Silicone or Teflon inserts/refills for original Gen3 wipers?

If you have the OEM blades, you would just buy the OEM refills. When they wear out, you buy new ones.

 

About 3 years ago, I bought wiper inserts from Aliexpress for $2-3 USD each with free shipping. Get the hybrid frame or 3-stage-frame ones to match your OEM Toyota wiper blade (unless yours is different than mine). There were notches at the end for a direct fit. The site has measurements. Just measure your OEM inserts to compare.

The inserts were so cheap, I decided to take the risk and buy them even though they were Chinese quality. To my surprise, the inserts looked exactly the same as my OEM Toyota inserts and were a direct fit with notches at the ends. The Aliexpress inserts aren't exactly great quality and made squeaking/squeegee noises for about the first 3-6 months of usage. After continued use, the rubbing noise eventually went away. The wiping quality is okay. The OEM inserts are much smoother and quieter.

The Aliexpress inserts were cheap, but they lasted a heck of a long time. Its been 3+ years and through winters and I am still using the original set I bought. It is actually 4 years, but the last year didn't count because I only drove once a week due to covid-19 (no wiper usage).

I am not sure if I should recommend Chinese-made Aliexpress inserts or not. I can only tell you my experience. I didn't like the noises at the beginning, but it is working for me.

 

I've made the mistake of buying aftermarket wipers for my cars, they are no where near the quality of the OEM wipers. I think you'll be happy even with the standard OEM wipers vs silicone aftermarket wipers, the quality is really good and they are fairly inexpensive.

I've never replaced the rear wipers using the OEM inserts. I'm going to have to try this on my 2015 to see how difficult it is compared to the front wipers.

 

I tried replacing my wife's entire wipers in her 2017 Prius but the ones that said they fit fell off during rain storms. Thankfully, I had kept the old ones in the garage and, now, just buy replacement blades at the dealer. (Part numbers 85214-47110 and 85214-78010)

I polish my cars with Nu Finish car polish and also the windows...seems to really help the blades glide smoothly.