Believe me, I tried it. For me the beams are a god send.
Rain-X Latitude Wipers
- Thread starter charbaby
- Start date
- Status
Originally Posted By: asiancivicmaniac
Believe me, I tried it. For me the beams are a god send.
Maybe your Civic is special, but I have NEVER seen an advantage to use those beam blades. OE inserts, normal framed blades, beam blades, etc all work just as well when they are new. Maybe beam blades last a bit longer, but I doubt it. The OE inserts seem to last the longest and be the least expensive (provided you still have the original frames).
Believe me, I tried it. For me the beams are a god send.
Maybe your Civic is special, but I have NEVER seen an advantage to use those beam blades. OE inserts, normal framed blades, beam blades, etc all work just as well when they are new. Maybe beam blades last a bit longer, but I doubt it. The OE inserts seem to last the longest and be the least expensive (provided you still have the original frames).
There must be some advantage to them since many new cars, even lowly Corollas, have them standard.
Originally Posted By: asiancivicmaniac
There must be some advantage to them since many new cars, even lowly Corollas, have them standard.
Note that I said for OE inserts are best, and in applications where the OE blades a beam blade, the OE replacement would be a beam blade as well.
Also, even on cars with an OE beam blade, sometimes they are refillable. For instance, on my Altima, the ENTIRE OE beam blade assembly costs less than a Latitude:
http://www.courtesyparts.com/altima-part..._7709_9130.html
The refills cost either $6.80 or $4.14, depending on the side. That is a lot less than any aftermarket beam blade.
There must be some advantage to them since many new cars, even lowly Corollas, have them standard.
Note that I said for OE inserts are best, and in applications where the OE blades a beam blade, the OE replacement would be a beam blade as well.
Also, even on cars with an OE beam blade, sometimes they are refillable. For instance, on my Altima, the ENTIRE OE beam blade assembly costs less than a Latitude:
http://www.courtesyparts.com/altima-part..._7709_9130.html
The refills cost either $6.80 or $4.14, depending on the side. That is a lot less than any aftermarket beam blade.
Originally Posted By: The Critic
Originally Posted By: LT4 Vette
I have never tried Rain X wiper but with all positive reviews in the past they will be my next purchase when I need wipers.
Don't bother, just stay with the OE Honda inserts-- they are very inexpensive and work just as well as these fancy beam style blades.
I agree, on Hondas I would not use any aftermarket wipers at all. Honda has excellent wipers and at a pretty competitive prices too.
When I had my 95 Accord, I tied at least 3 or 4 sets of different aftermarket wipers during one year, metal frame style and beam style, all of them started chattering after a month or two, and would streak badly. I eventually bought OEM wipers from the dealers and they were dead silent and wiped really well even at highway speeds for more that a year, until the car was totaled.
Can't say the same thing about my Mazda though.
Originally Posted By: LT4 Vette
I have never tried Rain X wiper but with all positive reviews in the past they will be my next purchase when I need wipers.
Don't bother, just stay with the OE Honda inserts-- they are very inexpensive and work just as well as these fancy beam style blades.
I agree, on Hondas I would not use any aftermarket wipers at all. Honda has excellent wipers and at a pretty competitive prices too.
When I had my 95 Accord, I tied at least 3 or 4 sets of different aftermarket wipers during one year, metal frame style and beam style, all of them started chattering after a month or two, and would streak badly. I eventually bought OEM wipers from the dealers and they were dead silent and wiped really well even at highway speeds for more that a year, until the car was totaled.
Can't say the same thing about my Mazda though.
I tried Latitudes on my 08 Aveo, and they were terrible. The windshield is very long and curved, and they leave a huge spot in the middle lower portion of the windshield. It seems that because of the curvature, they can't flex back fast enough to clear that spot. Doesn't really prevent visibility, but still an annoyance. I also tried Autozone Duralast blades and had exactly the same problem. So looks like it's back to basic wipers after the Duralast blades wear out. Too bad because the standard blades wear out pretty fast on that car.
With that said, I put Latitudes for the wife's Saturn and they are fantastic. Just the smoothness and clear wiping over the standard Anco's I used before was worth the price of admission. She even commented (unprompted) how well they worked, and considering how much she notices about the car, that was saying something. That is all her car will get from now on.
With that said, I put Latitudes for the wife's Saturn and they are fantastic. Just the smoothness and clear wiping over the standard Anco's I used before was worth the price of admission. She even commented (unprompted) how well they worked, and considering how much she notices about the car, that was saying something. That is all her car will get from now on.
Ive had this set on for over a year now and they still work great. Only problem is Ive had the latch that holds the blade to the pin pop a couple times. Only on the passenger blade. If it happens again I am going to put a drop a superglue or something to hold it.
Originally Posted By: The Critic
Originally Posted By: asiancivicmaniac
Believe me, I tried it. For me the beams are a god send.
Maybe your Civic is special, but I have NEVER seen an advantage to use those beam blades. OE inserts, normal framed blades, beam blades, etc all work just as well when they are new. Maybe beam blades last a bit longer, but I doubt it. The OE inserts seem to last the longest and be the least expensive (provided you still have the original frames).
I don't think that every blade works on every vehicle. Some vehicles/owner prefer something else.
All I know is that, when the weather turns cold and the snow starts to fly and the salt truck/plows are out and there is salty road spray all over your windshield at sub-zero temps as it get dark at 5:00 PM that time of the year, I want the wipers to work.
Originally Posted By: asiancivicmaniac
Believe me, I tried it. For me the beams are a god send.
Maybe your Civic is special, but I have NEVER seen an advantage to use those beam blades. OE inserts, normal framed blades, beam blades, etc all work just as well when they are new. Maybe beam blades last a bit longer, but I doubt it. The OE inserts seem to last the longest and be the least expensive (provided you still have the original frames).
I don't think that every blade works on every vehicle. Some vehicles/owner prefer something else.
All I know is that, when the weather turns cold and the snow starts to fly and the salt truck/plows are out and there is salty road spray all over your windshield at sub-zero temps as it get dark at 5:00 PM that time of the year, I want the wipers to work.
Originally Posted By: mechtech2
I gave up on pricey wiper blades. Fancy theory = streaks, chatters, etc.
I recently bought the cheapest ones I could find at Walmart, and they perform superbly.
Me too. I tried several of the different expensive brands and I see no difference between them and the cheap blades....except for the price of course. I'm currently using the cheapest ones Wal-Mart sells and they're working just fine.
I gave up on pricey wiper blades. Fancy theory = streaks, chatters, etc.
I recently bought the cheapest ones I could find at Walmart, and they perform superbly.
Me too. I tried several of the different expensive brands and I see no difference between them and the cheap blades....except for the price of course. I'm currently using the cheapest ones Wal-Mart sells and they're working just fine.
The Anco 31 series are fine for most people. They are very cheap at walmart and are excellent when new. Depending on your climate, expect 3+ months of like new performance. After that they are so cheap, its easy to get another set. I'd rather change cheap wipers sooner then get real expensive ones and have to live with them forever to feel I got my money's worth.
I currently have Michelin solid frameless design from walmart, one streaked out of the box.... other then that they are decent and have been on my car for 6 months now. The wife's car gets the 31 series and I might go back to them on my car as well.
I currently have Michelin solid frameless design from walmart, one streaked out of the box.... other then that they are decent and have been on my car for 6 months now. The wife's car gets the 31 series and I might go back to them on my car as well.
- Status
