meeps

Hi,

I'm thinking I'm due for some new windshield wipers seeing as the only thing they're good at right now is smearing my window.

I've come for suggestions, I've tried aftermarket wipers before but they ended up not going with the curvature of the window, resulting in spots not being touched. But I also don't want to spend some obscene amount of money at the stealership.

If anybodies had luck with aftermarket wipers, could you tell me what you've used?

Oh and the car year is 2004, if that makes any difference which I doubt it should.

Thanks

Simba91102

It may sound boring, but for years I've had good luck with plain old Anco blades (the whole blade, not refills) from Walmart for like $6 each. I have a "whether it needs it or not" policy and replace them once a year (along with the cabin filter). That way, I never really wait until one day it dawns on me "oh yeah, I need to replace the wipers". The driver's side is 26" and the passenger side is 16". If the passenger side blade sits too low (and hits the A pillar), you can raise it by adjusting the wiper arm where it bolts to the wiper motor at the base of the arm. This is on an 05 by the way, so it should be the same for your 04.

zidenx

iTrader: (1)

can you replace the 04's with the newer redesigned 06+ blades? I just replace my 06 with the updated ones and they've been pretty good so far. If they go bad, I'll just replace the rubber inserts from now on.

nj2pa2nc

I agree-the updated ones are excellent on my 06. The dealer had replaced them per the TSB.

Simba91102

It's been my experience that what works well on the 07 (so the 06-08 freshened first gen) has not been the case on the 05. I'm surprised there'd be any difference, but I've tried a couple of wiper blades that work well on my 05 that haven't on the 07 (and vice versa). The Bosch Icon blades (which look like knock offs of the 06-08 OE blades) that work so well on my wife's 07 didn't perform that well on my 05 (hence the return to my $6 Anco blades). I wonder if the arm itself changed from the 04-05 to the 06-08 models.

Guanacoracing

Yes, you can use the one-piece blades from the 06+ on the 04. They definitely work better.

SoCaliTrojan

One of the MMC changes for 06 was that the wiper sits lower for a stealthy look, so the arm must be different so that it sits lower.

Also in 06 they started stamping the windows Acura instead of Honda. Maybe they made very slight design changes in the shape of the windshield at the same time?

The updated 06 wiper blades from the TSB are so way better. I'll see if I can shoot some pictures of the difference this weekend.

Simba91102

I've suspected the windshield may be different, and though I haven't noticed the wiper arm sitting lower, I'm not surprised. This doesn't need to turn into a "this oil filter is better because......" kind of thread. I guess we all have had experience with different wipers and use what works us.

nj2pa2nc

I had the original blades on the car-my biggest complaint was the chattering. No more with the replaced ones and they do a better job. IMO that is-

SoCaliTrojan

I agree. I'm not saying one is better than another...just that the original 06 blades are defective (or have a flawed design). The updated blades are better in that they won't chatter like the original ones (the old one would chatter in heavy rain, light rain, after you've cleaned the windshield, and any other time they were turned on).

nj2pa2nc

So far it seems almost everyone has agreed that the updated blades on the 06 are alot better.

ziboy

I installed 06 wiper blades on my 04 tsx.

They fit but you have to remove the little black braket on the arm. One screw and you are done.

06 are much better than 04, but they are not cheap at all. I paid 150$ for two wiper.

myname367

A neat trick my mechanic told me to do is use alcohol and a towel to wipe the blades.....it works wonders!

virtualbong

Just installed Rain-X Latitude wipers on my girl's 07. Works great so far.

zidenx

iTrader: (1)

Is that replacing the whole arm or blade only? I payed under $40 shipped for both blades.

ziboy

The whole blades that clip into the arm.

60$ for the right side and 80$ for the left side + tx.

SoCaliTrojan

The blades don't cost that much:

http://oemacuraparts.com/partlocator...layCatalogid=0

Or are you using a different currency?

davidspalding

This is confusing ... I directly asked Leith Acura (Cary) Service to show me the wiper TSB, and the guy wouldn't, but said that it mandated a replacement of the wiper ARM, not the wiper ASSEMBLY (the piece that the wiper insert, or blade, slips into on my DIY thread). Does anyone have a copy of TSB #07015 to share, I'd like to read it (and the online PDF that is linked to in many threads is corrupted).

Post by an Acura tech elsewhere:

SoCaliTrojan

There are 3 components (well, I suppose the motor is the 4th): wiper arm, wiper blade, and wiper refill. When we use the term blade, we mean the component that the rubber refills slide onto, and then the entire blade is fitted onto the wiper arm.

I remembered seeing it somewhere, and it took me a while to find it. Try this link:

http://techinfo.honda.com/rjanisis/pubs/SB/B07-015.pdf

I believe it is courtesy of a vendor here, Tim (oemacuraparts.com). If you want to order the parts online, you need to go to his site. I tried several online acura dealers, but only Tim's site has the updated part numbers in their online system.

If it doesn't work, I think you have to go to estore.honda.com and just pick any vehicle...and then go back to the link. (I think it might place a cookie on your computer or something.) If it doesn't work, let me know and I'll send you a copy (since I have it on my screen right now, I saved it just in case).

By the way, there is nothing wrong with the wiper arm. The problem lies in the wiper blade. If you compare the old and new wiper blades, you'll see that they are quite different.

ziboy

#5 are refill.

It includes the refill and the wiper assembly that connect to the arm.

If you are doing the 04-06 conversion, the wipers are totally different.

DLTSX6MT

I was over at acuraoemparts.com, all ready to buy the blades that the site says fit 06-08 TSX. But then I noticed the part numbers are 76620-SEA-G11 and 76630-SEC-A11, which AcuraTech described as the original 06 blades. The new part numbers 76620-SEC-305 and 76630-SEC-306 don't come up at all.

Maybe by now, Acura has flushed out the supply of all of the old blades and now the new blades have the old part numbers? Can anybody here confirm that they've order those old part numbers from them and gotten the new blades? (Somebody at the other forum has sort of already done so, but not 100%.)

SoCaliTrojan

#5 are refill inserts as you mentioned, and #4 is the wiper assembly that combines the wiper blade and refill (that connects to the wiper arm).

#4 is still cheap. I guess you replaced the arms too, which is #1. According to your post below, though, you implied you only replaced the wiper blades/assemblies, not the wiper arms:

SoCaliTrojan

Like I said, oemacuraparts.com (one of our forum vendors) was the only online dealer that had the new part numbers in their system. acuraoemparts.com does not have it.

When I received my order from oemacuraparts.com, the labels had the new part numbers on them. I doubt if you ordered the old part numbers that they would send the new part numbers, but I could be wrong. (Maybe when they type in the old part numbers, their system will tell them to send a different part number instead?)

My guess is that not every dealer is aware of the new parts. The new part numbers are in a TSB that not every dealer knows about (unless someone complains about their wipers and they go search for the TSB).

Either that, or they have a huge stock of the old parts and want to get rid of them first before advertising the new parts. I'm sure it doesn't help when informed customers who frequent online forums ask for the new parts.

TLtrigirl

iTrader: (1)

yeah they work great until they break. i HAD them on my car this morning. my passenger side wiper blade literally snapped off while i was on the hwy going to work (i've had them on for about 8-9 months) in the rain. WTF?! all that was left was the bracket that held the blade left on the arm scratching my windshield. thankfully i had a set of silblades at my house and i put those on as soon as i got home. POS rainx blades. i read other negative reviews on amazon...apparently this is a common incident. so just FYI.

davidspalding

I believe the rubber blades (inserts) for the TSB wiper assemblies are different from the ones for the stock 2006 wiper assemblies. I think I'm sticking with the originals, I don't want a dealership taking my stock wiper assemblies, replacing them with a new part for which the inserts are harder to get.

The illustration of the TSB wiper assembly makes it look a little taller (off the windscreen), with the blade sticking out more. The 2010 revised TSB also shows NO work being done on the wiper arm, no change to the spring. Changes to anyone's wiper arm might've been the result of the dealer service tech making adjustments outside of the TSB.

(BTW, I'm using the terminology used in the OM. Check p. 301 (2006 OM) if you're confused.)

BTW, the hosted TSB file is definitely corrupted, thanks to Trojan for sending me his old, uncorrupted copy.

DLTSX6MT

Perfect. Thanks for straightening me out. I've placed my order.

zidenx

iTrader: (1)

I ordered from Acurapartswarehouse.com. They have the updated part numbers on their website already. Just search for the part number and it should show up.

davidspalding

Someone post some pics, please. From the ones I've seen, the TSB wipers are not as sleek or self-contained as the old ones. ... Maybe if the price comes down enough, I"ll buy new ones and try them out. I like my old ones, and usually have minimal or no noise. (a little squeak/groan, but no "ch-ch-chatter").

... That's an idea, I could swap to new ones during heavy rain days, but use the stock ones for all-season use. The price for both wiper assemblies used to be $55+, so the cost of trying both really isn't so bad..... :think:

virtualbong

Well, lets hope that doesn't happen to hers because I will get an earful if it does. hahaha.

SoCaliTrojan

I would hope that the issue with the dealers eventually resolves itself. Maybe once their supplies go out, they'll start stocking the newer model inserts. My local dealer gave out free wipers a while back ( https://acurazine.com/forums/socal-310/free-windshield-wipers-center-acura-806151/ ), so maybe it was one way for them to boost public relations while making room for new wipers?

In any event, you can always just call the dealer in advance and ask them to special order the wiper refills for you. The only time you would need an urgent one right away is if your current wipers disintegrate on you during a rainy day, but I guess that's when you can pop on your old style wipers (I always have two refills stored away as backups).

Here are some quick shots I did with my blackberry before I went to work today. Let me know if you need closer shots. I'll do a comparison shot later, once I remember where I put my old wiper blades at.

Santa Rosa Steve

Thanks for the shots SoCaliTrojan. The rounded ends look more appropriate for the styling of our cars than the squared-off originals. How do they work?

SoCaliTrojan

The new style wipers are divided into segments rather than one long piece. That allows the wipers to adjust to the contours of the windshield rather than having some parts of the wipers lift off the windshield.

We just had a ton of rain today. I put it on the maximum setting, and there is no sound whatsoever. Even with the radio on, I actually heard my rear sway bar squeak even though its farther away from me.

With the old style, even when they are brand new, you can hear the blades slide over the windshield. The new one doesn't do it. If anything, all I hear is a very slight sound when the driver's wiper changes direction. I noticed the very end of it vibrates back and forth a little when the wiper changes direction (inertia?), so I may need to look at it closer. Even then, compared to the old style wipers, the new style wipers are nearly silent.

I admit, the old wipers trained me to expect noise. I always drove by setting the wipers at the lowest setting, and then turning them off whenever there wasn't a moderate amount of rain hitting my windshield (I have like 5 sets of the old-style refills lying around because I was willing to replace the refills every month or so). With the new style wipers, I leave the wipers on. I found out today that the speed-dependent wiper feature (the one that slows down your wipers when you are stopped at a light) only works when the lever is on the 1st (slowest) setting. I would have never dared to use the middle or highest speed settings at a stop light with the old style wipers.

davidspalding

Thanks for the pics, they look better installed.

Special ordering from the dealer is no problem ... so long as you don't mind the exorbitant prices dealers charge for parts! I've been through all this for cabin air filters, wiper inserts, etc. It's better to get parts online. Yes, I do stock extra inserts in my garage, if need blades I don't want to wait, I just r&r them myself.

I'm reconsidering, thanks to your pics. I may try to let the stealership let me keep the old ones for track days, in which noise is, erm, not a primary concern. Í

davidspalding

Can I get some ketchup with my words I'm about to eat....

Thinking of ordering the TSB set as it's getting cheap enough ($26 or so from Tim at Oem Acura Parts of Peoria) ... I could use some street wipers for the typical NC deluge, then I can use the old ones for track (where noise is most definitely not an issue) and craptastic pollen season.

Reflls are about $4 each, more than the old ones, but ... if I use the wipers periodically (and don't expose them to sun and pollen) they ought to last a while.

nj2pa2nc

The pollen season, at least here on the coast, is coming to an end. I now get to enjoy it again when I head to Jersey on Sunday. It is just starting there. I have good luck with the wiper blades. When I lived in NJ/PA is would make sure the windshield cleaner fluid was filled and also carried fluid in the car. I used lots of it driving on the roads after a snow storm and cars or trucks splashining dirty salt/ on the windshield.

alucardx

glad i found this thread. i called the stealership and they don't stock the new blades. they wanted $53 to order them.

putting my order in at oemacuraparts now