Wiper Blades - More $ Does Not Equal More Quality?

"mazda616" (mazda616)
10/13/2014 at 20:20 • Filed to: Wiper Blades

Vehicle: 2013 Mazda CX-5 Sport

The factory blades on my wife's car were amazing, until the awful last winter we had in which the right one literally just fell apart. I bought her some Bosch Icons. My car has Michelin blades, but I couldn't find any for the Cx-5 (I've tried Rain-X and Bosch, and the Michelins work better on my car than either). Long story short, the Icons SUCK. They chatter, they leave streaks, and at highway speeds, part of the driver's side one doesn't even make contact. I was very disappointed, considering they cost a total $30-ish.

Today, we were both off work. So, we stopped at Rural King just to look around. Found some Blue Coral wiper blades for $3.99 a piece. And, my wife just drove home in a horrendous severe thunderstorm and said the Blue Coral blades performed great. Solid wiping with no streaks, no chatter, etc. And that's in torrential rain with 50-60 MPH winds.

Conclusion? Expensive wiper blades can suck. And cheap ones can also not suck. I have no idea how long these will last, but at $3.99 a piece, I won't be uber disappointed if they don't work out.

Obligatory pic of the car in reference.

DISCUSSION (14)

Takuro Spirit > mazda616
10/13/2014 at 20:25

Dude. Factory Mazda rubber inserts are like, $7-$8 each. They have a rain repellant added and I use them on ALL my cars, not just my Mazdas.

Yes, the OE style blades aren't the best in the winter from preventing ice buildup in the frames, but for every other month of the year they are superb.

mazda616 > Takuro Spirit
10/13/2014 at 20:32

What? That's crazy. I looked online when the originals first broke down and I couldn't find anything but the entire blades for $40 or more. Dang!

Frosted > mazda616
10/13/2014 at 20:35

Bosch wipers suck in general and are really overpriced from what I've experienced. I no longer give them my business.

Spaceball-Two > mazda616
10/13/2014 at 20:40

I put Bosch wipers on my wife's car. Total crap.

Logansteno: Bought a VW? > mazda616
10/13/2014 at 20:50

Contrary to everyone else, I have Bosh wipers on my van and they work great.

Now, my mom had Michelin blades and they chattered and left streaks. She had Rain-X Latitudes on there now and they're just lovely.

thyITguy > mazda616
10/13/2014 at 20:51

PIAA are great but $$ they are the best ive ever had

Takuro Spirit > mazda616
10/13/2014 at 21:09

You need Mazda-fu like me. And online Mazda catalogs are shit, because Mazda doesn't give away all their precious secrets.

AMGtech - now with more recalls! > mazda616
10/13/2014 at 23:05

In my experience OE blades are almost always best. Otherwise I get the best I can find for less than $10 each if possible, it isn't worth spending more than that. Yet another reason I like my old Mercedes', one wiper systems. Cheap!

Kaizer Soze > mazda616
10/13/2014 at 23:07

Ive had Tricos on my car, not cheap, but after 2 years, they still work like new. All other blades I've had don't hold up in the winter.

shop-teacher > mazda616
10/13/2014 at 23:34

I had the exact same experience with my '06 Sierra. The Bosch sucked, and the $4 cheapos I got worked great.

NaturallyAspirated > thyITguy
10/14/2014 at 18:25

I put PIAA Super Silicones on my Subaru about two years ago. I park the car outside and I live in the desert. Normal wiper blades bake to a hard, useless crisp in about 6 months, while the PIAAs are still wiping like new. Even though they are 2-3 times as expensive as cheaper blades, they have already lasted as long as 4 pairs of Bosch/Trico/Goodyear blades, so I've actually saved money overall.

thyITguy > NaturallyAspirated
10/14/2014 at 18:34

YES yes.. ^

Even when I lived on phoenix they were the best.

you should try rain-x -_- ...no no no I kid .. PIAA all the way. Save money in the long run

M > mazda616
10/16/2014 at 01:03

Wiper blades are tricky. Some of expensive ones can be worth less than cheap ones, but it can also depend on your car. I've used many different expensive Bosch, trico, Rainx and other blades, and the same model line performs better on one car and awful on the next. I used to swear by Bosch Icons on my e36 and e46, but they were just ok on the e92 and dreadful on my Mini Cooper. I don't know if they changed the blades since I liked them, but the Icons are not worth it for any car currently in my garage.

Likewise, the (somtimes 2 for) $7 Goodyear blades at Costco were really good on my Corolla and e36, but not so good on a Prius and just as bad as the Icons on my Cooper.

I've heard nothing but good things about PIAA blades, but haven't tried them out yet, might be my next set for the Cooper.

mazda616 > M
10/16/2014 at 10:26

Very true. I drove the CX-5 during a pretty heavy rain last night and I can confirm that these cheapo blades are still performing well. Still not a sound and solid wiping, too. Hooray.