the Lattitudes and Michelin Optimums are extended at the arm, whereas the OEMs look more "integrated," if you know what I mean.