Rain-X Latitude & Trico NeoForm Wiper Blades

[FloatingBrick]

Approximately 2 years ago AAP had both on sale, so I put a pair of the Trico on my Taurus and a pair of the Rain-X on the wife's DD. Although we have a rainy season (lots of rain this past spring) here in SW GA, conditions are pretty easy on blades.

Although both are expensive, they work well - don't streak, and clear the windshields. However, last month the Rain-X blades started streaking a bit and squeaking loudly. The rubber is hard and starting to pit.

The Tricos are fine, so I replaced the Rain-X with a set of NeoForms. No sale on NeoForms at AAP, but I used the ES123 code and got three blades for $36.97. If I get two years out of them, it works out to a little over $6/year.

Although I'm going with the NeoForms over the Latitudes, the latter aren't bad at all and give a good service life for the money.

Anyone else like the NeoForms? I'm curious about how they hold up to snow and ice.

 

[HTSS_TR]

I have Trico NeoForms on S2000 and E430 for more than 2 years and both still working well, I think they will probably lasted another year or so. I bought several pairs for each car while it was on sale and with rebate the cost was less than $3-4 each.

We don't have snow or ice in So Cal so I don't know how well they do on those conditions.

 

[dparm]

If your car sees the four seasons, you really need to be replacing every 6 months -- spring and fall. My father worked for Bosch's wiper division for over 20 years and insists that this is the best approach, and not just his former company's way of squeezing more money from people.

 

[NHGUY]

I have the Tricos and they are great.

 

[barlowc]

Originally Posted By: dparm
If your car sees the four seasons, you really need to be replacing every 6 months -- spring and fall.

With all due respect, I personally think that every 6 months is WAY, WAY more frequent than needed except maybe in the severest of conditions. With a good set of blades, I generally get 2-3 years. Keep in mind, this is on vehicles that are kept in a garage.

Our VUE has a set of Bosch ICON blades that have been on there for almost 3 years. They still work just fine and the rubber isn't too bad, but I've certainly gotten my use out of them and have a set of Trico NeoForms that I'd picked up on sale ready to go.

 

[dparm]

The reasoning behind twice a year has to do with the way that the rubber takes a "set" on the windshield. Wipe quality goes down over time.

I can typically go a year before the wipe performance gets bad, but I am not parking it outside in the dead of winter regularly, nor am I letting it bake in the desert sun for days on end.

 

[Sequoiasoon]

I'm not sure which Trico set I had at one point. It was a beam blade design and worked well until it snowed.

One of there designs mounts on the hook BUT it is offset on the side of the blade not over the middle. I bumped the blade while clearing snow with brush and the plastic snapped. Same thing happened to my dad (with same blades) 2 days later when a little ice slid off roof at a stop sign.

We have used MANY sets over the years and used to use the Anco Winter blades for winter. Factory, Bosch, Anco, Trico, Rain-X and a couple others. None ever had that style mounting and none ever broke that way. We replaced all the next day with Bosch Icons.

Side note: If you have room by your spare tire or somewhere keep at least one of your old blades in the container in case something stupid happens. I had to take the 14" rear wiper off the Sequoia that day because of course it was a blizzard and many places were not open. Better reduced area of vision than scratched window or no vision.

 

[FloatingBrick]

Quote:
If you have room by your spare tire or somewhere keep at least one of your old blades in the container in case something stupid happens.


That's a great idea. My Taurus uses a 20" and a 24" and wife's DD uses two 22", so I bought an extra 20" as a backup. But you never know what can happen on the road, so an extra sitting in the shed doesn't help.

Guess I'll dig one of the old ones out of the trash.

 

[dailydriver]

Originally Posted By: dparm
The reasoning behind twice a year has to do with the way that the rubber takes a "set" on the windshield. Wipe quality goes down over time.

I can typically go a year before the wipe performance gets bad, but I am not parking it outside in the dead of winter regularly, nor am I letting it bake in the desert sun for days on end.


Would you (or your dad) know if the rubber quality/longevity got worse on the newer(est) Bosch blades made in China, vs. ALL of the older blades which were made in Belgium.

I purposely order the steel, eight point, regular frame Micro Edge Bosch blades (NOT the Micro Edge Excels, Excel Plus, or Icons, or Marathons, etc. which HAVE TO BE MADE in Sinoland) specifically BECAUSE there is at least a 75% chance that they will show up with "Made In Belgium" printed on the back of the package.

 

[dparm]

He hasn't worked for Bosch for a while now, so I don't think he can comment. We've been using Bosch Micro Edge Excel or ICONs on our cars for a long time, and not once have I thought their performance was going downhill.

Unlike many other "Bosch" products, they do make their own wipers. Stuff like the batteries are just rebranded for them, so if Bosch IS making stuff in China, it's being made to their specification. I'll ask and see if he knows anything.

He sticks to a strict spring/fall change schedule -- Micro Edge Excel for the warm months, ICONs for the cold. My M3 can take the ICONs off the shelf, which is great, but not the Micro Edge Excel. The MEE has better wipe performance, but can get clogged with debris in the winter.

 

[dparm]

So I emailed my Dad and he said that he did hear through the grapevine that Bosch has a plant in China now to build this stuff. Your guess is as good as mine as to the quality, but know that it is still Bosch building it and not some no-name factory.

 

[Garak]

Originally Posted By: dparm
The reasoning behind twice a year has to do with the way that the rubber takes a "set" on the windshield. Wipe quality goes down over time.

I agree completely, but I'm OCD over wipers. Besides, the winter up here is way too hard on the things.

 

[gizzsdad]

Originally Posted By: FloatingBrick
Although both are expensive, they work well - don't streak, and clear the windshields. However, last month the Rain-X blades started streaking a bit and squeaking loudly. The rubber is hard and starting to pit.

The Tricos are fine, so I replaced the Rain-X with a set of NeoForms.


Interestingly, my experience is almost the opposite. I had Neoforms on both vehicles and liked the wiping performance, but the blade itself failed (sheared at the thin point) on both within a year. So I then tried the Latitudes, which are still on both vehicles a year and a half later. But the weak point for the Latitudes seems to be the attachment, which appears more sturdy on the Tricos.

But I found out that Trico is making a more sturdy blade, called the Force or Onyx, depending on where they are sold. At the time I bought them, I got the Forces at O'Reillys and the Onyx seemed to be available at AAP. So I have had them for at least 6 months, and will likely install them before winter.

http://www.tricoproducts.com/Drivers/WiperProducts/PremiumPerformance/TRICOForce

 

[dparm]

Trico is a massive wiper company and should make a reliable product. Someone is making the blades for Rain-X, and probably not to the highest standard.

Seriously, consider Bosch or Valeo/SWF -- both make excellent blades for the OEMs. If your car is Japanese, there is also NWB (they make the refills available at the dealer).

 

[FloatingBrick]

Quote:
The reasoning behind twice a year has to do with the way that the rubber takes a "set" on the windshield. Wipe quality goes down over time.


Is this supposed to be true of the 'beam' blades? I cannot see spending the money for the NeoForms twice/year, especially when I'm at two years of service with no issues (at least yet).

 

[artificialist]

If you were using the cheapest Bosch replacement blades, you would need to replace every 6 months. However, the Bosch beam blade that matches your car's wiper arm lasts far longer.

 

[hattaresguy]

I have had a set of Bosch ICON's on my truck for over two years now and they seem fine, I'm wondering how far I can go with them...

 

[dparm]

Originally Posted By: artificialist
If you were using the cheapest Bosch replacement blades, you would need to replace every 6 months. However, the Bosch beam blade that matches your car's wiper arm lasts far longer.



The blade design has nothing to do with it. It's the rubber that simply gets micro-cuts and hardens.

 

[andrewg]

I've found that ALL expensive "premium" blades are a waste of money. Why? Because I've tried the vast majority of the most highly touted blades and found every one of them to wear out quickly and as such a huge performance downgrade occurs within 6 months. I live in a very wet place (8 months of the year it rains volumes). The best wipers for me are the basic Trico Exact Fit OEM blades. They work well for at least a year and don't cost an arm and a leg. They also don't stand out like some massive ghetto accessory saying ..."Look at me....I've got expensive wipers that stand out like a midget wearing size 12 shoes".
Just my opinion.

 

[FloatingBrick]

Quote:
"Look at me....I've got expensive wipers that stand out like a midget wearing size 12 shoes"


lol, I always thought those triple edge neon blades were hysterical. I don't think the NeoForms stand out all that much.

Maybe it's the climate here, but I think two years (and still going) is worth the money. I really don't think I'd get that kind of service life out of standard blades.