Originally Posted By: ueberooo
What's the big advantage of winter wiper blades?? They re covered all the way, but how does that really help much and do you really need them over standard blades in places with real winters (eg. like the NE and new england)??
The boot stops water from getting in the moving parts of the frame and freezing it into a useless shape. It also stops the blade assembly from getting packed with snow and not making even contact with the windshield.
Living in the southeast, I can't really say how useful this is. In the rare case of snow and ice, nearly everything shuts down so there's nowhere to go anyways.
The new beam style wiper blades are also another option in the winter. They look nicer, but may or may not work better depending on the windshield, quality of the wiper blade, and other factors.