Now I am so old I remember just replacing the rubber strip, Casually mentioned it to the younging, never heard of such a thing but it makes sense. Well finally on the third brand of blades that would not work he called a more experienced guy who got them to work, So glad they do it for free, or it would have meant 3 trips to the auto parts store and much aggravation. Nice they do it for free, an hour lost beats my frustration! 2017 Acadia Limited, trico no go, Bosh no go rainex the final solution.
I just changed blades on both. On the Pontiac I buy th3 oem blades with rubber. They just snap on once you remember how. On the Acura though they just sell the rubber inserts. Two wires along side each that fit into bumps. First one pain in the neck, second one easier, third one piece of cake. Should have had the kid do it.
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You still can. In fact, Toyota and Lexus dealers still sell them that way if you want.
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Do the inserts come with bandaids for the sliced fingers ?
My skin has become so fragile I use gloves for almost everything. I recommend the practice.
I recall replacement inserts being a thing in the 80’s. But for the past ~25ish years, I haven’t seen them being sold much if at all. I swear by Bosch Icons. I’ve tried Trico and Rain X wipers, and nothing has worked as well as the Bosch Icons for me. They last quite a while (comparatively), the last pair of Tricos I tried were done in 9 months, the last pair of Rain X’s didn’t even make it that far. But the Icons are still good to go after 1.5 years of use.
I’ve had really good luck with the Rain-X Beam-style blades. Not the inserts, but the entire wiper blade. Usually I replaced ours every 6-8 months, depending on how they’re working.
Sometimes I cheap out a bit and order some Trico from Rock Auto. But the Rain-X ones seem to work best.
I’ve also gotten good service from Michelin blades. They are currently on sale at Costco, but because they don’t stock the right size for my rear wiper, I go to Wally World for a Bosch Icon wiper in the correct size.
https://www.costco.com/michelin-guardian-beam-wiper-blades-front.product.4000179786.html
I think I paid $30 for a set of oem blades and inserts from rock. Seemed reasonable except for shipping that included other items. The Acura inserts were $8 each at the dealer. So $24 every four or five years doesn’t bother me.
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If you keep your Mazda OEM blades on the car, you can buy the rubber inserts at the dealer. The Mazda design for the fronts just requires threading the rubber into the blade. Only the rear wiper requires you to put the metal strips in before you thread the insert into the blade. Inserts at the Mazda dealer are about ten bucks each and last about a year in our weather.
I am OK with replacing the entire wiper assembly that attaches to the arm. Around here, the pivot points on the metal blade holders corrode and do not flex like they should after a winter or two. Replacing the whole blade assembly solves that problem.
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Bottom line is if the wiper blade doesn’t fit, it is the wrong application for the vehicle, just because your vehicle calls for a 24" and a 20"blade does not mean all 24’ and 20" blades will fit.
I always go for the “exact fit” blades, Trico’s exact fit normally work, but other Trico’s do not… Wiper blades can sometimes be a PITA to order and get the ones that fit…
I used to know Napas basic part numbers for the wipers that worked, but it’s been awhile… lol