I jave been frustrated with the fit or durability of silicone wipers for my c. Tried: Silblade: poor wipe, too squeaky. PIAA: Poor wipe from all except super silicone and the metal frames soon deformed. Michelin: very poor wipe. Finally I found beam wipers that give a 100% wipe: Trico Maxx. Annoyingly only at advance auto parts but it's worth the trip.
The OEM wipers are cheaper but don't last as long and are prone to crack in very hot / dry weather and in winter. Silicone is a superior product.
I'm having good results from the RainX silicone wipers that I purchased at Walmart for my Prius v, which is basically a gen 3 Prius. They've bee on there for about two years now.
I know that RainX has several different models, and I no longer remember which model it was I tried on a car we no longer own. They did not seem to work well.
Re: Rain-X, I haven't been pleased with the Hybrid model as it chatters under most conditions. The shorter one isn't available in Hybrid. Perhaps I should try either the standard version or move up to the silicone for the long one.
The first thing I did when I bought my car was purchase Bosch Icon wipers. I'd link you but I'm a newb and the mod gods forbid it.
That's interesting. I never noticed. I'll give them a second look next time. I am incredibly happy with the bosch icon. I have had them for two years and don't notice any aging.
I just keep the factory wipers and replace the blades from my Yota dealership...had so many bad experiences with wipers at car parts stores. Try this.....get a bottle of the Nu Finish car polish and apply it, twice, to your windshield. You'll be super impressed at both the water beading up or even blowing off while driving and your blades won't stick or squeak. (I polish the whole car with Nu Finish except for the black plastic/rubber parts and for that I use Cerakote.)
That's what I've done this time round -- except that the local dealership tells me that the replacement inserts have been discontinued, along with the original-style wipers they fitted, and have been replaced by the "SightLine" wipers with non-replaceable inserts. So I bought a set of genuine Toyota inserts on Amazon, shipped from a dealership in Ohio.
Oh no! I remember when those SightLines were first at my dealership and I got a set for my old Tacoma....pieces of crap didn't last 6 months! Now every time I go to my Yota Parts department I point to them and ask why are you still selling crap? The el cheapos from KMart are better!! You may be right about the inserts...I just checked the McGeorge Toyota Parts department and inserts are no longer listed, just the entire blade....but $20 each isn't too bad for OEMs.
