[RobertCTS]

My wiper blades are two years old and beginning to streak. Winter is coming on along with the freezing rains. So I'm looking at wiper blades. Right now I'm impressed with the PIAA Silicone wipers. $46 per set. They go as high as $60/set. What are your ideas/choices?:hmm:

 

[70eldo]

I don't even remember the brand of mine. But I did purchase some 'higher quality' stuff. I took two with those spoilers on it, so it looks smooth. And I hate stripes on my window, so yeah, look for some quality!

You have any other choices?

 

[PODunk]

On our Deville and Corvette, I just get he GM wiper refills. (Just the rubber part). I just can't part with any more money than that for pricey wiper blades that will wear out just as fast as the stock ones...am I wrong?

 

[RobertCTS]

I don't mind the money if they really do the job. Night driving in the rain with streaking wipers are a real safety concern for me. I hate the noisey skipping blades too.

 

[70eldo]

Oh Robert, you should go for RainX then! I use it since I was introduced to it when I lived in California some years ago. You don't even need your wipers, and it even works better when it rains harder! As long as you move, the water just runs off your windscreen. It will always form drops in stead of a film you can't see through.
At night it even looks better. You can hear the rain, but you don't even see it! Only at low speeds and standing still I use my wipers.
Small note to this: When it drizzles it's a little disadvantageous. The small drops dry up quickly, leaving the dirt on your window. When you use your wipers it stripes, so you have to use your washer. But other than that it works just fine!!! Very happy with it....

 

[RobertCTS]

Oh Robert, you should go for RainX then! I use it since I was introduced to it when I lived in California some years ago. You don't even need your wipers, and it even works better when it rains harder! As long as you move, the water just runs off your windscreen. It will always form drops in stead of a film you can't see through.
At night it even looks better. You can hear the rain, but you don't even see it! Only at low speeds and standing still I use my wipers.
Small note to this: When it drizzles it's a little disadvantageous. The small drops dry up quickly, leaving the dirt on your window. When you use your wipers it stripes, so you have to use your washer. But other than that it works just fine!!! Very happy with it....

I have a bottle of RainX in the garage and have used it. A few members as I recall had problems with it but I can't recall what. Is RainX readily available in Europe?
You mentioned living in CA but now you're in Germany. Which is your native country?

 

[AsAkAs]

I have a bottle of RainX in the garage and have used it. A few members as I recall had problems with it but I can't recall what. Is RainX readily available in Europe?
You mentioned living in CA but now you're in Germany. Which is your native country?

Don't do it! (at least not on your windshield)

I put rain-x on my car about a month after I got her. The day after it started raining on my way home, blade chatter, over and over again no way to fix it. Horrible. I didn't think it was the rainx that was doing it until about a month later when it finally stopped chattering (the rainx wore off) I'd say go for it on your side and rear windows, but if you want to avoid blade chatter don't use rainx!

Just my personal experience, I know alot of people who say rainx will stop blade chatter :shrug: But my windshield was fine before and horrible after

 

[DDS rollin a CTS]

Rob - you havent changed your wiper blades in 2 years?!!! You know its "recomended" that you change them every 6 months, right (yeah, they can last for longer than that but 2yrs?!)? As for what others use, I always buy Bosch wiper blades at Pep Boys. They range anywhere from $10-$20 a piece and pop right into place. I've tried the rain-x before and agree its nice for highway driving, but I think it does more harm than good if all you do is city driving. I havent had it during the winter though so I dont know how much it would help there.

One last thing, has anyone seen the new "hot shot" feature, or whatever its called, on the new caddy's? Supposedly if you push a certain button, it will warm up some washer fluid before squirting it on the windshield. Anyone know if that can be retrofitted to the older cars?

 

[AsAkAs]

One last thing, has anyone seen the new "hot shot" feature, or whatever its called, on the new caddy's? Supposedly if you push a certain button, it will warm up some washer fluid before squirting it on the windshield. Anyone know if that can be retrofitted to the older cars?

This feature is brand new on the D-Chassis is it? (Or G, i forget) Anyway, the new DTS and the Buick Lucerne have it. I draws a small amount of washer fluid into a warmer and then sprays it onto your windshield to remove ice/snow/bugs more effectivly. Not sure about any retrofitting yet, sounds complicated tho, piping, tanks, nozzles are probably all different.

 

[RobertCTS]

Rob - you havent changed your wiper blades in 2 years?!!! You know its "recomended" that you change them every 6 months, right (yeah, they can last for longer than that but 2yrs?!)? As for what others use, I always buy Bosch wiper blades at Pep Boys. They range anywhere from $10-$20 a piece and pop right into place. I've tried the rain-x before and agree its nice for highway driving, but I think it does more harm than good if all you do is city driving. I havent had it during the winter though so I dont know how much it would help there.
One last thing, has anyone seen the new "hot shot" feature, or whatever its called, on the new caddy's? Supposedly if you push a certain button, it will warm up some washer fluid before squirting it on the windshield. Anyone know if that can be retrofitted to the older cars?

Never heard of the HotShot. I guess I got my moneys worth out of wipers. It's this Forum that gets me to thinking about my maintenance.
I imagine a good windshield deicer and cleaner is good too but I usually buy what's cheapest.

 

[TripleOught]

One last thing, has anyone seen the new "hot shot" feature, or whatever its called, on the new caddy's?

maybe they ought to call it the money shot instead...

aaaaanyways...i need new wipers but i can't stand the heavy duty wipers that THUMP everytime they change directions. slightly distracting to say the least.

for washer fluid i use the rain-x stuff, it works very good for getting debris off while driving. i don't use the actual "rain-x" windshield treatment though...was never a huge fan of it.

 

[doorknob]

I've had good luck with the Bosch replacement blades on all my vehicles. Our winters tend to be more messy, lots of slush and road dirt, not a lot of heavy snow, and the Bosch blades have always kept my windshield clean.

 

[FSU_Noles]

I have a bottle of RainX in the garage and have used it. A few members as I recall had problems with it but I can't recall what. Is RainX readily available in Europe?
You mentioned living in CA but now you're in Germany. Which is your native country?

I used to be a huge fan of Rain-X but it definitely requires that you keep up the application -- usually once a month. One issue I always had was that during mist rain or highway blowback I always seemed to have hazing after running the wiper blade. I loved it at speed, the water just rolled off.

Personally, I buy a mid-grade replacement blade, not the most $$$ but not the least $, if you change them every 12000 miles or so it just seems like a waste to spend more.

 

[DDS rollin a CTS]

Never heard of the HotShot. I guess I got my moneys worth out of wipers. It's this Forum that gets me to thinking about my maintenance.
I imagine a good windshield deicer and cleaner is good too but I usually buy what's cheapest.

Prestone has a really good winshield de-icer in a spray can. A few squirts and it will melt right through any ice. They also make washer fluid, but I dont know if it shares the same de-icing abilities. From what I have seen, it does do a superior job of cleaning the windshield as opposed to the generic blue stuff. I actually bought some a while back but I wanted to add it when the reservoir was empty (i dont know how much of an effect mixing would have had, I was just being picky). However every time I got low on washer fluid it would coincide with a trip to the shop for an oil change and the guys would fill it up b/c I forgot to tell them not to.